Travel More Adventurously

Rebecca

Travel More Adventurously is a podcast about travelling with children, why it matters, what it can give us as a family, and how we can make bigger adventures feel more possible. Hosted by Rebecca Ryell, the podcast brings together stories, conversations and practical ideas about adventurous family travel. We’ll explore the things that can hold families back, the experiences that help us grow, and the many different ways families can travel with more confidence, curiosity and intention. Expect conversations about family travel, health and safety, cost, planning, travelling with children of different ages, meaningful experiences, and the unexpected things we learn when we step outside the familiar. Whether you’re already travelling adventurously with your family or simply wondering what might be possible, this podcast is here to inspire you, reassure you and help you think a little differently about family travel. New episodes every Monday.

Episodes

  1. 22h ago

    “We Must Be Absolutely Mental” — Lake Toba, Volcanoes & the Banyak Islands | Sumatra Part 2

    What is it really like travelling through Sumatra with three young children? In this episode of Travel More Adventurously, Pete is back for part two of our family travel adventure through Northern Sumatra, Indonesia - and this part of the trip involved volcanoes, Lake Toba, a terrifying boat journey, traditional Batak tuak, hungry children, remote islands and more than one moment when we wondered whether we had completely lost the plot. We pick up the story after returning from the Mentawai Islands, when a chance meeting with a local driver called Harley ended up shaping the next few weeks of our travels. From Berastagi, we climbed Mount Sibayak before sunrise with three young children, walking through the dark past steaming volcanic craters before reaching the summit as the sun came up. There was also the slightly surreal moment when a group of local children became convinced that one of our sons was Justin Bieber. From there we travelled on to Lake Toba, the enormous volcanic lake in North Sumatra, where we ate extraordinary local food, bought fresh fish and crayfish from fishermen, and experienced one of those frightening parenting moments that feels much bigger when you are a long way from home. We also talk about tuak, the traditional Batak palm wine we tried in Northern Sumatra. Made from fermented palm sap, it was cloudy, milky-white and considerably more alcoholic than we were expecting. Looking back, it is one of those tiny details of travelling that has stayed vividly in our memories. Then came the journey to the Banyak Islands. We set off from Singkil in a tiny boat in torrential rain and rough seas, unable to see land and bouncing across the water for hours. At one point I remember looking at Pete and genuinely thinking: we must be absolutely mental. And then, somehow, we arrived in paradise. The Banyak Islands were remote, beautiful and completely unlike anywhere we had stayed before. We swam over coral reefs straight from the beach, watched the children invent games with hermit crabs and experienced what happens when you take three children somewhere so remote that there simply aren't any snacks. As storms prevented fishermen from bringing in food, our meals became smaller and smaller. The children, who could once be particular about how a fish finger was cooked, suddenly discovered that hunger makes you remarkably adventurous - including enthusiastically eating chicken legs when they finally appeared. We also saw first-hand the enormous amount of plastic pollution washing onto these remote beaches and heard about the devastating impact of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami on the islands and the people who lived there. It was one of those travel experiences that was simultaneously beautiful, uncomfortable, funny and thought-provoking. And after several days of increasingly small meals, our stay ended with an unforgettable surprise

  2. Sep 20

    Why Adventurous Family Travel Is Good for Us | Dr Kate Staveley

    What if adventurous family travel isn't just fun, but actually good for our health, our relationships and the resilience of our children? In this episode of Travel More Adventurously, Rebecca Ryell talks to Dr Kate Staveley, GP, lifestyle medicine doctor and co-founder of Hexagon Health, about the connection between family travel, health and wellbeing. Kate has travelled adventurously with her own children for years - climbing mountains in Borneo, surfing together in Costa Rica, volcano boarding in Nicaragua and, more recently, travelling in Japan. We explore the six pillars of lifestyle medicine - nutrition, restorative sleep, physical activity, social connection, mental wellbeing and reducing harmful substances, and dicuss how surprisingly naturally many of them can become part of travelling together as a family. We also talk about raising resilient children, knowing when to encourage them through discomfort and when to stop, getting away from screens, experiencing different cultures, eating local food, learning to cope when plans go wrong and the powerful connection that comes from doing hard, funny and memorable things together. Kate also shares her recent experience of travelling in Japan, including Tokyo, public transport, food, language, jet lag and why she found Japan such an easy and fascinating place to explore. And we come back to something that sits at the heart of this podcast: the window we have to adventure with our children is surprisingly short. If you've ever thought one day we'll take that trip, this conversation might just encourage you to make it happen. Find Kate and Hexagon Health: https://hexagon.health/ Find Rebecca and Travel More Adventurously: https://www.rebeccaryell.co.uk If you enjoyed this episode, please follow Travel More Adventurously, share it with another family who might need a little encouragement, and leave a review, it really helps more people find the podcast. #FamilyTravel #AdventureTravel #TravelWithKids #LifestyleMedicine #FamilyAdventure

  3. Sep 13

    Under a Himalayan Sky: Raising Children, Taking Risks & Seeing the World | Dr Jane Wilson-Howarth

    What does travelling with children really give them - and how do we balance adventure with keeping our families safe? In this episode of Travel More Adventurously, Rebecca Ryell talks to Dr Jane Wilson-Howarth - doctor, zoologist, author, mother and leading travel health expert. Jane has spent decades living and working around the world, particularly in Nepal and Asia, written more than 200 health features for Wanderlust, and was named by Simon Calder as one of his most impressive travel authorities. We talk about family travel, travelling with children, travel health, risk, resilience, motherhood and Nepal — including Jane’s experiences of raising her own children overseas and returning to Nepal after her son David was born with profound health problems. We also explore what children can gain from travel, how families can prepare for genuine health risks without letting fear stop them, and some of the decidedly less glamorous realities of adventurous travel. Jane isn't known as The Long Drop Doc for nothing! Jane’s beautiful new memoir, Under a Himalayan Sky: A Story of Love, Loss and Learning to Live, transported me straight back to Nepal. Its honesty, humanity and extraordinary story of family life stayed with me long after I finished it. If you’re wondering whether adventurous family travel is really possible, this conversation is for you. Find Jane 🌍 Jane's website 📷 The Long Drop Doc on Instagram 📖 Under a Himalayan Sky 📖 How to Shit Around the World Find Rebecca & Travel More Adventurously 🌍 rebeccaryell.co.uk 🎧 Follow Travel More Adventurously If you enjoyed this conversation, please follow, share it with another adventurous family and leave a rating or review — it helps more families discover the podcast. #FamilyTravel #TravelWithKids #TravelHealth #AdventureTravel #JaneWilsonHowarth

About

Travel More Adventurously is a podcast about travelling with children, why it matters, what it can give us as a family, and how we can make bigger adventures feel more possible. Hosted by Rebecca Ryell, the podcast brings together stories, conversations and practical ideas about adventurous family travel. We’ll explore the things that can hold families back, the experiences that help us grow, and the many different ways families can travel with more confidence, curiosity and intention. Expect conversations about family travel, health and safety, cost, planning, travelling with children of different ages, meaningful experiences, and the unexpected things we learn when we step outside the familiar. Whether you’re already travelling adventurously with your family or simply wondering what might be possible, this podcast is here to inspire you, reassure you and help you think a little differently about family travel. New episodes every Monday.

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