After two months abroad, Erin and Kattie finally reunite over a stable internet connection and talk about Erin's 150 day trip so far! They discuss the highlights from Tanzania and Sri Lanka - like what happened to Erin's Teva's on Safari and the memorable hike up Sri Pada at the crack of dawn - and how Erin's body has been hanging in there... Up next... NEPAL! If you're a fan of the show, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review Curious Tourism: Responsible Travel Podcast! Follow us...

Erin and Kattie sit down together to chat about Erin's big news, big year, and big travel plans for 2024!

Erin chats with Taryn Eyton, a Leave No Trace Master Educator and a former member of the board of directors of Leave No Trace Canada, about what it actually means to "leave no trace". They also unpack gatekeeping the outdoors. Is it good to gatekeep? Is it bad? Let’s find out.

We’re digging into museums with María Elena Ortiz, Curator at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. We chat about the history of museums, and we unpack the colonial undertones that they sometimes have. And of course, we’ll talk about the role of museums in tourism.

In Oaxaca, Mexico, there’s a growing trend of Canadian snowbirds buying up  beachfront land, being promised that these properties will be the perfect vacation home. The problem is, the land that is being developed is not up for grabs. It’s communally owned by Indigenous and rural residents.  Erin chats with Dawn Marie Paley, a journalist and author based in Mexico who covered this phenomenon in a piece for Breach Media, to unpack why this is able to happen, and how gentrification and tourism...

What we post on social media, write, or say about the places we visit, has the power to shape perceptions, maintain unfair stereotypes, and perpetuate colonial views. Learn why we all have a responsibility to share our travels mindfully.

Is it responsible to visit zoos? Some argue that animals in zoos suffer physically and mentally by being enclosed. But zoos can also be really important for conservation, and make learning about wildlife more widely accessible. To learn more about the industry of zoos, aquariums, and roadside animal attractions, we're chatting with Stacia Lock. She explains the ethics behind zoos, and what it’ll take to make animal and wildlife tourism more responsible.   Guest: Stacia...

In 2021, a documentary came out that addresses the inconvenient truths of the tourism industry. The Last Tourist explores the benefits, and the harms of tourism, as well as the myriad of social issues that factor into the current tourism landscape. Ultimately, the film argues that tourism has reached a tipping point.  Today on Curious Tourism, the responsible travel podcast, we’re chatting with Tyson Sadler, the director behind The Last Tourist. Tyson shares with us some of the themes that...

Thinking back to the flights you've taken in the last few years, how many times have you noticed a woman-identifying pilot boarding the plane, or making those in-flight announcements? According to 2020 data from the FAA's Aeronautical Center, about 7% of commercial airline pilots that year were women, and it’s been reported that less than 1% of pilots in the US are Black women. Joi Schweitzer is part of that 1% and she joins the podcast to unpack the ins and outs of what it takes to become...

If you take a quick browse through travel media, you'll notice a lot of cliches like, "wild", "untouched", and "remote". These descriptions are commonly applied to places that are considered rural, and they might seem harmless. But often, these descriptions can play into misconceptions about places and usually lack the context behind why the places we visit are the way they are. PLUS, Erin and Kattie discuss Erin's recent trip to Ireland and why the "O'Hynes" family castle isn't going to be...

Erin is joined by Soumaya T. Hamdi to chat about how the Muslim travel market is growing, the barriers are Muslim travelers facing when they travel, and how can the tourism industry address these barriers and create a welcoming, inclusive space.

We unpack what "responsible tourism" really means, and how collective action can support a more sustainable tourism model.

Is it really fair to put the pressure on individual travelers to be responsible, when at the root, the real challenges in responsible tourism are systemic? On season 6 of Alpaca My Bags, we’re unpacking whether responsible tourism could be a larger social movement.

Finding the right balance between travel and life can be hard. Especially as we get older there is more and more pressure to follow the traditional life path, which – let's be honest – doesn’t include tons of world travel.  Amanda Kendle joins us to have an honest discussion about how we’ve made travel fit into our lives, while balancing work, finances, and other commitments. GUEST: Amanda Kendle is a travel podcaster, travel blogger, social media consultant and...

Global travelers still don't think much about Indigenous tourism when they think about travel to Canada. Post cards show Royal Canadian Mounted Police and maple syrup. But Canada has a long, rich, and diverse history that was shaped by the people who were here first: Canada’s First Nations. We're talking to Keith Henry, President and CEO of the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC) to find out what economic reconciliation looks like for the travel industry. We discuss the impact of...

At the end of every year Lonely Planet releases their list of top destinations for the following year. Erin and Kattie chat about the 2023 Lonely Planet destinations that caught their eye and what's missing from the list. They also look back that at their long-awaited travels in 2022 - from Iceland to Belize and Madeira Island - and discuss what's ahead for the podcast! SUPPORT US ON PATREON for as little as $5 a month! HOW TO SUPPORT US: Alpaca My Bags is the podcast that is creating a...

You cannot travel through Nepal without thinking about the world’s tallest mountain.  So what does Mount Everest mean to Nepalese people, and how is it shaping Nepal’s culture, economy, and tourism? And what is it like to climb Mount Everest in the first place? We’re chatting with Philip Henderson, a member of the first all Black team of climbers to have summited Mount Everest, and Amrit Ale and Shanta Nepali, two friends of Philip’s who call Nepal home and have special connections to the...

Hey Alpaca Pals! Life has been FLYING by these days and so we'll be a bit delayed with the release of our next episode. Instead of launching today, we'll have a brand new episode out this Friday. Thanks for your patience, we appreciate you!

Wheelchair users around the globe are having some of the worst travel experiences imaginable, because aircrafts do not allow wheelchairs to roll right on. Most mobility devices have to be stowed in the cargo hold along with luggage. But mobility devices aren’t just luggage. This system is resulting in thousands of dollars worth of damage to wheelchairs, and scary, uncomfortable experiences for travelers with disabilities. We talk to Maayan Ziv and Chris Wood to unpack why inclusive air...

Traveling within Canada is incredibly difficult. The quick options are expensive and the cheap options take FOREVER! The transport landscape in Canada is extremely limited, which means that if you don’t have a car, there are barriers to get around. This is a problem not just for people in Canada, but for people who would like to visit and spend tourism dollars here.  Paris Marx joins us to help us understand why getting around Canada is so hard and the deep structural changes needed to...

For immigrants and the generations that follow them, traveling back to a “home” country can be a complicated experience. For some, visiting a place that their parents, grandparents, or generations even further back left by choice, or fled, can bring happiness and learning. But for others, it might bring conflicted feelings. Leah from the Ticket 2 Anywhere podcast joins Erin to talk about her experience of traveling for the first time to her homeland, The Philippines.

Erin and travel journalist Paige McClanahan discuss what happens when tourism becomes unsustainable. Learn what overtourism is, what causes it, how travelers can avoid contributing to overtourism, and what needs to change to make tourism more sustainable.

Going on vacation doesn't mean your depression is on vacation, too. Even when you're out traveling the world, it's important to take care of your mental health. Erin is joined by Tammy Tran to explore mental health and travel. They chat about what it feels like to be depressed while traveling, how to take care of your mental health while traveling, and how social media contributes to our travel experiences, and expectations.

Digital nomads are on the rise, as more and more people embrace working remotely as a way to make seeing the world more accessible. We unpack digital nomadism and responsible tourism with Michael Jensen and Brent Hartinger.