South America

Someone check if the llamas are running the airline...

Quebec

Canada

Lima

Peru

Ottawa

Lima, Peru 🦙 in $700s-$740s RT

Your friends might get jealous of the views...

Los Angeles

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Peru 🦙 at $482 RT

100km from Lima lies a desert like no other…

Amsterdam

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Lima, Peru 🦙 in €5000s-€5100s rtn

We're shocked these flights to Peru are under £500 return! 

Edinburgh

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Lima 🦙 in £450s-£480s rtn

We saw these great flights to Lima and thought of you immediately!

Denver

Lima, Peru 🦙 at $446 RT

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Brazil, Peru, Argentina & more 🌴 in $200s-$490s RT

Peru was amazing. Rainy season (Feb) so hardly any tourists. Lima is busy and fun. Puerto Maldonado- met a sloth right outside our room. HummingBirds, butterflies, monkeys, caiman, vultures. Cusco and the Sacred Valley - sublime. Climbed Machu Picchu mountain. Arequipa- monastery and volcanos. Gorgeous friendly people. And the Llamas&hellip; 🦙🧡 loved it all. I now need to improve my Spanish and do the rest of South America. THANK YOU Jacks. Couldn&rsquo;t have afforded it without you ❤️

Postcard from Guy&Pennyde

So grateful to Jacks. We had an absolute ball. Climbed Machu Picchu mountain. Sloths, cayman, hummingbirds, gorgeous people, very few tourists and amazing weather for rainy season! THANK YOU xx

Postcard from Penny & Guy 

I appreciated your support with flight searching and finding a comfy and spacious bag! Wonderful trip.

Postcard from Giulia

After a few weeks in Peru, we headed to the Amazon. We had walked two hours along a boardwalk in the middle of the Amazon jungle to get to Sandoval lake. We started by rowing slowly down a small stream with cayman’s eyes bobbing up and down menacingly. We began on a small rowing boat and were rowing idyllically around the lake. An energetic Peruvian tourist decided to take over the rowing. A few meters in I felt a sharp pain. Seconds later, I look down to my legs and there are tens of inch long wasps all over me and stinging. I later discovered these wasps were newly discovered and killed spiders. It turns out he had rowed us into a wasp’s nest. The small boat began heavily rocking and he stood up shouting “ayuda, por favour, mis amigos”. We were trapped in the bushes due to strong winds with the options of: the marshy land with cobras on, the boat with giant wasps and the lake with caymans in. We waited until the wind died down but the headache and pain did not until a cocktail. Glad I wasn’t allergic - inserted picture of my hand post sting!

Story from FrankieM

Thanks so much for the offer! My girlfriend and I just booked this flight to Peru for May! 

Postcard from David

Just booked a flight to Peru from Birmingham in February, fantastic price ! To a bucket list destination. 

Postcard from Steve

This article was originally published in the Detour in July 2024

Like most travellers, this&nbsp;<a href="https://www.britannica.com/list/new-seven-wonders-of-the-world?lid=dxmbg0dzu8x1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wonder of the world</a>&nbsp;has held a firm spot on my bucket list for some time now. However, being a budget traveller, I&rsquo;d put it off due to rumours of gasp-worthy permit prices and extortionate train fares. But when I found some pretty reasonably priced flights from my local airport to Lima, I decided it was time to bite the bullet.
Given my short 2-week travel dates and the long list of other Peruvian activities I planned to cram in, I soon ruled out tackling the entire Inca Trail. My mission: somehow balance visiting Machu Picchu on a budget, quickly, and meaningfully.
First off, timing. I left my dates in the hands of the cheap-flight-gods, but if you have the option, you may want to plan a bit more strategically. April&ndash;October is the dry season, while November&ndash;March is the wet season. Side note: the Inca Trail closes throughout February, but Machu Picchu remains open year round. I happened to visit in March, so was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C4F_p7NLlBo/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&amp;lid=03l1xfor0sew" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expecting something like this</a>. Instead, I was met with blinding sunshine, mist-free views and even a little souvenir sunburn!

Now, onto the tickets. Aim to book these at least a couple of months in advance&mdash;any closer than that, and you run the risk of them selling out. This bit is probably the most confusing, so take time to do your research before booking. Essentially, there are different tickets offering access to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketmachupicchu.com/new-tourist-circuits-machu-picchu/?lid=m9ntz6txo6ts" target="_blank" rel="noopener">4 separate circuits</a>, and plenty of add-ons like an Inca bridge crossing or additional mountain hike.
When I bought my ticket, I was able to select a bundle of all 4 routes, but now it appears that you can only select one, so choose wisely! Ideally,&nbsp;<a href="https://reservas.machupicchu.gob.pe/inicio?lid=gbhbz768w23f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the official site</a>&nbsp;is the best place to buy tickets, but as of writing this, I can&rsquo;t seem to get through the booking process. Alternatively, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ticketmachupicchu.com/prices-of-machu-picchu-tickets/?lid=5hhq6mox4v9h" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reputable agency like this one</a>&nbsp;is also a safe bet. They&rsquo;re currently listing adult entry tickets at &pound;45/$59 (which is the same as what I paid), or students can get half price entry with a valid student ID.
With your tickets secured, it&rsquo;s time to look at transport. Assuming, like me, you&rsquo;ll land in Lima, you&rsquo;ll need to make your way to Cusco. Flying is the most convenient way, with one-way fares costing around &pound;40&mdash;&pound;50&mdash;although this may get even cheaper if&nbsp;<a href="https://english.elpais.com/international/2023-08-28/a-controversial-airport-in-the-sacred-valley-of-the-incas.html?lid=ct8va0xks28q" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this new,&nbsp;controversial&nbsp;airport</a> opens.
From there, you&rsquo;ll need to head to Aguas Calientes&mdash;the home town of Machu Picchu. This is where things get annoying. There are two train companies operating a return service: Inca Rail and Peru Rail. And just know that if you buy a ticket from Cusco, it will involve an initial short coach ride to Ollantaytambo first before boarding the train.

Both companies charge a minimum of &pound;45 one-way for the approx. 35 km trip from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes. And that is pretty much the only option they want tourists to take. From researching online, it doesn&rsquo;t appear that you can hike there, cycle there or even drive there yourself. There is, however, a somewhat secretive bus you can take&mdash;<a href="https://www.tim-tense.com/cheap-to-machu-picchu-from-cusco/?lid=8zdt40q0jqd6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">see more details here</a>. If I had more time, this is 100% the option I would have gone with.
Sadly for my wallet, it was the &pound;100 return train option for me. On the plus side, the train was quick, comfy and offered spectacular views throughout the entire journey. The downside? Besides being insanely over-priced, it felt&hellip;er&hellip;weird.&nbsp;
As we queued up, waiting to board our carriage, blaring rhythmic drums and panpipes abruptly cut through the tranquil early morning bird songs. Suddenly, a rainbow-clad procession of tired-looking rail workers hopped through the crowd. Thinking that may have been a performative one-off, I was just as taken aback when, mid-journey, 2 more rainbow-clad performers acted out a 10-min exaggerated love story in the aisle of our carriage. To say that everyone felt uncomfortable would be an understatement.
The town of Aguas Calientes is pretty small, but you&rsquo;ll find heaps of hotels dotted all along the roaring river. Despite the immense concentration of tourists, it still has a pretty charm with enough to do to keep you busy for a day or two, like visiting hot springs and waterfalls. I stayed in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.booking.com/hotel/pe/rockrivers.html?aid=304142&amp;label=gen173bo-1FCAEoggI46AdIM1gDaEaIAQGYATG4ARfIAQzYAQHoAQH4AQOIAgGYAiGoAgO4ArTxmrQGwAIB0gIkZTQzMTU1ZTEtOGZhNC00NTI2LWIyNDktZjE2ZDc3YjRkMmNi2AIF4AIB&amp;sid=0c11c58fc7299be73545b618a0005ee0&amp;all_sr_blocks=1062332312_378563694_2_41_0&amp;checkin=2024-09-10&amp;checkout=2024-09-11&amp;dist=0&amp;group_adults=2&amp;group_children=0&amp;hapos=1&amp;highlighted_blocks=1062332312_378563694_2_41_0&amp;hpos=1&amp;matching_block_id=1062332312_378563694_2_41_0&amp;no_rooms=1&amp;req_adults=2&amp;req_children=0&amp;room1=A%2CA&amp;sb_price_type=total&amp;sr_order=distance_from_search&amp;sr_pri_blocks=1062332312_378563694_2_41_0__6353&amp;srepoch=1720105212&amp;srpvid=936f697bbc9f06ee&amp;type=total&amp;ucfs=1&amp;selected_currency=GBP&amp;lid=kd8i43ls0nn7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this hotel</a>, which set me back &pound;50/night including breakfast.

Finally, on to Machu Picchu. From the town, you're faced with two options: book a return shuttle bus up to the entrance for &pound;20, or hike it. Since I had already skipped the Inca Trail and wanted to save money, you can guess which one I chose.&nbsp;
I was surprised to find that the hike itself was really enjoyable, and I only came across one other person along the way. It&rsquo;s a very peaceful walk up, with a soundtrack of birds chirping and the distant whirr of the shuttle bus on the road below. Thankfully, the path is also shrouded in leafy green foliage, so you have plenty of protection from the elements.
When I reached the top, everything suddenly felt very bright. I'd just spent an hour or so walking undercover, and when I emerged, the sun was in full force. There wasn't much shade up there at all, so at times when it got a little too much, we had to huddle under terrace ledges or large rocks to get a break from the rays.
I was really impressed, though&mdash;the complex is much larger than I expected, and there was ample space to wander around without getting stuck in throngs of tourists. It's also really well maintained&mdash;the site is spotless, the grass is green, even the llamas looked happy! The only downside was the lack of information once you&rsquo;re up there, but that can be easily fixed by booking a guide.

Lauren's pro trips:
<ul>
<li>They won&rsquo;t let you in a second earlier than the exact time slot on your ticket</li>
<li aria-level="1">Bring your passport, otherwise you&rsquo;ll be denied entry.</li>
<li aria-level="1">There&rsquo;s no food/drink stands or toilets on site, so bring snacks and do everything you&rsquo;ve gotta do before going in!</li>
<li aria-level="1">Once you leave, you can't re-enter</li>
<li aria-level="1">In total, I spent around 2 hours looking around the site</li>
<li aria-level="1">Don&rsquo;t worry too much about altitude sickness. Aguas Calientas is much lower than Cusco, and you probably won&rsquo;t feel any effects there.</li>
</ul>

How to Visit Machu Picchu on a Budget

Spain

Portugal

Japan

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United Kingdom

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Thailand

<h3>Slowing Down the Speed of Our Wanderlust. This is how tourist fines ask us to pause.</h3>

You&rsquo;ve heard the protests, seen the headlines, &ldquo;The new tourist fines sweeping Europe&rdquo;.&nbsp;
But depending on who you ask, the new rollout of tourism rules and regulations can feel like a total killjoy or long-overdue protection against an industry that&rsquo;s been eating itself alive.&nbsp;
Reading the list below, it&rsquo;s easy to roll our eyes when we&rsquo;re the ones passing through. But how would you feel if the beach you grew up hearing the waves at night now echoes with drunk tourists music and drones overhead? That street you grew up on where you learned to ride your bike? It&rsquo;s now blocked with selfie-stick traffic impeding your route to work.&nbsp;
And your favourite caf&eacute;, the one that knows your order by heart? They tell you that you&rsquo;ll have to wait longer because tables are being saved for tourists that tip better and stay all day.&nbsp;
Through this lens, it&rsquo;s easier to see that these new waves of tourist fines are less about punishing visitors, and more about meeting a destination and its locals on their own terms. So, presuming you want to be a conscientious traveller and not become enemy #1 in your chosen destination, here&rsquo;s everything you need to know.

<h2 dir="ltr">Flip-flops behind the wheel in Europe</h2>
Rule / Fine: Up to &euro;200 if police deem your footwear unsafe, despite no outright ban.
In countries like Spain, drivers are expected to maintain proper control of the vehicle at all times. Loose footwear like flip-flops can jeopardize pedal control, so officers can fine you if they judge your sandals to compromise safety.
Traveller Tip: Always pack a pair of light sneakers or secure sandals to slip on when you hit the open road.
<h2 dir="ltr">No Swimwear Off the Beach (Europe, including Barcelona, Sorrento, Albufeira, Cannes, Venice)</h2>
Rule / Fine: Up to &euro;1,500 for walking around in swimwear outside beach zones. It's just polite, really!
 Traveller Tip: Keep a lightweight cover-up handy &mdash; say, a breezy shirt or sarong &mdash; for when you step ashore and into town.
<h2 dir="ltr">Public Drinking (Spain, UK, Baltic states, Canada &amp; more)</h2>
Rule / Fine: Up to &euro;3,000 for alcohol consumption in non-designated public areas.
Party hotspots like Ibiza and Mallorca in particular are trying to curb rowdy public behaviour by outlawing open-air drinking away from bars and restaurants. But beyond that, many countries or local authorities have blanket bans on carrying open containers of alcohol in public.&nbsp;
Traveller Tip: Check the local laws at your destination before cracking open a nice cold beer. If in doubt, sip your sangria indoors, at a bar&rsquo;s outdoor terrace, or in your hotel.

<h2 dir="ltr">Sunbed Reservation Abuse (Spain)</h2>
Rule / Fine: Around &euro;250 for reserving a sunbed with a towel and abandoning it.
Resorts are cracking down on the old 6am towel trick to keep things fair and tidy for all beach-goers.
Traveller Tip: We&rsquo;re not sure what to say about this one&hellip; Don&rsquo;t get lost?&nbsp;
<h2 dir="ltr">Collecting Shells or Pebbles (Greece &amp; Sardinia)</h2>
Rule / Fine: Up to &euro;1,000&ndash;&euro;3,000 depending on location.
Coastal ecosystems are fragile. Pocketing natural souvenirs threatens biodiversity and local ecosystems.
Traveller Tip: A picture says a thousand words. Take one, take a thousand &mdash; just leave the shells be.&nbsp;
<h2 dir="ltr">Swimming in Venice&rsquo;s Canals (Italy)</h2>
Rule / Fine: Around &euro;350 fine &mdash; and up to &euro;1,000 if other violations apply.&nbsp;
Repeat after me, &ldquo;Canals aren&rsquo;t for swimming, they&rsquo;re for boats and sewage!&rdquo; Banning swims protects both visitors and historic waterways &mdash; and probably protects you from at least a dozen infectious diseases.&nbsp;
Traveller Tip: Stick to gondolas, or <a href="https://gillianlongworthmcguire.substack.com/p/gillian-knows-best-guide-to-beaches">head to the Lido</a> if you must get your feet wet.

<h2 dir="ltr">Entry Fee for Day-Trippers (Venice, Italy)</h2>
Rule / Fine: &euro;5&ndash;&euro;10 entry fee; failure to pay can lead to &euro;300 fine.
Overwhelmed by mass day-trip tourism, Venice is trying to manage crowd flow and encourage longer stays by offering fee exemptions to hotel guests.
Traveller Tip: Book your visit in advance, or stay overnight, and keep your receipt handy.
<h2 dir="ltr">Selfie Zones &amp; No-Linger Spots (Portofino, Italy &amp; Hallstatt, Austria)</h2>
Rule / Fine: Up to &euro;275 for blocking walkways with a selfie; Hallstatt uses &ldquo;selfie fences&rdquo; to curb crowding.&nbsp;
Europe&rsquo;s quaint and cute villages are overloaded with visitors lining up for the same shot. This measure aims to restore flow and reduce stress for locals trying to get to work on time.
Traveller Tip: Capture your pic, then move on. Who knows, you might just find a hidden corner!
<h2 dir="ltr">Beach Behaviour Campaigns (Spain &amp; Portugal)</h2>
Rule / Fine: Ranging from &euro;750 for public urination to &euro;2,000 for beach smoking. Malaga&rsquo;s Improve Your Stay campaign enforces up to &euro;873 fines for bad conduct in the port city.&nbsp;
Fines can be as high as &euro;30,000 for anti-social behaviour like vandalism or street drinking; attending (or throwing!) unlicensed events can set you back a similar amount, while hitching a lift in an unlicensed taxi can result in penalties of &euro;600. And before you decide to go for a nighttime dip Benidorm, just consider whether you have &euro;1,000 to spare.&nbsp;
Traveller Tip: Follow the local code snippets posted in your hotel lobby or on billboards, or simply ask a local. But let&rsquo;s be honest &mdash; it&rsquo;s always better to just find a toilet, smoke away from others, keep the noise down at night, and generally not be a nuisance.

<h3 dir="ltr">Proof of Travel Insurance (Spain)</h3>
Rule / Fine: Fines for British travellers of up to &euro;6,900 for not having proper travel health insurance documentation when entering Spain.&nbsp;
To protect its healthcare system and keep tourists from becoming walking liabilities, Spain can now request proof of travel insurance at the border.
Traveller Tip: Buy travel insurance! And just in case your phone battery dies, pack a printed copy of your insurance documents so you can pull them out at passport control.
<h3 dir="ltr">Visitor Caps in Europe&rsquo;s Ancient Icons (Greece, Italy)</h3>
Rule / Fine: Acropolis (Athens) is capped at 20,000 visitors/day; pre-booking required, high heels banned with fines up to &euro;900. Pompeii (Italy): also limited to 20,000 visitors/day and the Colosseum (Rome): capped at 3,000 visitors at a time.&nbsp;
These heritage sites want to stay standing, not crumbling under the footfall. Regulating access protects their history (and makes your visit more enjoyable).
Traveller Tip: Book your tickets for the first thing in the morning to avoid the rush, and leave the stilettos at home.
<h3 dir="ltr">Tourism Balance (Japan)</h3>
Rule / Fine: Mount Fuji: &yen;2,000 entry fee (&pound;10/$13.50/&euro;11.60) with a cap of 4,000 climbers/day. Kyoto: &yen;10,000 fine for taking photos of geisha without permission; some alleys are even off-limits. Tokyo: A year-round ban on public drinking from 6pm-5am.&nbsp;
Traveller Tip: Book early. Ask before snapping. Stick to bars and caf&eacute;s, not the streets.
<h3 dir="ltr">Hiking Restrictions (Machu Picchu)</h3>
Rule / Fine: Timed-slot tickets are now mandatory &mdash; no more spontaneous hikes to Machu Picchu!
Peru is slowing tourism to protect both the trail and the ancient ruins from overuse and degradation.
Traveller Tip: Book your slot online well in advance. Check out Flight Finder Lauren's <a href="https://jacksflightclub.com/detour-145-machu-picchu">top tips for visiting the site here</a>.

<h3 dir="ltr">Digital Arrival Card (Thailand)</h3>
Rule / Fine: As of May 2025, all foreign visitors must complete the Thailand Digital Arrival Card at least within 72 hours before arrival. Earlier isn't possible.
This replaces the old paper form, and can be submitted online before you travel. You won't need to do this if you're just transiting in Thailand.
Traveller Tip: Set a reminder on your phone to do this 3 days before you arrive, save the confirmation, and breeze through immigration!
<h3 dir="ltr">Eco-Tax (Iceland)</h3>
Rule / Fine: A nightly, per-room eco-tax is in place nationwide to support environmental conservation to protect its glaciers and geysers.
Traveller Tip: Factor this small extra (approx. $5-$8) into your hotel budget; you&rsquo;re investing in the island&rsquo;s future. 
<hr>
 Follow these guidelines, and hopefully you won't find yourself stepping on any toes on your next trip.
Wear the right shoes in Cinque Terre, not because Italy wants to control your packing list, but because those paths are centuries old and prone to erosion. Skip the selfie in a geisha district, not because Kyoto wants to spoil your carefully curated feed, but because a working woman shouldn&rsquo;t be turned into a prop or have her picture taken without consent.&nbsp;
The result? A subtle but meaningful shift: travel is becoming less about extraction &mdash; how much you can see, collect, or post in a few days &mdash; and more about exchange: &ldquo;You bring the curiosity and respect, we&rsquo;ll reveal our truer selves beyond the tourist brochures.&rdquo;
And if that feels restrictive, maybe the question isn&rsquo;t whether the rules have gone too far, but whether the speed of our wanderlust has burned through the soul of the streets before we even noticed.&nbsp;

Navigating New Tourism Rules: The 2025 Traveller's Cheat Sheet

Cuba

Colombia

Ireland

Georgia

Halloween is around the corner, so it&rsquo;s time to share some of the JFC team&rsquo;s creepy travel experiences. A few of them, you might want to recreate for yourselves, others&hellip; not so much.
<h3>Lauren says&hellip; </h3>
&ldquo;<a href="https://jacksflightclub.com/travel-hub/welcome-to-the-weird-world-of-atomic-tourism">I'm a sucker for anything remotely abandoned</a>, I find it so fascinating to see how buildings are just left to decay. These are some of the most interesting and spooky that I've visited:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">A derelict <a href="https://diplomatictimes.net/2018/12/22/cubans-still-embrace-derelict-abandoned-sports-complex-in-havana/">sports complex</a> in Havana, Cuba, still used by locals despite its decrepit condition.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Tenerife&rsquo;s abandoned <a href="https://therealtenerife.com/posts/the-abandoned-leper-village-of-tenerife/">leper village</a>, built to control an outbreak but ultimately never populated thanks to revolutionary treatments.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">The now-famous <a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/la-manuela-hacienda-ruins">holiday home of Pablo Escobar</a>, a shell of what it once was after being blown apart by a bomb in 1993.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://cdn.jacksflightclub.com/id/0fe770a0dc6a6d95295c08ca00814c4f17670903" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
<a href="https://www.chescaislost.com/legend-wistmans-wood">Wistman's Wood in Dartmoor</a> National Park is also one of my faaaave spooky places. It's so quiet and eerie! The trees are so unusual and twisted, but just remember to keep your eyes peeled for the hellhounds&hellip;&rdquo;
<h3>Akasha says&hellip; </h3>
&ldquo;I once went exploring around <a href="https://adamxphotos.com/2018/08/22/explore-220-ballyvourney-de-salle-college-county-cork-ireland-september-2017/">Col&aacute;iste &Iacute;osag&aacute;in</a>, an abandoned Christian Brothers boarding school in County Cork, Ireland.
The school had a brutal reputation for abusing its students, and you could feel the sadness as you walked around it. The desperate messages scrawled on the walls only made it all the more eerie and depressing.
<img src="https://cdn.jacksflightclub.com/id/0eee9b95e5ee061de9fa0136e579d429a544501f" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
It was also known locally as a place where people would go to do seances and perform rituals. I&rsquo;d thought those were just rumours, until I got there and saw the open books on the floor about exactly that.&nbsp;
It was also one of the filming locations for a film called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_for_a_Raggy_Boy">Song for a Raggy Boy</a>. The storyline had some uncomfortable parallels with the school&rsquo;s own history, which only made the experience all the more grim.&nbsp;
<h3>Fran says&hellip; </h3>
&ldquo;We were doing a late <a href="https://blog.atlasobscura.com/trips/night-hike-pitch-black-in-the-amazon">night walk in the Peruvian Amazon</a>, near the three-border point with Colombia and Brazil. It was super dark, and we only had a tiny torch on our head. It was two of us, plus the guide, and thousands of tiny spider eyes staring at us.
At some point, we heard some noises coming from a bush close by and our guide froze, whispering, &ldquo;it may be a jaguar, don't move.&rdquo; I thought to myself, &ldquo;bye mum, it's been fun.&rdquo;
He got close to the bush, stomping on his old hiking boots and shook the leaves with his machete... it was a tapir mum with her baby! Our guide got SO excited and said it had been three years since the last time he saw a tapir. Took me a few seconds to start breathing again!&rdquo;
<img src="https://cdn.jacksflightclub.com/id/f8653772b4742a9fe2e54fd25eb118d1277fda2b" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
<h3>Robin says&hellip; </h3>
&ldquo;I fell asleep on a <a href="https://travelnevada.com/outdoor-recreation/sand-mountain-recreation-area/">remote sand dune mountain in Nevada</a> whilst star gazing.&nbsp;
I woke up in the middle of the night, no moon to light the sky, and panned my torch about. There was a quick, reflected flash from two forward-facing predator eyes away in the distance, on the crest of another dune.&nbsp;
My heart rate elevated. &ldquo;They don't have cougars in Nevada, do they?&rdquo; I wondered&hellip; (<a href="https://www.ndow.org/species/mountain-lion/">they do</a>).&nbsp;
I panned the torch around again. The eyes are closer than before. I start walking slowly away&hellip; Probably just desert fox. Probably.&nbsp;
I try the torch again. Four eyes now.&nbsp; Loping. Even closer, only another ridge away. Probably just curious. Probably.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.jacksflightclub.com/id/2aaaa8b2605ac22f7e32ce07bd6134cedde0b693" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
Confident walking away quickly turns into a terrified, careering run down 400ft of sand dune in the dark back to the safety of the car. Foxes (probably) laughing.
<h3>Katy says&hellip; </h3>
&ldquo;After a late flight into Georgia earlier this year, our coach transfer to Tbilisi got held up by a landslide on the motorway around 50 minutes into a 3.5hr journey. There was no way around it, so the driver parked up in the main square of a small town in central Georgia for the night.&nbsp;
We were free to leave and find somewhere to stay for the night, but we quickly realised that accommodation in <a href="https://wander-lush.org/things-to-do-in-zestafoni-guide/">Zestafoni</a> was few and far between&mdash;especially at 11pm. Plus, with snow up to our calves, none of us fancied abandoning the warmth and occasional Wi-Fi of the bus.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.jacksflightclub.com/id/d6e583e7984d7d3ac1e66067684e8d67bfd512a3" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
<h6 style="text-align: center;">&ldquo;I &lt;3 Zestafoni&rdquo;</h6>
After a restless night aboard the coach with 40-odd others, it became clear that the driver had no idea when we&rsquo;d be able to move again. Thankfully, the one passenger who spoke both Georgian and English knew that the first commuter train out of there would leave at 6am, headed to Khashuri, which would perfectly circumnavigate the closure. So off we went.
Tickets acquired, we made our way towards the <a href="https://wander-lush.org/trains-in-georgia-country-tips-map/">beaten-up, single-carriage Soviet relic</a> on the platform. It was still dark, there was no indication that this train would take us where we wanted to go, and we couldn&rsquo;t speak the language. As I grabbed the handles by the door to pull myself up into the unlit train, my partner jokingly said the words, &ldquo;welcome to the abattoir.&rdquo;
And that&rsquo;s when the stench of raw meat hit me like a ton of bricks. As I moved through the first compartment, I was greeted by huge plastic containers full of mystery cuts of mystery animal, accompanied by grubby older guys in dusty work clothes. I quickly averted my eyes and made my way onwards through the darkened compartments.
Eventually, in the second-last of 8 compartments, I found a couple I recognised from our bus and joined them&mdash;this felt safe. Ish. We sat down on the solid bench seats, knowing we had a couple of hours of discomfort ahead of us, but at least there would be safety in numbers, right?
A few minutes later, the train started squeaking ominously along the platform, still in complete darkness. Sleep-deprived and basing our whole onward journey on the word of one seemingly kind man on the bus, we began to accept that we may be chugging along to our deaths.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.jacksflightclub.com/id/bda9fe02b599a64ba6e13d57cf0ba9addc4c6f1b" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
<h6 style="text-align: center;">My friend Mary, tired and suspicious of our surroundings</h6>
And then the light in our compartment came on. And then it went off. And then it flickered for the next two hours. All we could see out the windows was the occasional glowing neon cross on the hillside, which only added to the discomfort.
Then the darkness lifted somewhat, and the sky became navy blue, allowing us to make out the snowy, <a href="https://youtu.be/BoP-KlDyoRI?si=VY9wPv1t8CK962vt&amp;t=14">mountainous landscape of the Imereti region</a> around us. It was breathtaking. The train meandered on for a couple of hours, squeezing in an unfathomable number of commuters along the way. But eventually we arrived in Khashuri, victorious.&nbsp;
Holding our breath, we manoeuvred our way off the train past containers of meat and into the snow. Then we remembered that we still had to get to Tbilisi.

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