“GT” Travel World

Travel with “Good Tour­ism” (scroll down for posts). Learn about spe­cial places, people to meet, and things to do from tour­ism insiders keen to show­case our plan­et’s good, bet­ter, best.

There are count­less reas­ons why good travel is a reward­ing and enrich­ing exper­i­ence. Here are just a few:

  • Cul­tur­al expos­ure: Trav­el­ling provides the oppor­tun­ity to exper­i­ence new cul­tures and ways of life, from tast­ing new foods to learn­ing about dif­fer­ent tra­di­tions and cus­toms. This can broaden your per­spect­ive and help you under­stand and appre­ci­ate the diversity of our world.
  • Per­son­al growth: Trav­el­ling can be a trans­form­at­ive exper­i­ence that helps you grow as a per­son. It can chal­lenge your com­fort zone, build resi­li­ence, and teach you new skills. It can also help you gain con­fid­ence and inde­pend­ence as you nav­ig­ate new envir­on­ments and situations.
  • Bond­ing with oth­ers: Trav­el­ling with friends or fam­ily can be a bond­ing exper­i­ence that strengthens rela­tion­ships and cre­ates last­ing memor­ies. It can also be a way to meet new people and make new friends from around the world.
  • Adven­ture and explor­a­tion: Trav­el­ling allows you to explore new places and try new activ­it­ies, from hik­ing to ski­ing to scuba diving. It can be an adven­ture-filled jour­ney that provides a sense of excite­ment and exhilaration.
  • Relax­a­tion and escape: Trav­el­ling can be a way to escape the stresses of every­day life and unwind in a new envir­on­ment. Wheth­er you’re loun­ging on a trop­ic­al beach or explor­ing a peace­ful moun­tain vil­lage, trav­el­ling can offer a sense of relax­a­tion and rejuvenation.
  • Learn­ing oppor­tun­it­ies: Trav­el­ling provides oppor­tun­it­ies for edu­ca­tion and learn­ing, from vis­it­ing his­tor­ic land­marks to attend­ing cul­tur­al events. It can be a way to expand your know­ledge and gain a deep­er under­stand­ing of the world.

Over­all, trav­el­ling offers a wide range of bene­fits, from per­son­al growth and cul­tur­al expos­ure to adven­ture and explor­a­tion. Wheth­er you’re trav­el­ling to a nearby des­tin­a­tion or embark­ing on a jour­ney around the world, the exper­i­ence of good travel is one that is sure to enrich your life in count­less ways.

Reflections on the ‘best small city in the world’: San Miguel de Allende

April 7, 2022

Overlooking San Miguel de Allende. By Steven Buchanan (CC0) via Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/mexico-san-miguel-de-allende-dusk-5756222/

A recent “Good Tour­ism” Insight about ‘jouis­sance’ promp­ted me to reappraise the con­cepts of sen­sa­tion and per­cep­tion and the pur­suit of pleas­ure.  It triggered memor­ies of San Miguel de Allende, a magic­al UNESCO World Her­­it­age-lis­ted colo­ni­al town in cent­ral Mex­ico.  The story begins with an artist and one of Canada’s former fig­ure skat­ing cham­pi­ons, the […]

Read More Reflections on the ‘best small city in the world’: San Miguel de Allende

Memories of Jordan (and celebrating the ‘bucket list’)

February 17, 2022

Memories of Petra and Jordan by Melanie Kay Smith

I was at a tour­ism industry con­fer­ence a few months ago listen­ing to a talk on the dev­ast­at­ing effects of COV­­ID-related travel bans on her­it­age des­tin­a­tions.  Pro­fess­or Mike Robin­son, the speak­er, cited Jordan as a prime example.  Amidst my sym­pathy for the des­tin­a­tion and its people, my ‘buck­et list’ quest react­iv­ated instantly in my mind.  It […]

Read More Memories of Jordan (and celebrating the ‘bucket list’)

Living Laos by riding it

January 13, 2022

A photo opportunity somewhere in Luang Prabang Province, Laos. Image by Chris Mulder via KTM Laos.

Hav­ing lived in Laos for all but a year since 2009, I real­ise how little the gen­er­al vis­it­or to the PDR takes home with them in terms of exper­i­ences and memor­ies.  Per­haps that is because ever since I star­ted liv­ing in Laos I have wanted to explore my new home on a motor­cycle. And now […]

Read More Living Laos by riding it

Impressions of eastern Nepal & the gem that is Ilam

November 18, 2021

Tending tea near Shree Antu village, Ilam District, eastern Nepal

Leav­ing the com­forts of my home has always been not only excit­ing but also some­what com­fort­ing to me.  Travel has helped me grow, learn, unlearn, and relearn things in life.  The most pre­cious memor­ies I have of grow­ing up are of going to dif­fer­ent places, exper­i­en­cing dif­fer­ent cul­tures and lan­guages, and enjoy­ing the loc­al del­ic­acies. Tak­ing family […]

Read More Impressions of eastern Nepal & the gem that is Ilam

Find five-star dining in surprising Mae Sot

October 21, 2021

Instruction in the kitchen at HCTC's The Passport restaurant in Mae Sot, Thailand

The city of Mae Sot in west­ern Thai­l­and dis­plays most of the hall­marks of a small bor­der cross­ing hub. Rich in trade, the quiet little town is a fas­cin­at­ing melt­ing pot of people.  Over dec­ades, influxes of refugees flee­ing neigh­bour­ing Myan­mar, many from the per­se­cuted Kar­en tribe, have shaped the city and earned it the nick­name of […]

Read More Find five-star dining in surprising Mae Sot

Far and wide: Inspired by Hanoi’s hoa sữa

August 25, 2021

Hanoi's hoa sữa (“milk flowers”, named after their milky white petals). Picture courtesy of Minh Quan (c). httpswww.facebook.comshotgun911

Estab­lished some 4,000 years ago on the banks of the Red River, and chosen as the cap­it­al more than 1,000 years ago, Hanoi is widely regarded as the his­tor­ic heart of Viet­nam. It clings strongly to tra­di­tions. The city’s Old Quarter trans­ports vis­it­ors back in time. Over the cen­tur­ies, Hanoi has been exposed to the ups […]

Read More Far and wide: Inspired by Hanoi’s hoa sữa