The 3,500km “mystery” itinerary will see 12 travellers cross three borders and navigate four countries en route from Tehran to Istanbul.
Intrepid says the 18-day trip, which departs next April, has been planned in secret by the operator’s destination managers.
“We have seen an appetite from travellers to be completely surprised,” said Intrepid co-founder Darrell Wade.
“They put their faith in Intrepid delivering the best travel experience, as everything is an unknown on these trips, aside from adventure.”
The new trip follows the launch of Intrepid’s inaugural uncharted expedition launch last year, which sold out in just 36 hours despite the operator pledging to withhold the itinerary until the first day of travel (30 June).
Wade said Intrepid’s uncharted travel style harked back to the operator’s early days when it would announce trips with little to no details via classified ads.
“This is our way of returning to the roots of travel, and how our company began 30 years ago, by being on the frontier of destinations and experiences,” said Wade.
“Some of the best travel experiences are unplanned. In this case, all the planning has been done by our expert team.”
Intrepid is once again keeping tight-lipped about the expedition, but has revealed its 2020 uncharted expedition could one day involve travellers exploring a 3,000-year-old village and the next learning an ancient language that doesn’t involve speech.
“Travellers have the rare chance to abandon expectations,” Wade added. “While we can’t tell you where you’re going, we can tell you that it will be eye-opening. You’ll sleep in factories and rock caves, and eat boiled cow hoof soup. You will bear witness to spiritual, archaeological, religious and political history. Humanity will come to light in a way you’d never expect.”
Intrepid has extended the application window to four weeks. Travellers must register their details via uncharted.intrepidtravel.com by 9 July. Successful applicants will be notified by email during the second week of July.
The trip is part of Intrepid’s Expeditions range, designed to give explorers a unique insight into rarely travelled parts of the work while allowing Intrepid to uncover new destinations and test new trip ideas. Travellers will be asked to provide feedback, which will help determine whether the itinerary is added to the operator’s 2021 Expeditions range.
It is priced from £2,495pp, excluding flights, and is strictly limited to one departure.
