The Duke of Buckingham excavated the megalithic circle of Stonehenge. Hiram Bingham brought us the ruins of Machu Picchu and a group of farmers in China accidently uncovered the Terracotta Army, the largest 2,000-year-old pottery army ever found. While the names of these men may fade in history books, the ancient sites they have discovered have captivated and seized wondering minds around the world and will do so for centuries to come. What keeps attracting travellers to them is the desire to walk amongst these ancient ruins, like their discoverers, and to momentarily satiate their curiosity and understand what came before.

One company has set out to aid travellers in discovering the hidden gems of these lost worlds. David Mannix and David Adams, the founders of Arcadia Expeditions, arrange tours for the intrepid traveller to explore these secret and uncharted lands, riddled with clues to disparate cultures and the ipseity of people.

Consider, if you will, exploring India and Pakistan through the pages of Rudyard Kipling’s stories, and discover the back streets that inspired the scenes of his acclaimed novels Kim and The Jungle Book. Or escape across Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan by following the startling story of the Conquest of the Silk Road. This affords a courage-defining 4×4 voyage across the sandy shores of Karakum Desert, where you’ll sojourn in luxury yurts adjacent to the archaeological site Gonur Depe. Then behold a Kopkari match – an ancient sport of 200 agile competitors battling each other for the body of a calf or goat carcass.

Such bespoke experiences are possible with David Mannix’s extensive background in the travel industry and David Adams expertise in film making. Using their connections, and previous land experience, the duo has crafted tours that eradicate the usual red tape or closed doors looming over travellers. Instead, Arcadia Expeditions deliver once-in-a-lifetime expeditions that would otherwise be impossible to arrange on your own. Their tours take enlightened travellers on a journey similar to the making of a documentary, but with the added privilege of having no camera crew. Exclusively theirs, guests are given intimate and behind-the-scenes access to archaeological wonders, sites and museums, tribes and peoples, and to rarely visited oases other travellers can hardly envisage.

To their knowledge, “it is probably the first time two people with our backgrounds have gotten together”. Dedicated to sharing the narratives both have breathed over past decades, Arcadia Expeditions centres each of their small grouped tours around a “theme” – a story or history. For instance, immerse yourself in Vietnam by tracing its arduous road to independence. Here, you’ll exchange private meetings with key witnesses to past wars, and engage in comprehensive explorations of iconic sites, discovering how their past defines this now animated and appealing country.

Each of these tours brings with it its own local guide and academic or research professional. These expert guides – called Storytellers – are not only chosen for their historical expertise, but for their dynamism, understanding, patience and empathy – the cornerstone qualities for telling a good story. They guide and tightly weave each point of the journey together like an enthralling novel and framing these trips with those intellectual exchanges adds a magnitude of depth and understanding to the locations visited.

While cultural exploration has become increasingly sought after by travellers, the inclusion of history in the travel industry is few and far between. When asked why they imagine more travellers should seek historical tales and discoveries, David Adams is quick to note the difference between the insight one gets when travelling from a cultural level to a historical level. Adams elaborates, “when you’re staying with a Nubian tribe and there’s a wedding underway, you have empathy towards those Muslims from a cultural level. But you appreciate that in an even deeper sense, from a historical level, because you realise there’re layers, upon layers, of civilisations and histories that are far greater than we can claim to understand.”

From discussions with the expedition leader, to following their analysis of every nook and cranny overlooked by the masses a similar feeling arises at the well-known sites included in their expeditions. Envision as the sun commands its apex, brazen beams of light illuminate Petra’s robust Siq canyon. This emerges to reveal the eminent and palatial hand-hewn Al-Khazneh (“The Treasury”), carved from the very blushing rose sandstone that comprises its desert and mountainous backdrop.

As the day progresses, the city of Petra is transformed by night into a silent sea of candlelight. Here guests saunter the Siq along a path of 1,500 candles, opening to the Treasury, spotlighted by another hundred or so lights. It’s as if the canopy of scintillating stars has fallen to the ground and is paying homage to the city of rock’s ancient history and the majesty of the once glorious Nabatean Kingdom. Being one of the world’s greatest historical monuments, seeing it in the aforementioned way – with the historical understanding bestowed upon you by the Storytellers narrative – the experience takes on a whole new level of profundity.

When asked how else their excursions differ from other tours, the pair explained that a primary pillar in their planning is to take the techniques of making documentaries and pace of films to structure their itineraries.

In a similar vein to watching documentaries, the Arcadia Expeditions start every tour by setting the scene of the trip – by explaining the “theme”. Then after a couple of amazing days of exploration, they slow the trips down. While documentaries do this to provide more information, Arcadia Expeditions understands it’s at this point that jetlag hits. As such, they offer their guest the most evocative and comfortable accommodation. In keeping true to themselves, David Mannix reveals they “try not to use big brand chain hotels. We want people to stay in luxurious places but ideally, they’ll be family-run businesses or places with character”.

On the Jordan & Saudi Arabia tour, guests at one point find themselves staying in a gigantic bubble in the midst of the desert of Wadi Rum, Jordan. Circular doors indicative of a hobbit’s hole escort guests to a private bathroom. Then an extensive living space reveals itself with every amenity possible considered and catered to. Following on, guests come to an airy bedroom which, due to its clear roof, means one can travel to galaxies far and beyond by stargazing late into the evening.

Similarly, picture your usual sailing trip, and replace it with the most exquisite traditional wooden schooner, furnished with seven cabins, capacious indoor lounge area and large comfy sofas. This idyllic environment is excellent to while away the hours whilst an experienced crew and private chef cater to your every need. There’s not a more fitting way to cruise across the transparent turquoise Red Sea featured in their 25-day Sudan expedition!

While most of their tours are a maximum of 12 or 16 people, meaning intimacy is at the forefront of every journey, Arcadia Expeditions do offer private departures for those looking to travel exclusively with family or friends. Picking one of their current or future expeditions, guests can tailor-make these itineraries to suit their personality. From choosing additional activities to include, selecting the departure date or altering the length of their journey, Arcadia will produce a personalised itinerary for the group.

If this, and all the aforementioned perks weren’t enough, the co-founders have carefully selected times for the trips to take place. Explaining that there are “absolute opportune times for these trips”, they depart, for example, to Sudan in late October as their itinerary ends with sailing the Red Sea. Only at this time of the year can guests spot the diamond-shaped bodies of Manta rays coursing their way through salty water and piercing ripples through the ocean’s surface with their triangular pectoral fins. The only alternative departure date for this expedition is mid-late February as the tour is orientated to end with an equally awe-inspiring aquatic experience – that of seeing Whale Sharks migrate. Each trip is finitely crafted to pull the whole itinerary together, providing a WOW ending that’ll sparkle in one’s memory for decades to come.

Arcadia Expeditions make the impossible, possible. By opening doors, unlocking barriers and ingeniously selecting tour times that allow natural wonders to flourish, they’re giving travellers the same private privileges afforded to documentary and filmmakers. Rudyard Kipling said, “if history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten” – the same could be said for the exceptional narrative Arcadia are painting with their journeys. They certainly won’t be forgotten for an age to come.