Not Just Travel consultants complete 'Breast Trek Ever'

The group, consisting of both travel consultants and corporate team members, battled altitude sickness to walk up to nine hours a day and to raise over £10,000 for breast cancer charity Pink Ribbon Foundation. The charity was chosen in honour of one of the company’s consultants, Rachael Coyne, a former police officer, who has twice survived multiple types of breast cancer while running her highly successful travel business. 

Nicknamed the ‘Breast Trek Ever’ and starting 9th October, the team partnered with G Adventures to take on the 25-mile challenge, reaching altitudes of 4,200m and, on one night, even waking at 2am to trek the final stretch to step through the famous Sun Gate to the forgotten city of Machu Picchu. 

“I can’t believe we’ve made it. I’ve done marathons and ultramarathons, but this is the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” said Laura Simpson, Head of Experience and Operations. “There have been highs and lows along the way with tears and many of us struggling with altitude sickness but we’ve also had an incredible time getting to know each other and our amazing guides who have carried our supplies, fed us and kept us going.”

The previous month, on Not Just Travel’s exclusive Platinum Get-Together on Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady, Laura managed to squeeze in a training session with brand ambassador and Double Olympic Champion, Daley Thompson CBE, in preparation for the trek. 

Tom Buck, Global Purpose Specialist at G Adventures, who hosted the trek, said: "I’m incredibly inspired by everyone who joined us in Peru for the ‘Breast Trek Ever.’ It’s been a pleasure for G Adventures to support this trek, and I want to give a big thank you to our team of CEOs and porters on the ground for making it such a success. For some, it was the toughest challenge of their lives, but there’s so much power in coming together to raise funds for such an important cause."

Lisa Allen, spokesperson for The Pink Ribbon Foundation, said: "What Not Just Travel’s team have accomplished is simply astonishing. We are incredibly grateful to each and every one of them.”