Our Philosophy

A message from the founder of DISCOVER ASIA, Trevor Lake;

Read what the Australian Financial Review said about Trevor (bottom of page):

 "There are dozens of travel companies selling tours to Asia. The vast majority of them sell simple, short duration "flights, transfers & accommodation" packages to the most commercialized areas.

Commercial pressures have led to a policy of... "If it's not in the brochure, then we can't sell it".

Whilst this may make good commercial sense and meet the needs of 95% of the population, it means that the needs of the ‘traveller' (the other 5%) have (until now) been ignored.

My personal travels have taken me to some of the most remote and exciting parts of the globe. Whenever I recount the tales of my travels, the most common response from my audience has been "You're so lucky, I would love to be able to go there". With the creation of Discover Asia I am now able to ensure that they can!

The policy of Discover Asia is - we are here to create the holiday that you want, not convince you to buy the holiday that we have. Our tours are TOTALLY flexible, can be booked in any standard of accommodation (from Budget to Deluxe), can be as inclusive or exclusive as you desire, we can add totally free days for rambling or can ensure that you are waited on hand and foot for the duration of your tour.

To achieve this goal, we encourage you to speak direct with any of the expert consultants at Discover Asia before you book. Unlike many tour companies, we have staff who have actually been to the destinations that we sell! Their in-depth knowledge has been gained from personal experience... not a training manual - we call it "the knowledge".

Similarly, our local ground handlers are long-time business associates and personal friends. This means that, the unparalleled service standards of Discover Asia don't stop once you board the aircraft in Australia. Our local operators have been chosen because they meet the same high standards that we impose upon ourselves."

Trevor Lake

TRAVEL IS AN ADVENTURE... of the mind! This is one of the pet sayings in our company. To us that means that travel is an attitude, not necessarily entailing physical hardship or extreme challenges. Travel is for those who love to meet people, see beautiful and intriguing places, observe other ways of life and explore new ideas. Travel belongs to everyone, of any age, on any budget. That is why we design our tours for people who believe travel should be an enjoyable experience, not a ‘survival' test.

NOT ALL TOURS ARE CREATED EQUAL! Sometimes the difference between tour operators can be subtle, at least on a web page! But, when you get to the destination, those seemingly small differences can make all the difference in the world as to how much you enjoy your trip.

When you are considering your tour options, whether they be ours or those of another company, take a careful look at the inclusions. Is everything included? Are sightseeing trips operated the way you want? Is travel between cities how you would prefer to travel? Are the hotels central and operated to Western or local standards? We are confident that our tours will always meet your standards - why? Because we are prepared to talk to you about every part of your tour before we book it for you!

TAILOR-MADE TRIPS are just a phone call (or email) away. Any of the tours on our web-site can be adapted to suit your personal ideas, time or budget constraints. Even the group tours can be taken independently for surprisingly little extra cost. Just contact our office for other ideas and tour programmes, or design your own and ask for our opinion. Why not email your ideas to us and an expert consultant will get back to you with suggestions and a costing.

We are dedicated to recapturing the "golden days" of travel - when travel was at a slower pace, and, meeting the people and gaining an understanding of them was more important than a fleeting glimpse of the world through the window of a tour bus. If the "Agatha Christie" days of travel are what you pine for, join us on one of our "Journeys Beyond the Modern World".

You will discover that, not only does DISCOVER ASIA lead the field in value for money, but, no other company offers such a vast and exciting range of itineraries to the Orient. Indeed, it is probably the attention paid by us in the design of our itineraries that most sets us apart from other tour operators. DISCOVER ASIA leads the world in travel to the Orient. We are very proud of the tours we operate and look forward to sharing OUR world with you.

Find out why we are No.1 to Asia.

Founded by Trevor Lake (also known as 'Mr. Asia'), DISCOVER ASIA is a licenced and bonded travel agency in Australia, and a member of the Travel Compensation Fund of Australia.

THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW

In 1996, the well respected "Australian Financial Review" wrote a series of articles about"Pioneers of the Australian Travel Industry".

One of only SIX people featured in these articles was TREVOR LAKE, about whom they said "Trevor makes people's dreams come true". In just six words they have summed up what DISCOVER ASIA is all about!

WHAT WE ARE DOING TO SAVE THE PLANET (in our own small way)

The Planet and Nature are important parts of every Discover Asia tour. We therefore believe that we should do everything we can to preserve them.

Discover Asia is an ‘Environmentally Friendly’ company, and we believe that if we all make sincere efforts to cut back on the damage we do to Nature, no matter how small it may seem, WE - the business world - will make an impact, where governments seem powerless.

Travel companies print millions of brochures every year in Australia. Most printed brochures are out of date within months of being printed; probably fewer than one in twenty actually ever generates a booking and ALL of them are eventually trashed. That is why we do not print paper brochures, and the CD that our i-brochure is made from is a by-product of oil that would otherwise be wasted.

Additionally, for every booking we make a donation of $25 to the Fred Hollows Foundation, out of our profit. $25 will give eyesight to a child in Asia! Book your tour with Discover Asia,… you will pay no more, have a fantastic holiday… and a child will be given sight!

In the 5 years that we have been actively trying to reduce our ‘carbon footprint’, that footprint is now less than 10% of what it was! That footprint is probably TOTALLY cancelled out by the estate we run in the Hunter Valley were we regenerate forests, provide a home to native animals and preserve old growth trees. It also gives us a great place to escape every weekend!

WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE – and nobody pays an extra cent!!! Environmentalists used to be ‘long-haired hippies’, now we are savvy businessmen who know that saving the world, costs nothing and can actually make us money! 

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