My new book, Destination Stewardship, is now available for presale! Get 25% off with code KOGANPAGE25 and enjoy free shipping in the UK and US. The book features insights from 30 global experts and includes a section for travelers on how to support stewardship wherever we roam.
Houmas House sits gracefully along a bend of the Mississippi River, on land once inhabited by the Houmas Indians. Over thousands of years, the river shaped this area with fertile soil, transforming it into one of the South’s most productive agricultural regions. By the late 1700s, European settlers recognized the land’s potential. They began transforming it into a thriving plantation, launching an era of sugarcane farming that would become central to the property’s history.
Standing beneath the live oaks at Houmas House, you feel the contradictions of Louisiana’s River Road in real time—the beauty, the wealth, and the unspoken histories that still cling to the land. Our conversation with Kevin Kelly revealed a property that isn’t just preserved, but constantly reinterpreted. And upriver, the story shifts: historian Daniel Rasmussen brings the 1811 slave revolt out of the shadows, reminding us that New Orleans’ past is shaped as much by resistance as by refinement. By the time native writer Laura Martone joins us to share the New Orleans she grew up in—the food, the quirks, the quiet corners—you begin to see the region not as a series of attractions, but as a living, layered place where memory and modern life collide.
Baguio is a mountain town located on the pine-dotted plateau of the Cordillera Administrative Region in northern Luzon, Philippines. I took a weekend jaunt to Baguio from Manila. After nearly six hours northbound, the bus started ascending through the mountain loops. Outside my bus window, the sun-drenched plains reeled away into ranks of tapering pines, and the sweltering heat dissipated into cooler mountain air.
Small-town charm with an internationally-acclaimed theatre scene — you've got it all in Stratford, Ontario. This historic town is the birthplace of many Canadian greats (from pop icon Justin Bieber to actress Sheila McCarthy and musician Ron Sexsmith, to name a few) and the host of the beloved Shakespeare Festival, which has been attracting audiences to the town for over 70 years.
As a chaser of the “I’ve been to all 50 states” status, South Dakota has long been on my bucket list. When the chance to visit Rapid City popped up, I was thrilled to check off another state—number 43—and finally see Mount Rushmore, that classic slice of Americana. I typically road-trip with my teenagers during their summer break, so I dove into planning mode: spreadsheets, snacks, playlists. Then came the bombshell: one kid’s tennis camp overlapped, and the other declared my idea “lame.” (Teenagers, right?)
Explore the hidden risks of voluntourism and the complex history shaping conservation in the Galápagos Islands. Intercultural educator Lena Papadopoulos and researcher Dr. Elizabeth Hennessy reveal why responsible travel requires deeper awareness, community-led action, and a clear understanding of the islands’ past.
In the past few years, the term "immersive art experience" has been applied a bit too liberally, to abandoned convention centers and malls with famous artists' work projected onto blank walls. Van Gogh, Picasso, and Monet all got this special treatment, where visitors could walk amongst the moving images, popularized after appearing in a 2020 Netflix series. You couldn’t open Instagram without seeing people you knew posing in front of one of the works around the United States. But art isn’t just meant to be seen. It is also meant to be experienced, felt, and participated in. One gallery in particular has inspired a wave of others.
Acclaimed Argentine author and poet Jorge Luis Borges once wrote, “Hard to believe Buenos Aires had any beginning. I feel it to be as eternal as air and water.” Buenos Aires has a rich history and architectural heritage for a relatively young capital with an ancient soul. And the best way to discover the soul of the city is to take long, leisurely walks.
Recorded while traveling across Iceland, this episode explores two very different roads: America’s legendary Route 66 with Route Magazine editor Brennan Matthews, and a bold leap into European RV life with Kat Bird of the Wandering Bird blog. It’s a look at how the open road—whether in the U.S., Iceland, or across Europe—can change the way we see the world.
