We’ve all seen those swoon-worthy photos or catchy Social Media videos that transport us to dreamy, amazing places around the world. And we’re probably not the only ones who has promptly added those destinations to our dream travel list.
Precisely five million other people who saw the same viral video did, too.
We love that people are being inspired to experience new places and cultures but when a destination becomes trendy, it also means you’ll be fighting off a lot of crowds when you go. Who else hates waiting in long lines, fighting for parking spaces or beach spots, or having jaw-dropping views blocked by hordes of people?
While increased tourism creates much-needed jobs (yay!), too much of a good thing can make it really hard for locals to go about their daily lives, and it can negatively impact the environment–from encroaching on wildlife (birds need personal space, too) to harming fragile ecosystems to endangering historical sites.
There’s even a term that has been coined to describe it: overtourism. This doesn’t sound very enticing for any of us–locals, tourists, or grizzly bears looking for lunch.
But the good news is that this world is full of awe-inspiring places that are relatively unknown to those who don’t live there.
So after traveling on several different coach tours we felt that there had to be a better way to introduce people to a country using a more personal, relaxed and in-depth approach.
We didn’t like feeling of being herded about, saw far too many churches and temples, had to have our bags out to be picked up a crazy early hour, and lined up with 40 other people for the washroom during highway “coffee” stops. Seeing a country through a bus window and ticking off tourist attractions just didn’t satisfy our inner travel bug.
It was time to build our own tours, starting with Cuba (and Costa Rica, then El Salvador, Nicaragua, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador & Peru), that would fix all of the above. Here’s what we did….Check out “Why Discovery Tours”