TTC Blog — The Transformational Travel Council

Seeking greater balance in Japanese Tourism

Seeking greater balance in Japanese Tourism

In high school I was a bit out of the mainstream social scene, introverted and trying to think and feel my way to an understanding of why I am here, why are we all here. That led me to Asian philosophy, and the book Zen and Japanese Culture by DT Suzuki.

Travel DesignerGuest UserOctober 4, 2019

Where is your SCHAUPLATZ?

Where is your SCHAUPLATZ?

It takes a sense of freedom to realize your dreams and passion to make the impossible possible – the present is all we have, so what keeps you from taking the chance?’ – Daniel Thomas Faller, Founder

Travel DesignerGuest UserSeptember 17, 2019

Tourism as a Force for Good

Tourism as a Force for Good

Eventually I reach the point where I have this overwhelming urge for adventure. It starts small, sometimes with an inability to stay focused, to stay seated, but the yearning is like a rising tide, and I know I’ll only feel better if I go.

Travel DesignerGuest UserJuly 30, 2019

The Road Trip

The Road Trip

Eventually I reach the point where I have this overwhelming urge for adventure. It starts small, sometimes with an inability to stay focused, to stay seated, but the yearning is like a rising tide, and I know I’ll only feel better if I go.

AccommodationsGuest UserJuly 18, 2019

My Purpose in Life

My Purpose in Life

I had just quit my job in a big consultancy company after working for some years in corporate social responsibility and seeing that at the time very few companies had a real commitment to the communities where they were operating.

Guest UserJuly 18, 2019

From an outsider to being part of the family

From an outsider to being part of the family

In the summer of 2014 I travelled to Nicaragua to spend three months living with a local family in the hills of the northern region of Somoto, volunteering on a water and sanitation project in an extremely rural area. I've always been drawn to adventure and sought out ways to push myself, which is why I decided to sign up to three months without a phone, running water or flushing toilets.

Tourism ServicesGuest UserJuly 18, 2019

A Myraid of Journeys

A Myraid of Journeys

My name is Naghmeh Manshadi and I am the Chief Adventuring Officer of NAMO Journey. Needless to say, I’m passionate about journeys, but particularly the kind of journey where you travel both into the world and into yourself simultaneously.

Wellness Retreats, Travel DesignerGuest UserJuly 17, 2019

Fueled by a Dream & Passion for Cycling

Fueled by a Dream & Passion for Cycling

It seems like yesterday that I was a happy-go-lucky anthropology student at Cornell riding around the Finger Lakes and teaching bicycle instruction to wide-eyed freshman. After graduation, it seemed natural that I would expand my pedaling horizons to Europe, seek out my Italian roots in Le Marche.

Wellness RetreatsGuest UserJuly 17, 2019

Each day on a Great Walk is a new day

Each day on a Great Walk is a new day

Sometimes there are moments that are just meant to happen for an unknown reason. I was once again surrounded by everything we talk about as what’s beautiful in the great outdoors – the sky, the rocks, interesting plants, unique wildlife and the sounds of the Australian bush.

Wellness RetreatsGuest UserJuly 17, 2019

Inner Journeys Discovered in the Greek Isles

Inner Journeys Discovered in the Greek Isles

I walked up the hill to this small white and blue Greek chapels. One of those standing by itself on a cliff overlooking the vast ocean. The sun was shining, and the earth smelled like oregano. I turned the doorknob on the dark wooden door and to my surprise it was unlocked. Inside it was dark, cool, and light shone in through the small windows high up on the wall.

Travel DesignerGuest UserJune 10, 2019

Escaping, Exploring, Setting Records

Escaping, Exploring, Setting Records

On the 15th of March 2015, I set off with a small group of intrepid adventurers and paddlers from Cape Town in high spirits and armed with a mixture of nervousness and excitement. Our destination: a little known former hunting concession area deep inside Botswana's Okavango Delta. Our mission: to be the first people to explore the far regions of the famous Delta by Stand Up Paddleboard.

Travel DesignerGuest UserJune 10, 2019

A One-of-its-Own-Kind Galapagos Experience

A One-of-its-Own-Kind Galapagos Experience

Our Camp was built on a dream. When we first arrived at the site and scrambled up a tree to get a better look at the lay of the land, we were captivated by the incredible views, our immediate intimacy with nature, the unspoiled and raw beauty of what our senses were experiencing. It was intoxicating and overwhelming in its uniqueness: a Galapagos experience that defied description.

AccommodationsGuest UserJune 10, 2019

Disconnect to Reconnect

Disconnect to Reconnect

November 13, 2015 (coincidentally my twin daughter’s shared 33rd birthday) I saw opening credits for a film called The 33. It was a film about 33 Chilean miners who were trapped underground for weeks and weeks before being rescued. I remember the nightly drama unfolding on the evening news as rescuers…

AccommodationsGuest UserJune 10, 2019

A "Pausa" in Ecuador

A "Pausa" in Ecuador

I was on a bit of a break myself. Six months before, I was in Ecuador for a conference and there I realized I could fulfill a longtime personal dream of mine to take a monthlong Spanish immersion class.

Tourism ServicesGuest UserMay 8, 2019

Transforming with the Kogi in Colombia

Transforming with the Kogi in Colombia

Below me the Rio Piedras followed its gentle course, carrying its crystalline water down to meet the sea. Behind me the verdant peaks of the world’s tallest coastal mountain, Colombia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, stretched up to infinity. A wave of joy coursed through me, bringing the promise of an incredible day.

Travel DesignerGuest UserMay 8, 2019

An “I Do” That Transformed Lives

An “I Do” That Transformed Lives

I didn't want just another wedding. We were travelers, who had met across the world from our homes, and built a life with people who believed in the transformational power of travel.

Tourism ServicesGuest UserApril 9, 2019

‘Do not ponder, travel!’: Trusting my Intuition

‘Do not ponder, travel!’: Trusting my Intuition

And then I was in my mid-30s and suddenly wanted a child. And I was scared that my life would be over then. My life as I liked it: Entrepreneur, traveling, being spontaneous, flexible schedule. And so much more.

Travel DesignerGuest UserApril 9, 2019

The Treads That Bind Us

The Treads That Bind Us

It has been 16 years since my mom passed away from cancer and I can still feel her absence so acutely in various moments of each day that it is as though time has not moved at all. As I navigate this journey without her I have clung to the threads of her memories real and imagined which I allow myself to sparingly indulge in.

Travel DesignerGuest UserApril 4, 2019

Traveling in the Moments Around us!

Traveling in the Moments Around us!

“Ireland is my home ground yet the world is my playing field” has become my motto over the years. I enjoy watching Rugby but walking the trails and tracks of Ireland beats it every time.

Travel DesignerGuest UserMarch 29, 2019

Reaching New Heights in Costa Rica

Reaching New Heights in Costa Rica

I got more and more lightheaded with each second the tram inched its way up the 2625ft mountain. Was I really doing this? I really couldn’t back down now?? I had just been told that the 7 zip-lines were how we got down the mountain.

Tourism ServicesGuest UserMarch 29, 2019