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Reality TV Travel / Themed Tours / New Zealand Travel / → All Tags

New Zealand's 'Biggest Loser' Tour is Fat Camp, 2011-Style

Whether you fell in love with New Zealand during the latest season of The Biggest Loser, are a mega-fan of the show or want to commemorate Jillian Michaels as she leaves to get her own TV show, you can go on a Biggest Loser tour of the Land of the Kiwi.

Although only two episodes thus far have shown the contestants sweating it out in New Zealand, Air New Zealand Vacations is offering a 10-day trip to the country that shows you the sites that the contestants visited.

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Art Travel / Train Travel / Themed Tours / Orient Express / Museums / Italy Travel / Tours / → All Tags

The Orient Express Gets in Bed with the National Gallery for the Sake of Art

Take the tour of Italy's art that's on your bucket list, but instead of boarding a lame bus, ride in style on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express. And instead of some mediocre tour guide, a representative from London's National Gallery will school you on this one.

The famed Orient-Express partnered with the National Gallery for a series of art-themed tours in 2011 that put travelers on the luxury trains for trips through Europe. All tours begin at the National Gallery, where an expert will introduce you to the masterpieces, artists and places you'll see on your outing.

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Pizza / Pizza Shops / Food Travel / Chicago Travel / Themed Tours / → All Tags

Take a Three-Hour Tour That Begins and Ends with Chicago Pizza

Pizza is one of those must-try foods when you're visiting Chicago. The problem is, if you ask around, you'll be bombarded with recommendations for 'za joints all over town. But you won't have to choose among them if you go one of the Chicago Pizza Tours.

As part of the tour, you'll hop on a bus and visit four pizzarias. At each, you'll gorge on cheesy, saucy goodness, so bring your appetite. Especially since you'll have to tackle those monstrous deep-dish slices.

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Music Travel / Australia Travel / Tours / Themed Tours / → All Tags

A Rocking Tour Of West Oz, In Honor Of Bon Scott

When in Paris, visit Jim Morrison's grave; when in Perth, visit Australia's most visited grave: the final resting place of Bon Scott, the AC/DC front-man who would've turned 63 this month.

But there's much more to an AC/DC pilgrimage than just visiting a grave—they've just launched a Highway to Hell Tour to show you all the AC/DC sites of Fremantle, the port town to Perth where Bon Scott grew up.

The tour takes in Scott's childhood home and schools, the Fremantle Prison where Scott apparently had a brush with the law, a commemorative statue the town's put up and finally, his grave. At the moment, the A$25 ($20), 90-minute tour only runs on Sundays (but it does so three times) and the operators hope to increase the frequency as it gets more popular.

One thing we especially like about this tour is that the tourists get to choose the playlist for the bus-ride. We're pretty sure we'd be belting out "It's A Long Way to the Top" the whole tour long.

Related Stories:
· AC/DC Fans Follow Bon Scott's Adventures [The West]
· Western Australia Travel Guide [Jaunted]

Themed Tours / Waterfront / → All Tags

Irvine Welsh Hates Yups, Self

Irvine Welsh isn't loving the gentrification of his beloved Edinburgh, especially that in the old waterfront town of Leith, where many of his books were partially set: "What is it about yuppies and water anyway? It's the same everywhere -- Belfast, Cardiff, Liverpool and Dublin." As for Welsh himself, he currently lives in a very nice apartment in Dublin.

Related Stories:

·   Trainspotting author rails against 'yuppiefied' Leith [Edinburgh News, via Bookslut]
·   The Sick Boy Guide to Edinburgh [Gridskipper]
·   Edinburgh and Leith Pub Guide [Edinburgh 247]

Themed Tours / Podcasting / → All Tags

Take Me Out to Glasgow

IToors is a company getting ready to roll out MP3 audio tours of various major cities. The first one out is an easy-going walk through the music-haunted streets of Glasgow, where Franz Ferdinand, Belle and Sebastian, and lots of other indie-pop names got their start. Narrated by DJ Jim Gellatly, the 90-minute walk by and into bars, clubs, and (on one occasion) thrift shops is entertaining and fun, as long as you don't mind the periodic product placements of its sponsor, Tennant's Lager.

Related Stories:
·   Glasgow -- Sounds of a Music Capital [MP3 tour]
·   iToors Glasgow tour map [PDF]
·   iToors Press

Reading / Themed Tours / → All Tags

Everyone Profits Off Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci obsession has officially reached its pinnacle-no, not another four-and-a-half hour "Behind the Code" revelation show on Primetime or Dateline-this might be even more irritating.

Chateau de Villette, the home of the screenplay's, er novel's, murderous art historian is now offering a 6 day/5 night tour of Paris, with lodging at the chateau and meals at the Ritz in Paris and a "Code" themed tour of the Louvre.

Appearances by Dan Brown, Tom Hanks, and Audrey Tautou not included.

The cost of the 6 day affair is $6,500 a head. Without airfare, but including meals and lodging. While joining a bookclub might be a more cost effective idea, our guess is the tour will do just fine.

Related Stories:
·   Chateau Villette: Da Vinci Code Tours [FrenchConnection.com]
·   Chateau Villette: Da Vinci Code's High-Priced Pit Stop [Fodor's TravelWire]