NEW YORK – Do you have what it takes to travel ‘blind’ on a mystery trip? Ten intrepid travellers will soon find out.

Intrepid Travel is calling for applications for a one-off ‘Uncharted Expedition’ that will see 10 travellers take a 2,200-mile trip into the unknown. Featuring towns and villages that can’t be found on Google Maps, the 22-day expedition traverses a route that Intrepid has never travelled before.

The only known variables about the trip are the start and end points: Astana, Kazakhstan and Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, respectively. Other than that, participants will be going in blind with only small hints of what’s to come.

Intrepid Travel co-founder Darrell Wade says this ‘mystery’ trip is unlikely to appeal to anyone but the most courageous travellers.

“You won’t know where you’re going, what you’ll see, where you’ll stay or what you’ll be eating. There’ll be long travel days, intermittent electricity and Wi-Fi, a few cold showers and a few treats along the way though, including fermented mare milk,” he said. “But it’s going to be a real adventure. One day you could be hiking through the world’s most remote and breathtaking landscapes, the next soothing your aching muscles in a sauna in the middle of nowhere.”

The expedition, which will depart on June 30, 2019, will coincide with the company’s 30th anniversary.

“When we first started out and we wanted to go somewhere new, we’d place a classified ad in the newspaper calling for intrepid people to join us on research trips,” added Wade. “Thirty years later, we go to more than 120 countries and we still get a thrill out of discovering new places with our most curious travellers.”

The Uncharted Expedition is part of Intrepid Travel’s Expeditions range, a style of tours that the company still uses to discover new destinations and test new trip ideas. Participants will be asked to provide feedback, which will determine if the tour is added to Intrepid’s 2020 Expeditions offering.

The Uncharted Expedition is available from today, at US$5,650 per person, excluding flights. Space is strictly limited to one departure only. For more details or to apply go to https://www.intrepidtravel.com/us/uncharted-expedition.