Sitting at your desk day to day, many people dream of a big adventure. But few ever get round to doing something about it.

Business Argus has asked the local business community what big adventure they would undertake if they could...

Gemma Carter, community/events fundraiser (Monmouthshire/Newport), St David's Hospice Care, Newport

Me and my fiancé (very soon to be husband) dream of going on safari. We both love animals, especially elephants. So that would be our big adventure… one day!

Kath Lewis, marketing and HR director, Industrial Automation and Control Ltd, Newport

I’m actually planning a big adventure this summer! I’ve been involved with scouting for nearly 20 years and have been given the opportunity to go to Mongolia for the 31st Asia, Pacific Jamboree. I’m going with a group of scouting friends (Cheryl, Annmarie and Tilly) and for the most part we will be working on the Jamboree site, running activities and cooking for the 6,000 plus participants. We’ll have a bit of free time and are visiting a local Ger camp and orphanage as well as travelling on the trans-Siberian railway to spend a week in Beijing visiting the usual tourist sites. As to my reasons why, it’s always somewhere that I’ve wanted to visit and more importantly be given the opportunity to see the real Mongolia, work with the youngsters and particularly the orphanage, with whom we hope to set up a link for the future. We’re also excited to be able to take over some gifts made by a local knitting group along with other donations. Volunteering in scouting has opened my eyes to the opportunities and I’m already thinking about the World Jamboree in West Virginia in 2019!

Ollie Barnes, account executive, DB Public Relations, Newport

If I had the chance to travel anywhere and do whatever I wanted while there, instead of the whole driving across America thing, I’d choose to go to New Zealand and recreate the Fellowship’s journey to Mordor from Lord of the Rings as best as I could. The beautiful and varied landscapes in New Zealand have always appealed to me so it would be an amazing experience and a very significant one to tick off the bucket list!

Dan Smith, director of M4 Property Consultants, Newport

My big adventure began seven years when I decided to leave the relative safety of full time employment and start my own business. It’s been quite an adventure and one I have no regrets about at all. Each day presents new opportunities and challenges with me ultimately being responsible for the outcomes which to date have been to plan and often exceeded expectations. Our next challenge as a business will be to expand the geographical area we cover up to Abergavenny.

John Newell, director, Kingston Newell Estate Agents, Newport

I would love to go on a road trip visiting all the major capital cities of Europe to take in the sights, sounds and culture of each. I’ve enjoyed short city breaks to various places in the past but to spend more time in each and travel from one to the next is very appealing. With Brexit imminent, perhaps I should think about planning this sooner rather than later!

Leanne Fieldhouse, practice manager, Budget Vets

South America has always fascinated me as a country combining so many different cultures, history and of course wildlife. The latter is of particular interest to me and I would love an opportunity to spend time exploring the jungles and waterways learning more about the indigenous wildlife that live there. I appreciate spending time with creatures that pose a threat of stinging, biting, crushing or poisoning you is not a priority for many people but to see these in their natural environment would be wonderful.

Matt Trevett, director, TMPR Marketing Communications, Newport

In the 90s I was lucky enough to spend a year travelling around and working in Australia. It was one of the best experiences of my life for a whole host of reasons. Obviously seeing Australia’s famous landmarks was very special but this adventure was made even more special when I found myself working on the farms in northern Queensland doing jobs that I would never have previously thought about with fellow travellers from around the world. Teaching a Maori, the Welsh national anthem and then learning the Haka from him was quite different! I haven’t been to the US and I would love to go on a road trip there to see for myself just how diverse our American friends are and of course to visit their landmarks.