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In this episode we’re talking about our annual Focus on LGBTQ+ Travel cover story, and we’re doing it in a personal way. Host Rebecca Tobin speaks with freelance writer Abeni Jones, who brought both personal perspective and strong reporting to last year’s story, "Traveling while Transgender," and this year’s piece on what travel companies are doing to make travel more inclusive and safer for people in the LGBTQ+ community – and more that needs to be done.

In this episode, Tobin and Jones dive into an important discussion on why travel can be a fraught exercise for some LGBTQ+ travelers, especially transgender and gender-nonconforming people, changes at the TSA, how some travel companies are taking a holistic approach to inclusion, and how people and organizations could do better.

Our summer 2022 series revisits some of the best Folo by Travel Weekly episodes. This episode was originally published June 20, 2022. It has been edited for length and clarity.

Episode sponsor: This episode is sponsored by ALG Vacations https://www.algvacations.com

Related reports

Focus on LGBTQ+ Travel, 2022: A more inclusive welcome https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Focus-on-LGBTQ-travel-2022

Focus on LGTBQ+ Travel, 2021: Traveling while transgender https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Focus-on-LGBTQ-Travel-Traveling-while-transgender

U.S. issues first passport with a nonbinary gender option https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Government/US-issues-first-passport-with-nonbinary-gender-option

Proud Experience focuses on the growing LGBTQ market https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Proud-Experiences-focused-on-growing-LGBTQ-market

LGBTQ leaders encourage genuine engagement from travel companies https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/LGBTQ-leaders-encourage-genuine-engagement-from-travel-companies

 
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Travel is booming and travelers are eager to back on the road. But what do you do if your travel company is confronting the perfect storm of being down staff and up on inquiries from travel advisors and consumers – who may not be ready to make a booking?

One tour operator, eager to reduce the number of window shoppers, has taken a – sometimes controversial – page from the travel advisors’ playbook. Host Rebecca Tobin get into the subject with Authentic Vacations CEO Simon Russell and Travel Weekly tour editor Nicole Edenedo. Our summer 2022 series revisits some of the best Folo by Travel Weekly episodes. This episode was originally published May 30, 2022. It has been edited for length and clarity.

Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by ALG Vacations

Related:

With more calls and less staff, tour operator turns to pre-booking deposit https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Tour-Operators/With-more-calls-and-less-staff-tour-operator-turns-to-fees

Ire builds over hold times as suppliers rush to hire and train call staff https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Suppliers-rush-to-staff-up-train-as-ire-builds-on-call-wait-times?ct=

Previously on the Folo podcast:

How the rush to travel created hurdles for travel agents https://www.travelweekly.com/Podcasts/Folo/The-rush-to-travel-brings-hurdles-for-agents

 
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Earlier this year our tours reporter, Nicole Edenedo began looking at the growing interest for experiences that highlight Black history and culture. Notable Black Americans in Paris, the first free town in the Americas, in Cartegena and U.S. tours that go beyond the Civil Rights movement are just a few examples.

In this episode we hear from Edenedo and two businesswomen she connected with during her reporting, Jennifer Tosch of Black Heritage Tours, which operates in Amsterdam and New York state, and Meryanne Loum-Martin, the owner of the Jnane Tamsna boutique hotel in Marrakech, Morocco. In this conversation we’re going beyond what’s in the cover story to talk in detail about how they created experiences that unearth, examine, celebrate and share Black history and experiences.

We talk about their backgrounds, their businesses growth, the power of Black business and social networks, travel philosophy, inspiration and their passion for what they do.

About this episode:

Our summer 2022 series revisits some of the best Folo by Travel Weekly episodes. This episode was originally published April 4, 2022. It has been edited for length and clarity.

Related:

Nicole Edenedo's cover story: Black travelers on the road to discovery: https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Black-travelers-on-the-road-to-discovery

Jnane Tamsna hotel in Marrakech: https://www.jnanetamsna.com/

Black Heritage Tours: http://www.blackheritagetours.com/

A previous Folo podcast episode on diversitiy initatives within travel: https://www.travelweekly.com/Podcasts/Folo/Black-voices-in-travel-survey-results

 
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The boom in travel is now in full swing: Europe is a favored destination for Americans, airlines are overtaxed, cruise ships are all back in operation. Earlier this year, American Express Travel put some data to the anecdotal evidence: Sixty-two percent of respondents to its Global Travel Trends Report survey said that they planned to take two to four trips this year.

Where do people want to travel -- and, perhaps more importantly, WHY do they want to travel? In this episode, host Rebecca Tobin and American Express Travel head Audrey Hendley talk about the big picture as well as some of the reasons people are back on the road.

Our summer 2022 series revisits some of the best Folo by Travel Weekly episodes. This episode was originally published March 28 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Related reading:

The travel boom has arrived, American Express Travel poll says 

American Express Travel's 2022 Global Travel Trends Report 

Travel Weekly's 2022 Power List: American Express Travel 

 
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Our podcast episode today is based on a cover story by photographer and writer Mark Edward Harris’ visit to Odesa, Ukraine, where he reported on the sights and sounds of the city and its tourism past. In this piece, he showcases the situation in Odesa but also what the tourism industry in Ukraine is doing to assist the country in wartime: Activating connections all over the country to aid in humanitarian work.

Harris reconnected with National Tourism Organization of Ukraine president Ivan Liptuga about how Ukrainian tourism companies are using their networks to assist refugees. The history of Ukraine's tourism and its target markets. How conflict has a long-lasting impact on traveler's decisions. And what travelers might appreciate about Ukraine -- from spas to skiing, culinary tourism and city breaks -- once the war has ended. 

This episode was recorded Thursday, July 7, and has been edited for length and clarity.

Travel Weekly's related reports on Ukraine:

Ukraine tourism in wartime

An update on a tour operator featured in TW

Arnie Weissmann's column: Why are global hotel companies still operating in Russia? 

Talking to travel clients about the Ukraine situation

Ukraine's tourism organization and campaigns:

The Scream for Ukraine campaign

National Tourism Organization of Ukraine

Mark Edward Harris additional work for Travel Weekly:

Nepal Rising

North Korea: Inside the Hermit Kingdom

Exploring Brazil's Panatal

Mark Edward Harris' website and Instagram
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The three C’s of family priorities.

This week we’re returning to the topic of family travel. Hotels editor Christina Jelski and  Rainer Jenss, the founder of the Family Travel Association, dive into some of the nuances of this very big travel market.

Our summer 2022 series revisits some of the best Folo by Travel Weekly episodes. This episode was originally published April 11 and has been edited for length and clarity.

Additional resources:

The Family Travel Association https://familytravel.org/

Family-travel news from Travel Weekly https://www.travelweekly.com/family-travel

Multigenerational family travel is booming: https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Multigenerational-family-travel-booming-post-pandemic?ct=family

 
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