September'2025 Newsletter

Travel the World with us

Dear Travelers,

As we move into the heart of a new travel year, we want to begin by thanking you — sincerely — for the trust you continue to place in Spiekermann Travel. Whether you have traveled with us recently or are planning your next journey, your confidence in our experience, judgment, and care is something we never take for granted.

We feel incredibly fortunate to have such loyal, adventurous souls as part of our travel family. Thank you for being on this journey with us!

It's been a brutal winter in much of the US so, as many of you are experiencing this recent Arctic chill, it certainly warms our hearts to talk, plan, and dream about sunny destinations—especially across Africa and other warmer climates.

Winter Journeys and Geopolitical challenges

January was a very successful month for us. We completed our Ghana–Togo–Benin journey, along with tours to South Sudan, Burundi, and Nigeria. Currently, we have 12 travelers accompanied by Michel Behar winding their way along the Atlantic Coast of Africa—starting in Sierra Leone, then Liberia, and now Guinea-Conakry. Soon they will cross into Guinea-Bissau, followed by The Gambia, and finally Senegal. If you’re interested in joining one of these same tours in 2027, we’ve provided links to each.

As February begins, we are now preparing for our upcoming Yemen tour, exploring the eastern region of Hadramout, as well as our Mali and Burkina Faso departures.

Many of you may have heard about the recent visa challenges resulting from the standoff between the U.S. government and certain African nations. Unfortunately, this led to some of our guests being unable to obtain visas, particularly for Niger and Burkina Faso. This meant a very busy month for our team, as we worked to create alternative plans and rearrange schedules for more than 30 travelers.

Out of this challenge came exciting new opportunities. Some travelers opted for tropical destinations such as Equatorial Guinea, São Tomé, or Cape Verde, while others chose desert adventures in Mauritania or the Western Sahara in southern Morocco.

Speaking of which, if you haven't considered experiencing one of our year-round Guaranteed Departure destinations, you may want to now. From Cape Verde in the West to Comoros, Madagascar and Zanzibar in the East, if you're looking to journey to an exotic destination in the warm sunshine with the added bonus of their unique cultural backgrounds, we've got you covered any time of year!

Also, please remember that while U.S. citizens are currently being denied visas to Niger, non-American travelers—or U.S. citizens holding a second nationality—can still visit. We had two travelers explore Niger in January and return with very positive feedback. We therefore encourage eligible travelers to consider our Niger tour planned for 2027, with the hope that political conditions will improve and U.S. citizens may once again be able to join.

Unique Opportunity to visit Venezuela

Sometimes unfortunate events open unexpected windows. Following recent developments in Venezuela, we learned that President Trump has decided to allow American tourists to visit the country once again after years of closure.

We are already preparing a comprehensive and exciting Venezuela itinerary, ready to launch as soon as the door officially opens. We have a growing list of interested travelers, so please let us know you would like your name added by signing up here. No obligation, just an opportunity to learn more in the coming days and weeks.

Spring Tours

Several upcoming spring tours still have availability. First is our Iraq tour in April, led by Miklos Sarkozy and one of our flagship journeys for over 13 years. Iraq is quickly becoming the next great archaeological destination in the Middle East, offering ancient sites, museums, and architectural gems—still largely untouched by mass tourism. This is a rare opportunity to experience the country in its most authentic form.

Our second spring highlight is Algeria in April, led by Iain Shearer. Algeria offers an extraordinary variety of attractions: remarkably preserved Roman ruins, colonial architecture, Moorish cities, lush oases, mountains, deserts, and ancient towns where life feels medieval. Like Iraq, Algeria has only recently begun opening to tourism, making now the perfect time to visit.

A third captivating spring option is Eastern Turkey, rich in culture, history, and dramatic landscapes, and led by Dr. Barbara Porter. This part of Turkey isa not your typical touristy area, it delves into the unchartered parts of the country which has endless sites and cities that are seldom visited while still enjoying the legendary culinary heritage of Anatolia and its stunning landscape from mountains to lakes and valley to canyons.

Summer

Looking ahead to summer and fall, we still have space on our Namibia and Angola tours—two of Africa’s most alluring destinations. Namibia enchants with its surreal landscapes, Atlantic coastline, and wildlife, while Angola offers authentic tribal encounters and stunning Art Deco towns that rival Miami Beach. These two trips can also be combined back-to-back.

We also have a few spaces remaining on our Malawi & Zimbabwe trip departing in May. This thoughtfully paced journey combines wildlife, culture, and natural beauty. From Lake Malawi’s serene shores to Zimbabwe’s extraordinary national parks and Victoria Falls, this tour offers a deeper look at southern Africa beyond the typical safari experience.

Fall

For this Fall, we highly recommend two exceptional journeys for lovers of ancient history and truly exotic destinations. First is Libya, featuring awe-inspiring Roman and Greek sites and some of the most hospitable people you will ever meet. Our October 2026 tour, led by Dr. Barbara Porter, covers both Tripolitania and eastern Libya, including Apollonia, Cyrene, and Benghazi.

Second is Afghanistan (September–October), led by Iain Shearar and visiting the remarkable cities of Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif, as well as the Bamyan region—home to the former giant Buddhas and the breathtaking turquoise lakes.

Spiekermann Team Update

Finally, we are delighted to share some great news: Spiekermann Travel has welcomed a new partner, Hassan (or "Haas") Ragab, who is helping us expand our marketing efforts, enhance our digital presence, and elevate our social media content. Many of you may have already noticed the beautiful updates and improvements to our website—his expertise has already made a meaningful impact.

We are also pleased to welcome Lura Stepa to Spiekermann Travel as a Travel Consultant.

Lura brings strong international experience in client support, coordination, and multilingual communication, with professional experience in both Europe and the United States. She is highly organized, detail-oriented, and deeply committed to ensuring travelers feel informed and supported throughout the planning process.

Many of you will be hearing from Lura as she assists with upcoming departures, documentation, and logistics. We are delighted to have her on the team and confident she will be a wonderful resource for our travelers.

Thank You — and We Look Forward to Traveling with You

Thank you again for being part of the Spiekermann Travel community. Your curiosity, openness, and trust allow us to continue designing journeys that go beyond the expected.

If you have questions about any upcoming departure, would like help selecting a spring journey, or simply want to talk through ideas, we would be delighted to hear from you. For your convenience, we have added a Trip Finder to the homepage of our website and have updated the Group Tour Page for 2026 and the Group Tour Page for 2027 as well.

We look forward to traveling with you soon and continuing to explore the world together.

Warm regards,

Sincerely,

Ihab Zaki, Managing Director

Spiekermann Travel