Travelling along the Pamir Highway in Tajikistan and the Karakorum Highway in Pakistan introduced me to some of the most stunning landscapes I’ve ever seen. I’ve always found such remote areas enchanting, so perhaps it’s no surprise that I fell in love with the wildernesses and endless steppe of Mongolia, where there is no contact with the rest of the world. The beautiful mountains, cheesebreads, wine and hospitality found in Georgia puts the country high on my list of favourites but Iran always continues holds the top spot. I visited when it was against FCO advice and tourists were rare, although even now crowds of travellers are delightfully uncommon. The incredible friendliness of the Iranians will always stick in my memory, accompanied by the awe inspiring mosques and rice adorned with saffron and barberries.

I have recently returned from Jordan, a country I have visited on several occasions and adored even more with each visit. The friendliness of the Middle East is found everywhere in Jordan, whether you're walking down the candle-lit siq in Petra to see the iconic Treasury facade at night, floating in the Dead Sea (a strange but must-do experience that should be on every traveller's bucket list) or hiking through the Great Rift Valley in the stunning Dana Nature Reserve. 

If Central Asia doesn't excite you as much as it interests me, Borneo is a fantastic option for a unique holiday with plenty of potential for adventure, but without having to step quite so far out of your comfort zone. The view from the top of Mount Kinabalu after a long (but well worth it) hike to watch the sun rise is an experience I would recommend to everybody, before you set off to catch a glimpse of some of the world's last remaining wild orangutan populations in the virgin rainforest. 

Carl has been with Regent holidays since 2004 and is one of our leading experts on the Caucasus and North and South Korea.  He has led dozens of tours, and knows some of our more uncommon destinations like no one else. With 20 plus trips to North Korea alone under his belt, Carl is regularly called upon by the BBC, The Times and other media outlets to comment on the country.

From Carl: I joined Regent in 2004 after two years living in Mongolia. From Bosnia to Burma, I have always enjoyed more unusual destinations - and that’s why I love leading tours for Regent. In my time here I have had enough weird, wonderful and memorable experiences to fill a lifetime; whether posing as a scientist to get our inaugural Chernobyl tour group into “the zone,” being given a private train carriage for the 9000km journey all the way from Pyongyang to Moscow or being followed by the Turkmen KGB. My tours are always an adventure.

My true labour of love is developing our North Korea tours and I have had the opportunity to visit this unique, propaganda-filled country more than 20 times. In many cases, we have been the first ever western tours into certain cities and regions.

One of my favourite tours at the moment is our pioneering North Korea tour – exactly for that reason – we’re visiting regions and cities very few people get to see. Our trip up to the provincial capital of Chongjin is especially rare, while the chance to visit an everyday market in Rajin is completely unique. If you want to see North Korea beyond Pyongyang, this is the tour to take.

I have also worked on creating a pioneering tour that travels through Abkhazia, a forgotten, ex-soviet breakaway state in the Caucasus that offers visitors the opportunity to watch as a region unofficially recognised as a country begins to flourish following a turbulent past few decades. 

Growing up in a village in sunny West Yorkshire, I was always torn between travel and design when it came to deciding my future. I went down the travel route and after ten years working in the industry, I decided to scratch that design itch, and headed to Devon where I spent a year living in a campervan, working in a remote workshop, studying furniture design and craftsmanship. Though it was one of the best times of my life, I found myself being drawn back into the travel industry and moved to Bristol.

I was lucky enough to travel as a child with my family but fell in love with the mountains when I went skiing on a school trip. That turned into working in Chamonix, France, and later spent a ski season in Banff, Canada, as a snowboard instructor. When it comes to travel, rugged natural landscapes and mountains are my go-to.

I’ve travelled a fair bit, but Iceland is still ‘the one’. I always wanted to travel there for as long as I can remember and ended up booking a trip for a week, but once there I ended up staying for the best part of a month. It was everything I expected and more. I’d never experienced anywhere like that, somewhere so bleak and beautiful at the same time; I don’t think there are many places in the world like that – especially not within three hours of the UK. ‘Otherworldly’ is definitely the word.

Following that trip, I visited Japan for a month, which again was incredible but didn’t compare to Iceland. Returning to Iceland with Regent this year I thought it may be different or possibly spoil my memories of it, but it didn’t at all - it’s still my favourite.

I road-tripped through the country both times. Pitching a tent in the dark one night and waking up to realise we were just alongside Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon was just spectacular. On my next visit, I’m going to head to the north-west and explore the northern regions deeper, as well as taking a 4x4 out to discover the remote highlands in the summer.

I’ve finally ticked the last country in Scandinavia off the list, having now just returned from Southern Finland, exploring Helsinki and some of the countryside and towns in the south, and have previously visited Norway and Sweden.

Greenland is the next one on the list; I love anywhere vast, cold and remote, so it’s the natural next step from Iceland. With Regent, I’m heading to Southern Greenland this summer – the greenest part of the frozen country, where I’ll be immersing myself in Inuit culture, kayaking through the fjord systems and floating past immense icebergs under my own steam. I absolutely cannot wait!