Go on a yacht voyage of discovery with British explorer Henry Cookson

The beauty of travelling by yacht is that you can venture to hard-to-reach places, inaccessible over land or by plane. Nothing beats the feeling of landing on your own treasure island deep in the Pacific or trekking amid virgin jungle like the explorers of yore.

With experiential travel company Cookson Adventures, you can combine your go-anywhere yacht charter with expert guidance into the unknown from record-holding Polar explorer, Henry Cookson.

Henry says: “Unspoiled destinations flying under the radar are often best explored by yacht and, due to boundary-defying technology, charters have never been so adventurous.

“Our project designers are experts at turning curiosities into itineraries. Their globe-spanning knowledge can reveal hidden pockets of wild, away from the crowds, that you can explore in uninterrupted bliss. It’s time to rethink your annual break.”

Cookson Adventures specialises in mapping itineraries that take charter guests beyond the ordinary, from Yemen’s mysterious and largely untapped islands, with their unique flora, fauna and wildlife, to lush Pacific Ocean archipelagos where you can dive amid the wreckage of WWII ships.

Visit the secret Arabian islands of Socotra

This group of four islands, which lie between Somalia and Yemen, is often described as ‘The Galapagos of the Indian Ocean’, due to their large number of endemic plants and wildlife – particularly reptiles.

With a history fraught in territorial dispute, few tourists make it here but those that do are rewarded with mesmerising blue (and now peaceful) shores and a world of alien landscapes.

Cookson’s ex-Military tour specialists, will help guide you through your visit, introducing you to locals eager to share stories from one of the last untouched islands in the world, and organising high-octane activities, from paragliding between mountainous valleys to kitesurfing along the sweeping coastline. You’ve never know an adventure like this, but with Edmiston explorer yacht, Planet Nine heading there this winter, you have the opportunity to experience the intrepid land.

Go sub diving amid shipwrecks in the Solomon Islands, Oceania

Almost 80 years after the end of the Battle of Guadalcanal, sunken Japanese and American warships, aircraft and submarines still lie motionless on the seabed off the Solomon Islands, providing some of the world’s finest submersible diving.

In these largely uncharted waters, on your yacht’s submersible, you’re almost guaranteed to go where no human has gone before.

Cookson Adventures knows the Solomons’ storied waters well, so can help your captain plot waypoints between the jungled islands, where you can meet island chiefs and visit lively shark nurseries, before lowering your sub for a one-of-a-kind dive into the past.

Tag sharks in the Galápagos

The Galápagos Islands is a volcanic archipelago known for its anomalies, which famously inspired Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution.

Red-footed boobies, swimming marine iguanas and the northernmost penguin are species that have developed here like nowhere else on the planet. Wildlife in the Galápagos Islands are fearless of humans, so you can get within close proximity of fur seal pups and the famous tortoises.

As global shark numbers decline, Cookson Adventures’ scientists can talk you through how to tag scalloped hammerheads or other species to monitor their movements and behavioural patterns. You can jump on board a research vessel to watch sharks via underwater cameras or release tagged sharks back into the deep blue waters.

Your submersible pilot can take you on a rare dive in these marine-diverse waters, where you could have your own Darwin moment and discover a new species or even a never-before-seen cave.

Explore Costa Rica’s rich biodiversity

Costa Rica is a spectacular charter destination, with 5% of the world’s biodiversity packed into just 0.03% of the Earth’s surface.

Hike its rugged, rainforest-clad volcanoes, sandwiched between a pair of idyllic coastlines or start each day in a new dreamy anchorage.

From abseiling down waterfalls to horse-riding through the pristine rainforest of the Golfo Dulce or canoeing through wetlands in search of caimans in the Tortuguero National Park, this wilderness is ripe for exploring and you’ll have leading adventurers at your side every step of the way.

Each Cookson itinerary is catered to the curiosities of each charter guest and the possibilities for adventure are limitless.

If you want a taste of what Cook, Shackleton and Scott must have felt on their pioneering expeditions, then make your next yacht charter one where you venture into the unknown with experts at your side.

For more information on the yachts available in Socotra, Solomon Islands, Galapagos and Costa Rica, contact us now.

*Travel restrictions may apply