Page 66 - DreamScapes Magazine | Spring/Summer 2023

TRAVEL GALLERY
Travel expert Cynthia David provides updates on the tourism industry in this curated collection that appears in every issue — TRAVEL NEWS YOU CAN USE
FOUNTAINE PAJOT
HISAO SUZUKI
When you think of eco-friendly transportation, luxury yachts probably don’t come to mind. Until now. Vacation company Dream Yacht Worldwide and designer/builder Fountaine Pajot have joined forces to create a fleet of electric-powered catamarans. The first model, Aura 51 Smart Electric, was available for charter in Italy in April. The Aura’s efficient engines provide enough power to cruise for hours or dock at anchor up to a week without any emissions. The partners expect to add 10 electric catamarans and 12 electric yachts to the Dream Yacht fleet by next spring. Dreamyachtcharter.com
Thanda Island, a speck of sand in the Indian Ocean 30 minutes by helicopter from Tanzania, is considered one of the world’s most exclusive getaways and has been repeatedly voted by the World Travel Awards as the “World’s Leading Exclusive Private Island.” Opened in 2016, it takes just 15 minutes to walk around this Tanzanian island paradise. From the stunning villa, head to the private marine sanctuary for a lesson in conservation. Snorkel past floating nurseries where coral fragments are grown for six to 12 months, attracting many tropical fish. At this Leading Hotels of the World property, you can even join resident marine biologist Rianne Laan as a coral gardener and help transplant these fragments into a reef under restoration. Thandaisland.com
The Canary Islands is celebrating the first 25 years of an expected 40-year project to create an ecological park around a rare, endan- gered Dragon Tree growing in the midst of an urban area. The 1,000-year-old tree is considered the last of its kind on the archipelago. Three Spanish architects behind the project, working with botanists and biologists, have persevered despite criticism for removing a road near the site to further protect the tree. They’re now constructing a new visitor’s centre. About a million people a year visit Parque del Drago, located in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. webtenerifefr.com
Be the first to explore Colombia’s Magdalena River between Carta- gena and Barranquilla aboard one of AmaWaterways’ two new luxury cruise ships. Starting next spring, choose from two seven- night itineraries, Magic of Colombia or Wonders of Colombia. Highlights en route include a private Carnaval celebration in Barran- quilla, a historical walking tour of UNESCO colonial town Mompox, dancing in Palenque and birdwatching tours to spot a few of the country’s more than 1,900 species. The 60- or 64-passenger small ships offer spacious accommodation with twin balconies, locally- inspired cuisine and sweeping views of the Magdalena basin, which harbours plants and animals not found anywhere else on the planet. AmaWaterways.ca
THANDA ISLAND
COURTESY OF AMAWATERWAYS
66 DREAMSCAPES SPRING/SUMMER 2023