Born in the Channel Islands but growing up across Africa and the Middle East, Mark has always been at home in exotic regions. With a doctor of tropical medicine for a father you could say the interest runs in the family!
First Latin America experience: Belize, as it was English-speaking! From there I travelled into Guatemala before hitch-hiking down to Costa Rica.
Standout moment: Walking on Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina – the different hues of blues and the sheer vastness of it were unbelievable.
Mark’s hotspots: Morgan’s Rock in Nicaragua, Salta and north-west Argentina, trekking in Chapada Diamantina in Brazil.
Favourite animal: Giant anteater, though they’re rarely seen – it’s incredible, such a long tail!
Best snack: Empanadas – straight off the street in Peru.
Top tip: Travel at the beginning of a season. You may get a few days of rain but most places will be free of tourists, enabling you to interact more with locals.
After finishing university Mark spent 5 years travelling from the USA to Australia, across Asia and into the Middle East before working as an expedition leader. He didn’t know much about what he wanted to do, but one thing was certain – a deep passion for Latin America.
A self-taught Spanish speaker, he spent 6 years fully immersed in guiding small groups anywhere from the Andean highlands to the shores of Belize – even when he wasn’t working, he was making more of his own discoveries and hanging out with local friends.
Having built up an incredible wealth of knowledge Mark knew he could help others experience the same love he felt for the rainforests, mountains, beaches, towns and people of Central and South America.
The only way to truly know a place is to live there as a local, and with 7 years of experience in Latin America Mark’s lived in a lot of places there! This almost instinctive familiarity and local expertise mean that Mark knows the area inside-out, from the big tourist draws to the most magical hidden treasures and secluded paradises.
Latin Odyssey was founded in 2002, created to fuse Mark’s extensive insider information with a desire to help others discover this breath-taking region. It’s one of the most varied, biodiverse parts of the planet – Mark’s focus on smaller, intimate hotels and lodges ensures that you have full exposure to everything that each location has to offer.
