G Adventures review: Is it worth it? My honest take after 5 tours

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Considering a G Adventures tour for your next trip but not sure if they’re worth the hype? Here’s my detailed and honest G Adventures review after five tours to help you decide if they’re the right fit for you.

My experience with G Adventures spans ten years, seven countries, various tour styles, approximately 8000 photos of cute animals and countless core memories, and I can confidently say they’re one of the best small group adventure tour operators on the planet.

I took my first tour with them over a decade ago, when I was a baby travel marketing assistant on minimum wage and could barely afford the cheapest trip even with a decent industry discount 🙃 but those 10 days from Bangkok to Ho Chi Minh City with our superstar guides and likeminded travel buddies absolutely sold me on small group tours and travelling with G specifically.

Since then I’ve done four of their tours across Malaysian Borneo, Morocco, Jordan and Indonesia, and I’ve got a few more (okay, many more) on my wishlist. They can’t keep me away!

I know how important it is to spend your hard-earned travel budget with a trusted tour operator, so I wanted to write a comprehensive and honest review based on everything I’ve learnt across my five tours. If you’re trying to figure out whether G Adventures is worth it, how they compare to other tour companies, or what to actually expect when you book, this guide is for you.

Disclosure: I’ve partnered with G Adventures a couple of times in exchange for coverage of the tours on my channels, but they have no editorial control over any of my content and (as always) this review is based entirely on my personal experience.

G Adventures: A quick summary

Who are G Adventures? They’re one of the world’s leading adventure travel companies and pioneers of community tourism for over 35 years, with small group tours in more than a hundred countries.

What makes them different? Legendary local guides, no single supplement for solo travellers, a blend of bucket list moments with lesser-known places and activities, a genuine commitment to keeping tourism dollars in the communities they visit (more info on their ‘Ripple Score’ further down), solid environmental and animal welfare policies, and tour styles for different types of travellers.

Best for: Solo travellers, anyone seeking authentic and immersive cultural experiences, first-time visitors who want a locally-led intro to a destination before independent travel, active adventurers, wildlife lovers, anyone passionate about responsible and sustainable tourism.

Not for: The G Adventures range really does cater to most travellers (budget backpacking to luxury, fast-paced to in-depth local living, intense adventure to more accessible, youth tours to family to solo-only), but they’re not ideal for people who want total flexibility and spontaneity or who just want to hop between landmarks and photo spots without the immersion into local culture.

Tour styles:

• Classic – Their OG tour type, perfect combo of bucket list stuff and more local experiences with a mix of included activities and optional add ons.
• Active – Hiking, biking, kayaking, rafting, canyoning, multi-sport, for travellers who love a challenge.
• Solo-ish – A new tour style I am DESPERATE to try, exclusively for solo travellers with female guides, a focus on group bonding early in the trip and dedicated free time for doing your own thing.
• Geluxe – Premium active tours with upgraded stays and slower-paced itineraries.

• 18-to-Thirtysomethings – Tours for 18-39 year olds (obviously), generally cheaper but with more basic accomm and fewer inclusions.
• Roamies by Hostelworld & G Adventures – Social backpacker tours for 18-35s, bigger groups (max 24 for most trips) and hostel accomm.
• Family – Kid-friendly tours with age-appropriate itineraries, hotels and activities for adventurers 6+ and their chaperones.
• Local Living – Week-long-ish trips focusing on getting under the skin of one destination.
• National Geographic Journeys – Upgraded trips with a focus on meaningful travel and storytelling.
• Marine – Exactly what you’d expect: sailing, island hopping, river cruises and even polar expeditions.
• Jane Goodall Collection – Wildlife-focused tours endorsed by the Jane Goodall Institute, the tours could be Classic, Marine, Active etc.

Group size: Depends on the tour but typically an average of 10-12 for most trips, maximum 16-18 for most trips, up to 22 for some tour styles like Roamies.

My verdict: Absolutely love them, which is why I keep booking tours! Particularly as a solo female traveller and especially for wildlife experiences, logistically-difficult destinations, or anywhere with safety concerns or current events that would make independent travel tricky or stressful.

My tours:

• Thailand, Cambodia & Vietnam (2016)
• Bali, Indonesia (2018)
• Morocco: Deserts & Beaches (2023)
• Borneo: East Sabah Adventure (2024)
• Jordan: GX World Community Tourism Summit (2025)

My honest review after five G Adventures tours

With such a wide range of destinations and trip styles, it’s pretty hard to gauge the company as a whole from a single tour review.

Luckily for you I’m a frequent G Adventurer, so I wanted to share a bit about each of my five experiences so you can see how they perform across different parts of the world, tour categories and service levels.

Borneo: East Sabah Adventure

Tour style: Classic + Jane Goodall Collection
Service level: Standard
Physical rating: 2 – Light (out of 5)
Duration: 8 days

This wildlife-focused tour was a highlight of my two weeks in Malaysian Borneo in 2024, with the opportunity to spot endangered creatures like orangutans, proboscis monkeys and crocodiles in Borneo’s jungles and rivers, plus visits to leading conservation sanctuaries.

As a Classic tour the group was a real mix, 15 in total (the maximum for this trip) with seven of us solo ranging from mid-20s to early 70s, a family of four with two teens, a pair of sisters and a couple all in their 60s, and we hailed from NZ, Australia, USA and UK.

Accommodation ranged from a city hotel and two jungle lodges (all with air con and comfy beds) to one night in a shared bunk homestay (fan, no A/C) and one night in a twin tent on an island (also fan), and we had private bus transport throughout plus a flight to connect us back to KK at the end.

Our CEO (a.k.a. Chief Experience Officer, what G calls their guides) Ron was born to guide nature tours, he had the eyes of an eagle and could spot tiny camouflaged birds hidden in the trees when we were cruising past 30 metres away. He’d worked for G Adventures for many years and was clearly very proud of that, something I’ve noticed on all my tours.

What I loved: The seamless itinerary to cover East Sabah’s highlights which would’ve been tricky and/or expensive to pull together if I was travelling solo independently, a fantastic guide that totally elevated our experience, and being able to trust that the wildlife experiences had been carefully vetted and endorsed in a destination where conservation is of the utmost importance.

What I’d flag: It was my first Classic tour and I definitely noticed the difference in group dynamic, still loads of fun and I LOVED making friends with my 60-something solo female traveller roommate, but the bonding took longer and felt less deep overall vs. what I’ve experienced on age-targeted tours.

Best for: Nature lovers, keen wildlife photographers, disconnecting from the real world and immersing yourself in remote jungles, getting off the typical Southeast Asia tourist trail.

Morocco: Deserts & Beaches

Tour style: 18-to-Thirtysomethings
Service level: Basic
Physical rating: 2 – Light (out of 5)
Duration: 11 days

I had to get out of the Schengen Zone for a couple of weeks back in 2023 and Morocco was the perfect side quest, so I convinced a friend from back home to fly over and meet me for an 11-day whirlwind jaunt through Marrakech, the Atlas Mountains, the Sahara (in August 🫠🫠🫠) and the coastal towns of Taghazout and Essaouira.

I’d been to Morocco before but only Marrakech and the desert, travelling with a friend before my full-time solo travel days. We adored our time but were certainly intimidated by the chaos of the Medina, and based on that plus some negative experiences close friends have had in Morocco, I wouldn’t have returned without joining a group tour.

One thing to note is that this tour is a segment tour, meaning the full itinerary is split into shorter chunks that can be booked individually or in a combo, depending on your time, budget and what you want to see. Our tour covered segments 2 and 3 of the full 17-day Morocco Adventure, so we joined some travellers who had spent a few days together already, said goodbye to some half way through and gained new friends for the last stretch.

We had 12 people for one segment and 14 (the max) for the next, across the whole 18-39 spectrum with most being 25-30, from Australia, NZ, the USA, UK and a few Europeans too.

I find on most age-restricted tours with a high proportion of solo travellers that the bonding happens rapidly, and this one was no different. Long bus days listening to 90s throwbacks, making friendship bracelets on the rooftop terrace, collectively embarrassing ourselves at a surf lesson, impromptu nights out until 4am when we’ve got a 7am bus departure, all things that are less likely to happen (or at least less enjoyable) if we were travelling with families or older generations.

Though I won’t lie, I’ve also had some memorable nights drinking rum around the bonfire listening to septuagenarians share their life lessons and travel stories!

Our Morocco CEO Yacine is another long-time G Adventures guide, and his depth of local knowledge truly made the trip. He perfectly balanced the needs of the younger or fresher travellers who were keen for epic photos and bucket list moments*, with a few of us who were craving more of the cultural context and local stories behind the places we were visiting.

*That’s not a judgement at all of how people choose to travel or their priorities, I can be in either camp too, it depends on the destination and my mindset at the time!

Another note about this trip is that the Ripple Score was 100, which means 100% of the services they use on the tour (accommodation, transport, included activities) are locally-owned. I’ll explain the Ripple Score and why it’s a gamechanger for responsible tourism later in the blog.

What I loved: Exploring Morocco with a guide and group made it exponentially more comfortable and less overwhelming than my first visit, and it prepared me for my time solo in Marrakech after the tour so I could actually enjoy myself rather than staying cooped up in my riad. The social dynamic of the group also made it super special!

What I’d flag: These 18-to-Thirtysomethings tours are typically Basic service level which means simple accommodation that might not have modern amenities like decent air con or reliable WiFi, but they were all clean and we barely spent any time in our rooms anyway! The lower price also means fewer inclusions so there were a fair few optional add ons, which means you can tailor the trip to your interests (yay!) but also can hit your budget if you don’t plan for them in advance.

Best for: 18-39 year olds looking for a fast-paced intro to Morocco, social butterflies, solo travellers keen to explore with the safety blanket of a guide, and bargain hunters who want to keep their costs down.

Jordan: GX World Community Tourism Summit (custom itinerary)

My most recent experience with G Adventures was a little different, it was a tailored mini-trip for 35 travel creators as part of the 2025 GX World Community Tourism Summit in Jordan, and I went solo.

GX is an annual conference run by G Adventures and their non-profit organisation Planeterra, bringing together more than 700 travel industry professionals, media and community partners from around the world to unpack the real impact of tourism and what responsible travel looks like in practice.

Our itinerary wasn’t a standard bookable tour that I can recommend to you, but once you hear about how insane the pace was, you probably won’t be that disappointed haha.

In three epic but hectic days we explored Jerash, visited Petra twice (at night and at dawn), zoomed across Wadi Rum’s sand dunes in 4WDs, stargazed under desert skies, floated in the Dead Sea and experienced some of the famously warm Jordan hospitality, all before the actual conference even began!

The main event was the Summit itself, with back-to-back presentations and panels from industry changemakers all about purpose-led travel, before a white party at Amman’s 8000-year-old Citadel and an afterparty with musical guests The Jacksons. Yes, THOSE JACKSONS.

But while that stuff was obviously unforgettable, the most impactful part of my GX experience was hearing about and seeing with my own eyes how tourism has uplifted real people and their communities.

We heard from inspiring young people who have had their lives changed by Planeterra-supported initiatives, from cultural leaders preserving traditions by sharing them with visitors, and from academics who have dedicated their careers to building a more sustainable travel industry.

Within our creator crew there were some pretty confronting conversations too, like how to share digestible content without perpetuating stereotypes, the fine line between inspiring people to travel and accidentally fuelling overtourism, and the uncomfortable reality that most of us have the freedom to do what we do thanks to the immense luck and privilege of where we were born.

And then there were our brilliant CEOs who I cannot praise enough. Khader is the ultimate fun uncle, a Palestinian refugee who guided us through his adopted country with grace and pride while his ancestral homeland is in crisis just across the border but out of reach for him to visit, and Reem is a female tour guide in a society where women’s workforce participation is amongst the lowest in the world.

Though the exact trip we did was custom for GX, G Adventures has a selection of Jordan trips across different travel styles if you’re keen to book (and if you get Khader or Reem as your guide, be sure to say hello from Alexx!).

Bali, Indonesia

Back when I had a desk job (which seems like another lifetime) I joined a G Adventures trip to Bali to capture content for the travel agency I was working for.

Bali’s not somewhere I would typically choose a group tour for, it’s very tourist-friendly and easy to navigate compared to many other Southeast Asia hot spots, but we definitely got to experience a side of the island most travellers miss if they just follow the usual Seminyak/Canggu/Ubud trail.

I wish I could give you more specifics but I’ve genuinely wiped most of that trip from my memory, because on the way back to London I got food poisoning from my Doha stopover, spent seven hours keeled over the tray table with my head between my hands barely able to move, landed at Heathrow so clearly unwell that they let me skip the entire customs line and had to catch a £120 Uber home to avoid a 1.5h Tube journey and changing at Victoria Station during rush hour when I was near death 🫠

Thailand, Cambodia & Vietnam

Tour style: 18-to-Thirtysomethings (known back then as ‘YOLO’ tours, very 2010s!)
Service level: Basic
Physical rating: 2 – Light (out of 5)
Duration: 10 days

Lets rewind 11 years!

My first job out of uni was as a marketing assistant at a global travel agency, and we got a hefty industry discount with loads of tour operators. My then-boyfriend and I were keen for more of a cultural and authentic travel experience rather than a party tour with a massive group, so G Adventures was the natural choice.

I was barely making minimum wage so my travel options were limited to Southeast Asia and… okay, just Southeast Asia.

We packed our backpacks and headed to Bangkok for a few days of independent exploring, before embarking on a 10 day overland trip from Bangkok to Ho Chi Minh City via Cambodia’s ancient temples, buzzing night markets and dreamy beaches.

This was a trip of firsts: my first time in Asia, first time visiting a non-English-speaking country (aside from France with my French teacher mother which doesn’t count), first and only time backpacking before I saw the light and switched to a suitcase 🧳and my first time travelling to a developing country, which had a maaajor impact on my world view and mindset around tourism.

I came home with loads of stories, awareness of the incredible privilege of being born in New Zealand, a desire to fill my life with experiences just like this one, and a realisation that travel is something that’s going to totally shape my future.

Next on my G Adventures wishlist

There are literally hundreds of G Adventures tours which I’d love to do, but there are a handful of standouts which are my top priorities for the near-ish future!

A Solo-ish tour: I am REALLY hoping to try and fit a Solo-ish tour into my 2026 travels, I’m obsessed with the entire concept of solo-only tours and I’m super super keen to try it out! They currently have 35 Solo-ish tours but the ones that tempt me the most are Ecuador & Galapagos, China and Uzbekistan. But how will I choose!

Patagonia: I’m going to need to go haaard at the gym before I can commit to this one (and by that I mean *go to the gym* in the first place), but the 14 day Chile & Argentina: Capital Cities & Hiking Patagonia Geluxe tour is the Patagonia itinerary of my DREAMS.

A safari: Seeing the Big Five from the back of an open-air jeep is probably one of the most bucket listed travel experiences globally, and G Adventures has a massive range of safari tours across 10 different countries in Africa.

I’ve heard brilliant things about their camping trips in the iconic Landos (custom-built overland vehicles) buttttt I’m self-aware enough to know that I’m more of a glamper than a camper, so a safari might stay on my wishlist until I can afford one of the upgraded Geluxe or National Geographic Journeys trips.

Central Asia: Some friends of mine did the Five Stans of the Silk Road tour recently and have not stopped raving about it. It covers Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan over 26 days and includes loads of authentic experiences that’d be way out of reach for a solo female traveller without a local guide.

Galapagos Islands: Another iconic G Adventures destination, with Galapagos tour options from cheap and cheerful to multi-sport to marine voyages on luxurious catamarans.

I haven’t made it to Latin America yet (apart from six hours in Tijuana for a night out when I studied in San Diego, but that’s a story for another day) so haven’t been able to tick this one off, but it’ll hopefully happen in the next little while.

Palau: The newest addition to my G Adventures wishlist is the brand new National Geographic Signature Palau tour, 9 days exploring Palau’s untouched islands, coral reefs and the otherworldly Jellyfish Lake with a National Geographic Expedition Expert. Slightly out of my budget at this stage in my life but hey, a girl can dream.

All about G Adventures

What is G Adventures?

G Adventures is a small group adventure company that’s been running epic trips all over the globe for more than 35 years, founded by responsible tourism pioneer Bruce Poon Tip and headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

They stand out from the tour operator crowd for two main reasons: their reputation for authentic, local-led travel experiences that show you what a place feels like rather than just what it looks like, and their genuine commitment to community tourism and responsible travel in an industry where “ethical washing” is rife.

What is a ‘CEO’ at G Adventures?

CEO stands for Chief Experience Officer, which is what G Adventures calls their tour guides.

They’re not just your average tour guide though, they’re always locally-based and live in the region they’re guiding, with genuine local knowledge that could never be taught from a training manual.

Your tour guide can absolutely make or break your tour, even more so when you’re travelling solo because group dynamic is ultra-important, and every single CEO I’ve had hasn’t just kept things running smoothly, they’ve actually elevated the whole experience.

Where does G Adventures have tours?

They currently have more than 1000 tours in over 100 countries and on all seven continents, so wherever you’re thinking of going, there’s a very good chance they’ve got a trip there.

They’ve got extensive coverage throughout Central and South America, Europe and Asia, their Africa destinations include all major safari zones and icons like Kilimanjaro, in North America they focus mainly on national parks, they operate in NZ and Australia too, and they even have polar expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctica.

You’ll find G Adventures tours in pretty much every country that’s on the typical traveller radar, as well as plenty of places you’ve maybe never thought of visiting before, like Benin, Togo, Honduras, Palau, Moldova and Turkmenistan.

Service level & physical rating

One super important thing to know about G Adventures tours is that they can all be categorised into service levels and physical ratings, which tell you what to expect in terms of comfort level and how active they are.

The five service levels are:

• Camping (camping most nights with some basic hotels/hostels/guesthouses)
• Basic (simple and clean hotels and hostels)
• Standard (comfortable and functional accommodation with character)
• Upgraded (quality accommodation with more inclusions than lower levels)
• Luxury (fancy hotels, private transport and curated experiences)

The five physical ratings are:

• 1 – Easy (light walking, few climbs more challenging than a flight of stairs)
• 2 – Light (light walking and hiking suitable for most fitness levels)
• 3 – Average (some tours may include light hiking, biking, rafting or kayaking in addition to walking)
• 4 – Demanding (some high-altitude hikes or more strenuous activities, but accessible to most healthy travellers)
• 5 – Challenging (serious high-altitude hikes, cycling or other intense exercise)

You can also filter your searches on their website using these so you’re only seeing the tours that fit your desired activity and comfort level.

Tour styles

One of the benefits of travelling with such an established global tour brand like G Adventures is that they’ve spent decades building out their range to suit different types of travellers, and in many countries they offer similar itineraries but with slight variations tailored for different budgets, timeframes, interests and desired combos of the service levels and physical ratings I just explained.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of the tour types they offer:

Classic tours are their core product with more than 400 around the world, combining iconic must-sees with bucket list moments as well as authentic cultural experiences, with a mix of included activities and free time to do your own thing.

They’re typically open to all travellers 12+ (under 18 with an adult, obviously), most are rated as Standard in terms of service level but there are some camping ones in Africa and a handful of Basic and Upgraded options in various places, and they mostly sit at 2 or 3 on the physical scale (light to average).

If you’re not sure which tour style to pick for your first G Adventures tour, Classic is a safe bet.

The Geluxe Collection is their premium active range, designed for travellers who want epic adventures and in-depth, authentic experiences without compromising on comfort.

They’re adults-only (18+) and their service level is Upgraded which means fancier stays and more inclusions in the tour price.

18-to-Thirtysomethings tours are exclusively for 18-39 year olds, with fast-paced itineraries to maximise value for money, a dedicated social evening on the first night to bond with your new friends, and lower price points.

Service levels for these trips might be Standard, Basic or Camping, and generally there are fewer included meals and activities which keeps the upfront cost down but means you might spend more on the trip (especially if you get FOMO haha I can never say no to an optional activity!).

Roamies by Hostelworld & G Adventures is their collaboration with Hostelworld, designed for travellers aged 18-35 who want a backpacker experience that won’t break the bank without needing to worry about logistics or safety.

The maximum group size is bigger than other tour styles (22-24 max. from what I can see, but average size for most Roamies trips is around 16), and there’s plenty of free time to chill at the hostel, explore on your own or do fun stuff with your new travel buddies.

I’ve mentioned Solo-ish a couple of times but here’s a quick recap if you’ve just been skim-reading: exclusively for solo travellers 18+ with a female CEO, included arrival transfer, and the first few days of every itinerary are all about getting to know your crew. SO COOL.

Active tours are for travellers who want to keep moving during their holiday, whether that’s by foot, bike, kayak, raft or a mix of the above. Service level and physical ratings vary, age requirement is generally 12+.

These trips range from dedicated challenges like Everest Base Camp or Mt Kilimanjaro, to multi-sport tours that show you a destination via various modes of adventure, to slower-paced itineraries that balance long walks with wine tasting and food tours.

Local Living tours are ideal for slow travellers seeking a home-away-from-home experience. Instead of moving between cities every day or two, you’ll stay in one place with a local family for the whole trip and explore the area from your home base.

G Adventures Family tours are built for adventurous families with kids 6 and up, with age-appropriate itineraries that aim to educate, inspire and entertain young ones as well as their grown ups.

Then we’ve got the National Geographic Expeditions which are all about deeper exploration and immersion into the communities you’re visiting.

There are three sub-types: National Geographic Journeys are Upgraded trips for ages 12+, Family Journeys are Upgraded trips for ages 7+ with kid-friendly itineraries and two Expedition Leaders to manage logistics, and Signature is a brand new range of top tier Luxury tours (the highest service level!) with curated cultural and nature experiences for ages 12+.

Marine tours cover G Adventures’ entire range of water-based trips, from small group sailing tours and wildlife voyages to Amazon river cruises and polar expeditions. Physical ratings, service levels and group size differ hugely depending on the type of trip you book.

Wellness tours include good-for-you activities like yoga, hot pools and healing ceremonies along with lots of free time for meditation and rejuvenation in some of the most beautiful corners of the world.

And finally we’ve got the Jane Goodall Collection. This isn’t a tour style in itself, it’s a label that sits across other categories and is given to tours with a dedicated focus on wildlife and conservation that have been individually endorsed by the Jane Goodall Institute.

Group sizes & demographics

Group sizes vary by tour style (as you can see above) but for most G Adventures trips you’re looking at an average of around 10-12 travellers and a maximum of about 16.

Roamies tours are an exception with up to 24 travellers, some Family and National Geographic Family Journeys allow up to 20, and National Geographic Signature has up to 22, while some tours have smaller max. sizes of 12-14.

Every single tour on the G Adventures website shows the maximum group size for that specific trip (and some show the average too) so check that before you book if it’s important to you.

In terms of who you’ll actually be travelling with, it totally depends on what you book! Roamies and 18-to-Thirtysomethings tours obviously lean younger and the energy skews more social and high energy, any family-focused tours are going to attract curious kiddos and/or parents with itchy feet, Active tours will appeal to travellers keen to experience the outdoors and a bit of physical challenge, you get the gist.

On my five G Adventures tours I’ve really encountered tour mates from across the full spectrum, from first-time travellers to frequent adventurers, fellow solo girls to empty nesters and everything in between, from all over the world and from different walks of life.

What is Planeterra?

You’ll see mentions of Planeterra pop up a lot throughout the rest of this review, so here’s what you need to know about them.

Planeterra is G Adventures’ non-profit partner, founded by Bruce Poon Tip in 2003, and it’s basically the engine behind their community tourism work.

The best way to describe Planeterra’s model is the old proverb “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”.

Side note: This quote is often misattributed to Lao Tzu but the actual origin is a 1885 book by Anne Thackeray Ritchie. The more you know!

Rather than just donating money to community projects, Planeterra helps them build their own sustainable tourism enterprises that can provide benefits like employment and training opportunities, cultural and/or environmental preservation, and ongoing income generation. They particularly focus on empowering marginalised parts of society like at-risk youth, women, people with disabilities, and indigenous and rural communities.

Many of these initiatives are built directly into G Adventures tour itineraries, meaning that the project benefits from access to a consistent stream of visitors, the travellers benefit from meaningful and authentic connections while on tour, the wider community benefits from economic flow-on effects, and G Adventures benefits from having unique experiences that elevate their trips. It’s a win-win-win-win situation 💜

But it gets better! Planeterra doesn’t just connect communities with tourists and leave it at that, they also provide training, business tools and industry connections to help these enterprises learn from each other and become self-sustaining.

If you’re wondering how Planeterra chooses which projects to support, this is my favourite part of the whole thing as a travel industry nerd, because they’ll look at communities along their tour routes that aren’t seeing the benefits of tourism (for reasons like economic leakage, infrastructure pressure from growing visitation, youth migration due to lack of local opportunities etc.), identify the critical needs in those communities, and then partner with local organisations or help establish new ones that can address those needs through tourism.

They directly support more than 100 community tourism enterprises in 80+ countries (growing each year) and hundreds of G Adventures tours incorporate a Planeterra-supported project in their itinerary, plus their Global Tourism Community Network provides development, knowledge sharing and networking opportunities for a further 500 organisations.

You can read all about their projects here but let me quickly tell you about one that shows the cycle really clearly.

Cuzco in Peru is a city which sees over two million visitors annually, yet many tours go straight to Machu Picchu so the indigenous communities in the mountains see virtually none of the economic benefits from tourism. Women here have even fewer opportunities because the primary industry is agriculture which is dominated by men, and young people end up migrating to urban centres with more jobs which means traditions and culture are at risk of being lost entirely.

To tackle all of these concerns, Planeterra collaborated with the village of Ccaccaccollo 25km from Cuzco to create a women’s weaving cooperative which could generate income for local women, preserve their art of traditional weaving, give young people employment opportunities in their own community, and offer travellers in the area a reason to visit this previously-overlooked corner of the Sacred Valley.

The cooperative started with just three women in 2005 and now is owned by 46 women and employs 80 people, they’re the first generation of their community to be completely literate in Spanish which opens up exponential opportunities for them and their children, and they’re a brilliant example of how purpose-led tourism can benefit local communities financially, socially and culturally.

I haven’t been to Peru yet but I’ve heard so much about this project from various travel conferences and friends who have done these trips, and it just makes my heart happy every time!

The Ripple Score

Loads of travel companies will tell you they support local communities, but how many actually have the receipts to prove it? That’s where the Ripple Score comes in.

When you book any tour, a decent portion of what you pay goes towards the services that make up the trip, like accommodation, transport, meals and activities.

If a tour company uses suppliers on the ground that are owned by multinational corporations, like chain hotels or restaurants you’ll find all over the world, that money leaks straight out of the economy actually receiving the tourism and goes offshore to big companies instead.

This is called economic leakage and it’s a mega problem in the travel industry, with estimates suggesting that 50-80% of tourist spending globally ends up back in the pockets of foreign companies rather than the destinations it’s been spent in, and the numbers are even worse for developing countries.

The Ripple Score (created by G Adventures in conjunction with Sustainable Travel International) tells you what percentage of the money spent on trip services goes to locally-owned businesses, on a scale of 0 to 100. If a tour has a Ripple Score of 100, that means every single business used in that trip’s itinerary is locally-owned and therefore the money is much more likely to stay within the communities it visits.

Over 800 G Adventures tours currently have a Ripple Score (they exclude Arctic/Antarctic trips for obvious reasons and it takes a bit of time to calculate for new trips) and the average score is 92, which is pretty damn impressive!

You can find out more about the Ripple Score here and you can see a tour’s Ripple Score clearly on the tour page, just look for this icon:

I do want to note that the Ripple Score isn’t perfect and a score of 100 doesn’t mean that literally all money stays local.

Their definition of “locally-owned” is any business at least 50% owned by a citizen or resident of that country, which means that a franchise of a massive international hotel chain could *technically* still qualify if it’s 50% or more locally-owned on paper, even though a huge portion of revenue still flows back to the foreign parent company through management fees. Local ownership doesn’t necessarily equal money staying local, but it’s more likely to stay local vs. money spent with a foreign-owned company.

No measurement tool in any industry is going to be flawless, and the Ripple Score is still lightyears ahead of anything else in the travel space. They’ve also been open about wanting other tour operators to adopt the system or develop their own version of it rather than just keeping it for themselves as a competitive advantage, and to me this shows genuine desire to improve the industry as a whole.

Ethical tourism

G Adventures’ commitment goes well beyond Planeterra and the Ripple Score, tackling everything from animal welfare to environmental impact to what responsible tourism looks like in indigenous communities.

And if you’re a bit of a sceptic (me too 🧐) you don’t have to just take my word for it, they’ve been backing up their values with actual systems and policies for decades, so let me break them down for you.

• Their extensive animal welfare policy was developed in conjunction with leading wildlife NGOs and it’s much deeper than the usual ‘no elephant bathing’ and ‘no tiger selfies’ guidelines. It covers how sanctuaries/conservation centres and domestic/working animal encounters are vetted for their itineraries (like what standards they have to meet) and also provides a dedicated email address where customers can report any animal welfare concerns on tour.
  
  
• Child welfare is something most travellers probably don’t think about when booking a group tour, but it is a massive issue in destinations where tourism and vulnerable communities overlap. Things that might make us feel good as travellers (like sharing photos of cute local kids on social media, buying souvenirs off children or fleeting classroom visits) are often harmful to the kids themselves. G Adventures are the first global travel company to be ChildSafe certified, and you can read their full child welfare policy here.

• G Adventures has developed a climate action plan to halve their carbon footprint by 2030 and reach Net Zero ASAP (2050 at the latest), with transparency around the numbers they’re working with and a commitment of $5M CAD to actually implement it. They’ve already made major changes like replacing their Expedition ship with a new, more efficient vessel, they encourage remote working amongst their staff where possible to reduce commuting emissions, and their product teams are constantly auditing their itineraries and data to optimise vehicle size and transport methods.
  
  
• Many of their tours interact with indigenous communities, but instead of just writing their own internal policy for respecting local culture, G Adventures and Planeterra partnered with a leading tourism university to develop global best practice guidelines for responsible indigenous tourism. *Slow clap 👏🏼*
  
  
• Reducing plastic usage is an obvious one, and you can read about their Plastics Partnership Project here. Something I personally noticed on my GX Jordan trip was that instead of giving the 700 attendees a goodie bag with trash merch that would go straight to landfill, we got a sturdy tote bag that’ll last years with just a few curated goodies from local community projects.

• With their Trees for Days initiative with Planeterra and Reforest, G Adventures plant one tree every day a traveller is on tour with them. So two people booking a 10 day tour = 20 trees! I’ll be honest here, some tree planting programmes are a claaassic way for companies to greenwash their ‘About Us’ page, but this one won me over because trees are grown by established community partners that choose what to plant based on what their area actually needs, whether that’s habitat for wildlife, reforestation to stabilise soil and prevent landslides, or shade trees to protect crops, and each project provides local employment opportunities too.

G Adventures pros and cons: My honest take

I’ve given you A LOT of information about G Adventures as a company (succinctness is clearly my biggest weakness), so let me summarise the key things I’ve learnt from five tours into a simple list of what they do brilliantly and what could be better.

What G Adventures does well

• Their guides are all local experts and are consistently brilliant, I’d rate all of my CEOs a perfect 10/10.
• I’ve already written a novel about their commitment to community tourism so I won’t bang on about it anymore, but obviously knowing your hard-earned travel money is actually reaching the places you’re visiting is a massive tick for me.
• Extensive coverage around the world with varying tour styles in many places so you can pick an itinerary that best suits your priorities.
• Ideal for solo travellers with no single supplements plus their dedicated Solo-ish tours exclusively for those travelling alone.
• They know their stuff after 35+ years of doing this, and they run a smooooth operation right from when you book through to when you get back home.
• Small groups mean you actually connect with people and they’re way more efficient for getting around vs. a big bus tour with 30+ humans to wrangle. Most tours max out at around 16 people but the average is 10-12, big enough to have a good mix of personalities but small enough that a bathroom stop doesn’t take 45 minutes.

• They attract great people! In my experience the vast majority of my G Adventures tourmates have shared my values around responsible travel, respecting different cultures, having an open mind etc. There has been one exception to this 👀 but the rest of us banded together to minimise any impact to group dynamic and in the end it was a form of entertainment. Maybe one day he’ll be a chapter in a book I write about people I met on my travels 🙃
• Any animal encounters on their tours have been carefully vetted and meet their strict animal welfare policy, and the CEOs educate travellers about any local concerns like not paying to take photos of camels at Petra or monkey selfies in Bali.
• This seems like a small thing but I LOVE that they share their recommended daily tip amounts for CEOs in each different country, you can find them at the bottom of the country page underneath the list of tours. Most tour companies don’t publish this and it is always so damn stressful on the last day of a trip trying to sneakily discuss how much you should each put in with your fellow travellers.
• If you need to cancel your tour for any reason, their Lifetime Deposit policy means you can use your initial deposit on any tour at any time in the future at no extra charge, and you can even transfer your deposit to a friend.
• They also have guaranteed departures, which means every single one of their tours is guaranteed to run* regardless of how many people sign up. If you end up being the only person who books (unlikely but possible!) you’ll get a private guide rather than being left hanging with non-refundable flights and no tour to go on.

*In rare situations tours may be cancelled for safety reasons, but in this case their customer service team will reach out to all affected customers with full info and refund/rebooking options.

What to be aware of

• Accommodation on a ‘Basic’ tour is exactly that, basic. Clean and functional but not always with modern amenities like air con, decent WiFi, in-room fridges or anything like that. Service level is clearly listed on every tour so you won’t be caught off guard, but if this isn’t your vibe then look at Standard and Upgraded tours instead.
• Some tours involve long drive days, you can see estimated transport and activity times in the full itinerary for each tour so read these carefully to know what to expect.
• Optional activities can add up, especially if you’re booking a Basic level or youth-focused tour at a low price point and especially if you get FOMO and can’t say no to something fun your friends are doing (🙋🏼‍♀️). You can find optional activities and their prices at the end of the itinerary on any tour page, budget for these in advance.

• Group dynamics are always a gamble and there’s no guarantee you’ll click with everyone, that’s the reality of group travel.
• Bonding can take longer on Classic tours with a wider potential range of personalities/demographics/interests, vs. age-restricted ones or themed ones like Active, Wellness or Solo-ish.
• On segment tours (where a longer itinerary is split into separate bookable chunks) you might join a group that’s already been travelling together for a few days which can feel a bit like being the new kid at school, and/or some of the group might continue after the end of your trip which can feel like your parents forgot to sign a permission slip so you’re not allowed to go on school camp. I personally struggle with these scenarios due to my aforementioned FOMO 🙃 but I know that’s a me problem haha.

Is G Adventures worth the money?

When you take into account the superstar guides, carefully-crafted itineraries, benefits of a small group and the fact that they’re a purpose-led company that’s committed to making a positive impact on the communities your tour visits, I think G Adventures tours are absolutely worth it.

They aren’t the cheapest tour operator in the world and they’re not trying to be, but when you compare their trips to similar tours in terms of group size, itinerary, inclusions and travel style, based on all my research, more often than not they do tend to come out a bit cheaper.

Comparing the tour price vs. replicating the itinerary yourself is something else though, and you’ve got to keep in mind what tours actually provide beyond the obvious inclusions.

If you’re only looking at the exact same accommodation, public transport between places, included meals and activities then sure, chances are you’d be able to replicate some itineraries independently for a lower price, but that way you wouldn’t have the benefits of an expert guide, ready-made travel buddies and having all the logistics sorted for you.

There are aspects of some G Adventures tours that are truly invaluable too, like curated experiences and access to communities that are unreachable independently, the safety blanket of having a local CEO and G’s operations team who can assist with anything that goes wrong while on tour, and just being able to actually enjoy your holiday instead of having to research, plan and book every single part of your adventure.

And if you’re solo (like I am 95% of the time) and too old or fussy for hostels or backpacker-style travel (me 100% of the time), booking a Standard or Upgraded trip gives you access to accommodation, transport and experiences that’d be pricey if you weren’t doing them with a group.

Prices vary hugely depending on destination, duration, tour style, service level and inclusions, so if you’re tossing up between two different companies or between booking a tour and going it alone, make sure you’re calculating it properly and comparing apples to apples.

Does G Adventures offer discounts?

They do sometimes! Here are the easiest ways to save $$$ on your tour:

• You can nab some decent deals on last minute departures if you’re looking for an adventure in the next couple of months, anywhere from 15-40% off the final few spots. These are more likely to come up for off-season destinations and less popular routes, and they change frequently so check them often if you have somewhere specific in mind.
• G Adventures generally participates in major shopping events like Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Click Frenzy in Australia and their own Great Adventure Sale which generally happens in January, plus they run smaller regional and seasonal promotions throughout the year. You can see all their current discounts right here.
• The Great Adventurers Club is their loyalty programme for repeat travellers with four or more tours under their belt. You earn a travel credit after every tour to go towards your next one ($100USD if you’ve done 4-9 tours, $150USD for 10-14 tours and $250USD for 15+ tours), plus you get double trees planted in the Trees for Days programme, priority customer service and access to exclusive deals and updates.
• If you complete an evaluation from your last G Adventures trip within four weeks then you’ll get a 5% discount for your next tour.

I don’t have a promocode for G Adventures direct unfortunately but I do have a promocode for TourRadar which works on G Adventures tours, use the code ALEXXH50 for $50 off your tour 💰

Who are G Adventures tours best for?

If you’re keen for a small group adventure then they truly do have tours for most kinds of travellers, but if you fit into one of these boxes then you’re particularly well aligned with G Adventures:

• Solo travellers! No single supplements if you’re happy with a same-gender roommate pairing, option to upgrade to a private room if you want your own space, instant social group from day one, safety and security of travelling with a guide and group in destinations that might feel daunting alone, opportunities to experience off-the-beaten-track destinations and cultural immersion without the logistical nightmare of pulling that kind of trip together all by yourself, PLUS a tour style exclusively for solo travellers with solo-focused itineraries and inclusions.
• Active adventurers who’d rather hike, bike or paddle their way through a destination than sit on a bus. Their Active range covers everything from multi-sport samplers to life-defining challenges, and every tour has a physical rating so you know what you’re signing up for.

• First-time visitors to a destination if you’re short on time and just want an efficient adventure, or if you’ve got an extended period but would prefer a tour at the start of your trip to get your bearings before exploring independently afterwards.
• Anyone visiting destinations with logistical complexity. I’m pretty well-travelled myself and I’ve been to over 50 countries totally solo 🌍 but I still opt for group tours in places where piecing together an epic itinerary all by myself would be time-consuming and overwhelming, like in Borneo.
• Travellers visiting destinations with additional safety concerns or instability. Having a locally-based CEO who understands the situation on the ground and can communicate and navigate efficiently if something went wrong, plus a regional operations team monitoring things behind the scenes, provides a level of comfort and security that you wouldn’t find as an independent traveller.

• Wildlife lovers, you can trust that every animal encounter included on their tours has been properly vetted and they’ve got plenty of itineraries tailored for wildlife viewing, including safaris, gorilla trekking, Amazon cruises, Galapagos island hopping and more.
• Travellers seeking genuine cultural immersion and meaningful connections with the places they visit. Local homestays, family-run restaurants, Planeterra-supported initiatives, CEOs who share stories about their homeland, and confidence that all interactions with the communities you’re visiting will benefit them rather than exploit them.
• Curious and adventurous mini-explorers and their adults.
• Backpackers looking for a super social experience and some epic nights out without compromising on their values or having to remember 45+ names (Roamies is for you!).

• And finally, G Adventures is ideal for travellers who want to contribute to developing a sustainable global travel industry where communities benefit as much as the tourists who go there, where cultures are preserved and celebrated rather than exploited or diluted, where it’s no longer acceptable to post photos of random children on Instagram, and where responsible tourism goes beyond just taking a reusable drink bottle (but obviously do that too!).

Who should skip G Adventures?

• People who don’t like travelling with others, no tour operator is going to change that haha. Although they do offer private tours for 8+ people if you’ve got enough friends to book your own departure!
• Spontaneous travellers who want to wake up and decide what to do that day, a set itinerary will feel restrictive.
• Travellers who just want to tick off landmarks and photo spots without the deeper cultural context. G Adventures tours lean heavily into community tourism and authentic experiences (along with the highlights and bucket list experiences), so you probably won’t get your money’s worth if that’s not your thing.
• Anyone hoping to ride elephants, watch dancing bears or cuddle a lion cub. Please don’t 🙃

Aside from these clear examples that don’t align with G’s values, pretty much all other travellers will be able to find something that suits them in the 1000+ tours on offer, from budget-friendly backpacker tours right through to the ultra-luxe National Geographic Signature experiences.

One thing I do want to flag is that if you have any mobility limitations or accessibility needs, get in touch with G Adventures before booking anything to ensure your requirements can be met.

The lowest physical rating they have is 1 – Easy which says ‘light walking, few climbs more challenging than a flight of stairs’, though because they tend to use more local-style accommodation and often venture off the typical tourism trail, accessibility features like step-free access and elevators might not always be available. This will totally depend on the specific tour though, talk to their team for more info.

G Adventures vs. other tour operators

If you’re tossing up between G Adventures and other tour operators, here’s how I think G Adventures stacks up against some of the big names (based on almost 15 years working in the travel industry as well as some personal travel experience).

Quick caveat: there are thousands of tours to choose from and while the operator might determine some key things like group size, comfort level and price range, the exact inclusions and the experience you’d get will totally depend on the specific trip you choose.

G Adventures vs. Intrepid

These two get compared constantly because they’re the major global leaders in small group adventure tours, were founded just one year apart, and share a similar set of values around community tourism and responsible travel.

Full disclosure: I haven’t personally toured with Intrepid so I can’t give a firsthand comparison, but as someone who’s spent years working in the travel industry (and especially in the youth tour operator space), I’ve got a pretty deep understanding of the company.

Where they’re similar: Small group sizes, wide coverage across 100+ countries, locally-based tour leaders, focus on authentic cultural immersion, various types of tours, comfort levels and budgets, transparency around their social and environmental impact, and each has their own non-profit organisation.

G Adventures has an average 4.7/5 rating from 12,000+ reviews on TourRadar, Intrepid has a 4.5/5 rating from 12,000+ reviews.

What G Adventures has that Intrepid doesn’t:

• Every single tour is a guaranteed departure (vs. Intrepid which guarantees departures for most trips but not all, so you have to check before you book flights etc.)
• Solo-ish, a range of tours exclusively for solo travellers with solo-tailored benefits
• The Geluxe Collection, a dedicated tour style for premium active trips with slower-paced itineraries and more inclusions
• More tour options in Asia and South America
• Two places (that I could see) that Intrepid doesn’t currently cover: Moldova and Palau
• Significantly more youth-focused tours (250+ vs. 76 from Intrepid)
• Two different youth styles, Roamies (18-35, hostels, bigger groups with a social focus) and 18-to-Thirtysomethings (18-39, smaller groups, still super social but less party-party)
• The Ripple Score, a transparent metric at the individual tour level showing what percentage of money goes to local businesses on the ground

What Intrepid has that G Adventures doesn’t:

• Women-only expeditions for female travellers who prefer an all-women group (which I love the idea of!)
• Wider coverage in Australia (not surprising given they’re an Australian company) and wider geographic spread across Europe, including Slovenia, Slovakia and more of Scandinavia
• A handful of other destinations G Adventures doesn’t currently cover, including Taiwan, Tunisia, Eswatini, Lesotho, Saudi Arabia and parts of the South Pacific
• A decent range of dedicated cycling tours
• More family-focused itineraries
• The option to save your spot for five days without paying a deposit (vs. 48 hours with G)
• B Corp certification, the most recognised accreditation globally for responsible business practices, with a rigorous independent audit process.

P.S. It’s worth noting that G Adventures has been upfront about why they haven’t pursued B Corp (you can read about that here and here), and I think it’s fair to assume that the time and costs involved with structuring things to fit the (understandably meticulous) B Corp framework would take resources away from their existing social responsibility initiatives like Planeterra, the Ripple Score and their community tourism projects. A B Corp badge is fantastic signal that Intrepid is meeting the gold standard for responsible business, but G Adventures still offers transparency, accountability and measurable impact through their own tourism-specific tools.

Which is cheaper: G Adventures or Intrepid?

I just spent three hours looking at 100+ comparable tours side by side to try and give you a definitive answer for this question, and the final verdict is… it depends 🙃

Many of their itineraries look nearly identical on a map, but the inclusions differ (more meals here, an extra activity there) which changes the overall value. Their service levels don’t directly match up either, G Adventures has five tiers (Camping, Basic, Standard, Upgraded and Luxury) and Intrepid has four (Basix, Original, Comfort and Premium), but at the top end G’s Luxury options go well beyond what Intrepid’s Premium tours offer so it’s tricky to know how the rest of the service levels compare.

That said, in my (non-scientific and don’t hold me to it) research, G Adventures’ base price typically came in slightly lower for comparable itineraries. In the few cases where it was higher, trip details showed additional meals or activities included that the Intrepid trip didn’t have.

BUT this was just a random selection of less than 5% of each company’s tours to try and get an idea of the value difference overall, so please don’t take it as gospel!

G Adventures vs. Contiki

I travelled with Contiki in the USA, Canada, Southeast Asia and throughout Europe in my 20s and had an absolute blast, but they’re an entirely different product to G Adventures so it’s less of a “which is better” and more of a “what are you after?”.

The key differences:

• Group size: Contiki groups can be up to 53 people in Europe, North America and NZ, and up to 30 in other continents, whereas G Adventures tours generally max out at 16-18 or 22 for Roamies (with lower averages).
• Vibe: Contiki leans heavily into the social/party scene, it’s not forced on you but it’s pretty typical to have a big night out at least every few days or so. G Adventures 18-to-Thirtysomething tours are still high energy and there’s opportunities for going out-out but it’s less of a focus, whereas Roamies trips stay in hostels so they’re the ultra-social option on that side.
• Tour guides: While G Adventures primarily uses local CEOs, Contiki has a Trip Leader throughout your tour to manage logistics, often a Brit/Aussie/Kiwi/American/Canadian who’s been trained on an entire continent, and then different local guides in each place to show you around. I’ve LOVED my Contiki Trip Leaders too but you don’t get much time with local guides, so there’s less opportunity to build a deeper connection and local understanding.
• Age range: 18-35 for almost all Contiki tours but they’ve got a small range of tours for 27-35 year olds as well as for 35-45 year olds. G Adventures has loads of tours for all ages, Roamies for 18-35s and then the 18-39 range.

• Local immersion: Contiki is ideal for ticking off landmarks and bucket list moments at a quick pace, G Adventures puts more emphasis on authentic experiences and cultural context of the places you’re visiting.
• Their bread and butter: G Adventures operates all over the world but their most iconic trips would be Central and South America, Africa and the Middle East, Southeast Asia and more off-the-beaten-path spots like Central Asia, Eastern Europe and the polar regions, as well as active trips and wildlife tours. Contiki on the other hand is best known for their iconic Europe bus tours, but they also run top-rated Southeast Asia backpacker trips, more adventure-y tours in places like Costa Rica and New Zealand, and their island hopping trips are legendary too.

I have no regrets (IYKYK) about my Contiki trips and they were perfect for where I was at in my life at the time, but as my travel priorities have shifted towards smaller groups, cultural experiences and knowing my money is making a positive impact, G Adventures is a much better fit for me now.

G Adventures vs. Flash Pack

If you’re a solo traveller in your 30s, 40s or 50s then Flash Pack is worth knowing about.

They’re designed for upscale solo travellers with two age brackets (30-49 and 45-59), a maximum of 12-16 people, boutique accommodation and a big focus on group dynamic and bonding with your new travel buddies.

The price point is quite different from G Adventures, with Flash Pack’s fancier accommodation and included activities more in line with the ‘Upgraded’ service level (even more expensive), whereas G’s Solo-ish range offers a similar solo-only concept but at lower price points with the added community tourism elements.

As an example, the base price for their 12-day Philippines tour starts from $4695USD, 12 days in North India starts from about $4095USD, a week in Sicily starts from $3595USD. Not cheap, but the standard of hotels and included activities is over and above what most other small group tours offer.

If budget’s not a concern and you’re keen to explore with fellow travellers in a similar life stage to you then Flash Pack has some really epic itineraries. If you want the solo-specific experience without breaking the bank and with a deeper cultural focus, Solo-ish might suit you best.

G Adventures FAQs

The final verdict: Is G Adventures worth it?

If you’ve made it this far then you already know my answer: yes, 100% they’re worth it.

G Adventures has earned my loyalty not because they’re perfect, but because they’re transparent, they genuinely care about the places they take you, and every single tour I’ve done with them has left me with unforgettable core memories, social connections and a deeper understanding of the world, plus a camera roll full of special moments.

If you’re on the fence, just book one. I bet you’ll love it!

SMALL GROUP TOURS TO ADD TO YOUR BUCKET LIST:

• Borneo: East Sabah Adventure with G Adventures
• Morocco: Deserts & Beaches with G Adventures
• Sri Lanka Classic with One Life Adventures
• Japan Classic with One Life Adventures
• Sailing the Greek Islands with Medsailors
• Bangkok to Singapore with Contiki
• Amazing Balkans & Transylvania with Travel Talk Tours

MY GO-TO TRAVEL PLANNING RESOURCES

Flights ✈️ I use Skyscanner to find the best flights for my trip and then I’ll always book direct with the airline to protect myself from having to deal with dodgy third parties if anything goes wrong.

Trains 🚂 If I’m travelling through Europe, I try to travel by train wherever possible! For an extended trip (2+ weeks) I’ll calculate if a Eurail Pass is worth it, or I’ll book point-to-point tickets through RailEurope or the local train operator.

Accommodation 🛎️ I book almost all of my accommodation through booking.com, they have a user-friendly website + app and many of their options are free cancellation, easily cancelled with a simple click of a button.

Activities 🗽I use GetYourGuide, Klook and Viator to look for activities in the places I visit, or I just Google ‘things to do in [city]’! P.S. If you book anything on Klook you can use the promocode FINDINGALEXXKLOOK to get 10% off

Travel cards 💳 I’m a Wise gal through and through, they’ve been my chosen travel card for more than five years now. You can easily top up your card from your bank account or through Apple Pay, convert your money to local currency, and spend money with minimal fees and the best exchange rates around.

Travel insurance 🩺 I use Cover-More NZ travel insurance for my own trips, I have a comprehensive policy and I’ve only had good experiences with them. Cover-More also has an Australian company, but if you’re from elsewhere then two popular insurance options for global travellers are SafetyWing (cheaper policy, lower coverage) and World Nomads (more expensive but significantly better coverage).

Luggage 💼 I travel with Samsonite Cosmolite suitcases, one 75cm check in bag and a 55cm carry on bag, and I absolutely adore them and will never travel with anything else! They are SUPER lightweight (2.8kg and 1.9kg respectively) so I have much more space for my actual stuff.

Camera gear 📸 I use a iPhone 15 Pro Max for phone photos/videos, and my camera kit includes a Lumix S9 (incredible lightweight full-frame camera, a game changer for travel creators!) with a 20-60mm lens, a Lumix G9 with an 8-18mm and 12-60mm lens, a DJI Mini 3 Pro drone and a GoPro Hero 10. I do all my writing and editing on my ASUS Zenbook 14, it’s lightweight but powerful enough for photo editing and intense blogging sessions.