Podcast
Globetrotters Podcast
Hosted by Jonathan Otero and Chelsea Pelsone · EN
Where do you find your travel information these days? If your answer is social media, chances are you have a love-hate relationship with how travel is portrayed on these platforms. Globetrotters podcast is a travel show that goes beyond the shallow social media captions and scripted TV shows, by highlighting travel stories from diverse people from around the world.
Join co-hosts Jon and Chelsea on our adventure.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Join co-hosts Jon and Chelsea on our adventure.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
27episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
SoFe Travel: Building the World’s Largest Solo Female Travel Community - With Amanda Black | #137
2d ago00:34:50Tap to summarizeAmanda Black built the Solo Female Travel Network after a terrifying experience in Cancun where everything she owned was stolen, leaving her isolated without a trusted support system while traveling alone. What started as a small Facebook group for women to share advice, safety tips, and real-time support quickly evolved into a global community of more than 500,000 members built around trust, reliability, and connection. Amanda shares powerful stories of women helping one another across borders, including moments where community members stepped in during dangerous situations abroad when local systems failed them. SoFe Travel grew from that same foundation — creating small-group adventures centered around trust, cultural immersion, meaningful connection, and making destinations that once felt intimidating or inaccessible feel possible for women traveling solo.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →The Points Partner: Turn Points Into Free Travel & First Class Upgrades – With Owen Beiny | #136
2w ago00:56:41Tap to summarizeOwen Beiny is the founder of Points Partner and creator of the Fly Free Academy, helping thousands of people travel the world for little to no cost. A former CEO with 15 years of global travel experience, he combines strategic thinking with real-world tactics to maximize every mile, upgrade, and benefit. While his expertise spans all types of travel, Owen also shows—through his experience as a father—that flying free with a family is entirely achievable.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →Why “Service Vacations” Are Redefining Meaningful Tourism – With CEO Kimberly Haley-Coleman | #135
Apr 2200:50:19Tap to summarizeKimberly Haley-Coleman, Founder and CEO of Globe Aware, breaks down one of the most important shifts in travel today: the move from passive tourism to purpose-driven service vacations. What began as a personal frustration with the lack of short-term, meaningful ways to engage abroad turned into a global organization connecting travelers with community-led projects across more than 25 countries. In this episode, we get into why traditional tourism—and even “voluntourism”—often falls short, what most people misunderstand about serving abroad, and why these experiences are less about helping and more about learning. Kimberly shares how stepping into a community with humility, not a savior mindset, leads to deeper cultural understanding and lasting personal impact. If you’ve ever felt like typical travel is missing something—or wondered how to experience the world in a more meaningful way—this episode will challenge how you think about going abroad.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →Inside the $100B Gap in Travel: Why Running Tourism Is Just Getting Started - With CEO Michael Mazzara | #134
Mar 2500:51:30Tap to summarizeMichael Mazzara, CEO of Rogue Expeditions, breaks down one of the most overlooked trends in travel: running tourism. What started as a personal challenge turned into a global opportunity—multi-day running experiences that combine movement, culture, and community across destinations like Japan, Slovenia, and the Dolomites. In this episode, we get into why traditional race travel often falls short, who these trips are actually designed for (hint: not elite runners), and how shared physical experiences create deeper, more meaningful connections than typical group travel. If you’ve ever laced up your shoes in a new city or wondered what travel could look like beyond sightseeing, this one’s for you.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →Why Thousands of Solo Travelers Join Surf Yoga Beer Trips - With Founder Mantas Zvinas | #133
Mar 1800:50:26Tap to summarizeSolo group travel and community trips are reshaping how people explore the world. Mantas Zvinas, founder of Surf Yoga Beer, shares how a lifestyle built around surfing, fitness, beer, and connection evolved into a global travel company bringing active, like-minded people together. Since 2014, SYB has designed high-energy itineraries packed with epic moments, spontaneous adventures, and friendships that last long after the trip ends. Most travelers arrive solo, but leave as part of the crew.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →Surprise Travel Company: The Pack Up + Go Story with Founder Lillian Rafson |#132
Mar 1100:50:54Tap to summarizeWhat if you didn’t know where you were traveling until the day you left? Lillian Rafson, Founder and CEO of @packupgo_travel, shares how a random conversation in a hostel in Riga led her to move back to Pittsburgh and start a surprise travel company at 23. Turning a simple idea into a company that has sent more than 50,000 travelers to 300+ destinations across the U.S. takes more than good marketing — it requires trust, logistics, and a deep understanding of how people actually want to travel. The conversation explores how surprise travel works, why travelers willingly give up control, and what it takes to design trips that prioritize discovery over endless planning.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →Photowalk Nashville: How Christy Hunter Built One of Airbnb’s Top Experience Brands | #131
Feb 400:45:38Tap to summarizeBuilding a top-ranked Airbnb Experience takes more than aesthetics — it requires systems, hospitality, and trust at scale. Christy Hunter, Founder & Co-Owner of Photowalk Nashville and one of Airbnb’s top Experience hosts, shares how she turned photography into a multi-city travel business rooted in human connection. This conversation breaks down experience design, platform dependence, scaling with partners, and what both travelers and travel professionals can learn from businesses that prioritize transformation over transactions.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →Breaking Into the Travel Industry as a Creative: Community, Visibility, and Opportunity with Aspen Cierra | #130
Jan 1400:43:13Tap to summarizeBIPOC creatives are still underrepresented in the travel industry — Aspen Cierra shares how collectives like Black Women Photographers and the Black Travel Alliance unlocked grants, press trips, mentorship, and access that led to Iceland, Jordan, and beyond. From a Nikon-backed grant to tourism board work and creator press trips, her journey shows how representation, shared resources, and showing up in the right spaces can change who gets seen — and who gets hired. This conversation is about building a career through alignment, visibility, and belonging in an industry still catching up.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →From Gifting to Getting Paid: Building a Sustainable Travel Creator Brand with Angie Thomas | #129
Jan 700:50:07Tap to summarizePretty travel content doesn’t pay the bills — value does. Angie Thomas of The Honest Passport unpacks the realities of building a sustainable travel creator business, from navigating rates and early mistakes, to understanding when gifting no longer makes sense. Grounded in her European upbringing and corporate IT background, Angie breaks down what providing value actually means beyond aesthetics and how genuine passion leads to better partnerships. With the creator economy projected by Goldman Sachs to approach $480B by 2027, this conversation is essential listening for creators and travelpreneurs who want to grow with integrity, intention, and leverage.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
Transcribe →Scaling Personalized European Travel with Tenon Tours CEO Bryan Lewis | #128
Dec 1700:49:01Tap to summarizePersonalized European travel at scale requires more than technology — it demands expertise, trust, and intentional design. Bryan Lewis, founder and CEO of Tenon Tours, breaks down how he built an award-winning boutique travel company across 18 European destinations by balancing structure with flexibility and keeping the human touch at the center. From sourcing “farm-to-table” travel experiences and expanding during COVID to lessons from failed launches, motorcycle touring in Ireland, and evolving traveler expectations, this conversation offers practical insight into bespoke travel, experiential tourism, and scaling a high-touch service business without losing quality.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/globetrotters-podcast--5023679/support.
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