These women on a wanderlust curate trips to exotic locales and share their wow moments
A group of travellers with Jyotsna in Pangong
For some women, travelling is a means to escape, but for many it’s about fulfilling their need for adventure. Bitten by the travel bug, these wonder women who had full-time careers as professionals started their own travel companies to travel the world and share their interesting insights with others in their travel groups. Meet these three women from Bengaluru, who love every bit of hopping across the globe in their own words…
Jyotsna Kini, The Extraordinary Travel Company
I studied design management at the Parsons School of Design in New York, after which I worked as a creative director at a branding agency in New York. I traveled across the world (over 40 countries – and counting!) for work and pleasure. I spent all my spare time and money on travel and found that I enjoyed travel planning just as much as I enjoyed the actual travel itself – every travel experience left me wanting more and I soon started my own firm, curating each experience for others. I believe the people you travel with are as important as the destination, so I get small, intimate groups (10-12) of like-minded men and women with similar interests and age range. Our glamping (glamourous camping) trip to Ladakh was one of the most memorable. We stayed in luxury tents on the grounds of the Thiksey monastery and when we weren’t meditating with the monks, we were being treated to gourmet meals under the stars made by a five star chef and visiting the monasteries around Ladakh. Another exotic experience was the Tsechu Trail in Bhutan.
We visited three local tsechu festivals across Bhutan and interacted with the local community and witness the spiritual dances and rituals. An ex-monk led us through meditations, treks and culinary adventures. Our July trip this year to Iceland showcased the spectacular natural beauty of Iceland in the summer as we drove across southern and western Iceland, immersing in the landscapes, food and friendly people. There’s a reason it’s known as (N)iceland! One of the most unusual experiences was snorkeling in the freezing cold waters of Silfra, between two tectonic plates.
Gauri Jayaram, Active Holiday Company
I was the regional director, South Asia for the world’s largest coach touring company and was responsible for promoting coach tours, but on a personal front, I was travelling to run marathons. On my 40th birthday I ran the Dead Sea Ultra race and trekked the Everest Base Camp. That year I also replaced my car with a bicycle and realised that I was living and travelling differently and that there were travellers like myself, who would appreciate a specialist travel planning that offers activity based holidays. Coming from a fauji family I have always been travelling. Unlike many people who leave their tech or other careers to enter the travel industry, for me travel was a career of choice and have travelled to over 35 countries.
From marathon touring where we offer experiences like running marathons on seven continents to offering cycling enthusiasts the chance to watch the Tour de France or walking on World Heritage Trails our focus is on doing something different. Whether it is sailing, learning to cook with a local family, food walking or travelling with expert photographers or better still – watching the Tour de France Tanzania, go on a cycling safari, bikers beer pilgrimage, diving in Turkey, camping in the Sahara, sushi making in Japan, Chiang Mai’s hill tribe trek, trekking Java’s volcanoes, Trans Siberian rail journey, Ice-hotel experience & Northern Lights and sailing the coast of Cote d’Azur.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
Next Story
