Tales of a Survivor Tourist

Louise Craven
wezziesf@hotmail.com

The television show Survivor has been filmed in the most pristine and remote areas of the world. Mark Burnett, the producer of the show and a former British paratrooper, travels the globe in search of majestic locations in which to film each series. Survivor’s locations are chosen for their scenic beauty, climate, political stability, accessibility, accommodations, history and culture. As a result, these film sites are the world’s most exotic, yet safest, travel destinations.

My first Survivor adventure took me to French Polynesia. In late 2001, my husband Bob and I hoped to visit the remote island of Nuku Hiva while Survivor Marquesas was being filmed. We soon discovered that many of the island’s bays, beaches and valleys were off-limits and the local lodge was closed to tourists during the filming. A quick change of plans brought us to the beautiful islands of Bora Bora and Huahine where we were heralded as “Tahiti’s First Survivor Tourists” by the newspaper Tahiti Presse.

Once the filming is over, tourists are enthusiastically welcomed and have a variety of tour options. Several companies have created adventure tours based on the theme of the show. The El Rancho del Rey in Queensland, the setting for Survivor The Outback, offers an Aussie Survival Adventure that includes a rainforest trek and bush skills course led by aborigines and Paddle Asia in Thailand combines a seakayak excursion with lessons in jungle survival. Travelers can schedule day tours of the film sites in Australia, Kenya, the Marquesas Islands, Thailand, Panama and Brazil led by former employees of the production.

In the fall of 2002, Survivor Amazon was filmed in the rainforest of Brazil. The Survivor producers and film crew stayed at the Ariau Amazon Towers Hotel near Manaus, a tree top resort located on the banks of the Rio Negro where many of the scenes were shot. Coincidentally, a young Survivor fan was vacationing in Rio de Janeiro and, on a whim, decided to visit the Ariau. With an informed guide, the fan explored the camps, beaches and jungle clearings the Survivor production had occupied just weeks before. He happened upon a treasure trove of Survivor artifacts, including a midden of discarded game props. For months, the fan shared his stories on the Survivor websites and later wrote a book, The Spoiler by TheChillone, about his adventure. (http://www.thechillone.com/)

Creative people, like TheChillOne, frequently take advantage of Survivor’s popularity to market their interests. For a period of six months or so, the eyes of the world are on the current Survivor filming location. Smart business owners take this opportunity to advertise their companies and their country’s attractions, as did tour operator John Gray in 2002. That summer, Survivor was filmed on the island of Ko Tarutao in southern Thailand. After decades of experience surveying the wilds of Ko Tarutao, seakayakers John “Caveman” Gray and Mut Bong made a special expedition to the island for Survivor Maps. Their journey took them deep into the island’s limestone caves, up a mangrove river, on a wildlife jungle run, and to abandoned Talo Wao Prison, the setting for the Survivor Thailand Tribal Council. Gray’s dramatic photos and stories introduced the natural beauty of southern Thailand and his eco-tourism company John Gray’s Seacanoe to Survivor fans worldwide.

The most recent Survivor filming location, Panama, is expected to be a hot tourist destination for many years. Panama offers tropical islands, rainforest, jungle and marine wildlife, a diverse ethnic culture, fascinating historical sites, trips through the Panama Canal, an historic railway trip and exciting nightlife, often within the same day!

In the summer of 2003, Bob and I visited the filming location for Survivor The Pearl Islands, the Las Islas Perlas archipelago on the Pacific side of the isthmus. Armed with maps, cameras, GPS and snorkel gear, we departed for Panama in mid-August, three weeks after the end of the game and one month before the premier of Survivor The Pearl Islands. From our base camp at the Punta Galeon Resort, we took sailing excursions around the islands. When Survivor The Pearl Islands premiers, Bob and I will feel an intimate connection to the show. We’ve walked the path to Tribal Council, drawn water from the tribal wells, and relaxed in the shade of the palm trees at the tribal camps. We know the scent of the air, the temperature of the sea, and the sound of the islands … or should I say ‘lack’ of sound. For one week, all we heard was the sound of the wind and waves, lightening and thunder, the Spanish language, birds, the motors of fishing boats and the twice daily arrival and departure of the small Aeroperlas plane. Not for a minute did we miss the chainsaws and leaf blowers that permeate our lives in suburban America. (See my photos on http://www.survivorwezzie.com/)

Survivor’s locations continue to call my name! Upriver from the Ariau lies the nature reserve A Floresta da Vida, the last piece of primary growth rainforest in that part of Brazil. It was here that the remaining nine players merged into a new tribe, Jacare’, and lived for the last twenty days of the game. The owner of A Floresta da Vida, film director Zygmunt Sulistrowski, was a valuable source of information for an article I wrote about the Amazon rainforest. Along with stories about edible plants, poisonous spiders and deadly piranha, Zygmunt shared his concerns about the future of his property, 27,000 acres of virgin Amazon rainforest. For nearly thirty years, A Floresta da Vida has been successfully preserved by Zygmunt’s personal funds and profits from his intimate and friendly eco-lodge, the Terra Verde. And that’s where I’m headed next – to be a Survivor tourist in the midst of the Amazon rainforest.

Louise Craven
wezziesf@hotmail.com

Louise Craven lives in Davis, California, USA. She is a researcher for Survivor Maps, an Internet website that documents the Survivor filming locations. http://www.claycritters.com/map/survivormaps.htm
Louise is a teacher, travel consultant, free-lance writer and adventurous traveler.

Take your own Survivor adventure!

Panama
Panama Travel Experts - http://www.panamatravelexperts.com/
Ancon Expeditions of Panama - http://www.anconexpeditions.com/
Panama’s #1 Travel Guide – http://www.panamainfo.com/
Hotel Punta Galleon Resort - http://www.puntagaleon.com/
Sailing with Max - http://isla-contadora.com/ausgabeengmax.html
Isla Condatora - http://isla-contadora.com/
Australia
El Rancho del Rey - http://www.elrancho.com.au/
Kenya
Sarova Hotels - http://www.sarovahotels.com/
French Polynesia
Tahiti Nui Travel .- http://www.tahitinuitravel.com/
Thailand
John “Caveman” Gray’s SeaCanoe - http://www.johngray-seacanoe.com/
Paddle Asia - http://paddleasia.com/
Brazil
Terra Verde Lodge – http://www.internext.com.br/terraverde/
The Ariau Amazon Towers Lodge – http://www.ariautowers.com/