Fede Vargas was born in Mexico and raised in Canada. He’s a former adrenaline-driven sales exec who is now on a purpose-driven podcasting journey and the creator and host of the popular podcast My Most Authentic Life.

Fede shares how he connects with people choosing to live courageously and inspire and empower us to create the life we truly want to explore with self-compassion, self-care, and humility. His podcast was inspired and born because of his own transformational journey while living in Mexico. Discover what authenticity means to him and how travel shapes these experiences.

Also on Speaking of Travel, Tina Kinsey, Vice-president of Marketing, PR, and Air Service Development at the Asheville Regional Airport, shares how the new airport design more than doubles the square footage of the current terminal and is planned to accommodate future growth. Find out how the phasing of the new terminal will unfold to maintain safe airport operations for your passenger experience. 

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

Jan Schroder is a travel writer and editor for close to 25 years and shares how she began her career. Jan provides advice for people who want to be successful travel writers and also reveals some useful travel tips.

For many years, Jan was the managing editor of a travel magazine and a freelance travel writer for well-known outlets including Fodor’s, Orbitz, Global Traveler and International Living. Today she focuses on writing and producing the monthly digital publication The Travel 100, which is part of The 100 Companies based in Atlanta.

Jan explores some of the most challenging parts of being a travel writer and shares some trends she is seeing in travel today.

Also on Speaking of Travel, grab your comfy sweaters and get ready to plan your ultimate getaway to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina. Mark Collins, Partnerships Manager for RomanticAsheville.com, the most popular online travel guide to the mountains and foothills surrounding Asheville and Western North Carolina, gives us the lowdown on the best ways to boost your energy and mood when the temps are cooler and sunshine is scarce. 

So stay tuned!

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

Speaking of Travel takes us into the private world of two maestros of the kitchen who share their passion for community with stories and inspirations to reveal what helped them become modern culinary legends.

Chef Erica McCier, also known as Chef Trudy, is the owner and executive chef of Indigenous Underground restaurant in Abbeville, SC. Chef Erica’s indomitable spirit, talents in the kitchen, and penchant for showcasing local ingredients have earned her a place on the 2023 roster of South Carolina Chef Ambassadors.

Also on Speaking of Travel, renowned Chef Steven Goff, owner and executive chef at Asheville, NC's beloved Tastee Diner, shares his early life experiences and how these life-changing moments launched his career as a chef and restaurant owner dedicated to supporting the local community through his food.

Just like certain people who are really good marathon runners, or pianists, or writers, others have what it takes to become legendary cooks. Stay tuned for more fabulous chefs coming up on the Speaking of Travel Foodie Lover Series.

Tune in! Only on Speaking of Travel.

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

Amit Jaipuria, founder of Postcard Travel Club, is connecting luxury travelers with boutique hotels and tours that advance responsible tourism and shares why storytelling helps make travel a force for good. When you put people who live in and care about destinations at the center of travel content, their innate joy in sharing their stories and their passion for place says it all.

Amit shares the importance of storytelling in promoting responsible tourism and how Postcard is helping users identify hotels and tours that advance responsible tourism and helping them build their wish lists to travel more sustainably. And find out what's coming up at Postcard in the near future in terms of features.

With airports set as the core driver of travel and tourism industry changes, they are being transformed in the process. Also on this episode of Speaking of Travel, Tina Kinsey, Vice-president of Marketing, PR, and Air Service Development at the Asheville Regional Airport, shares how the airport is transforming right now and the purpose of all this change.

Tune in. Only on Speaking of Travel. 

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

Travel is known to change you. Surrounding yourself with different cultures, different people and different outlooks on life are bound to change all of us a bit. 

That’s one of the greatest things about traveling as a whole - apart from tasting the different cuisines of course! We are on a constant learning curve as we venture from our comfort zones.
 
The Speaking of Travel + Leave No Trace Series with Richard Crawford continues. Richard is the host of the popular TV series Leave No Trace TV and we highlight the importance of conservation, sustainable travel and eco-tourism.

Ricky catches us up on Season Two of Leave No Trace TV and provides updates on when this new season is coming out. And he shares some ways we can be ambassadors when we travel and where he's most intrigued to go next.

You can watch Leave No Trace TV on Plex, a free, online streaming service. 

Tune in. Only on Speaking of Travel.

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

Speaking of Travel is celebrating our 10-year anniversary by revisiting classic Speaking of Travel conversations from our first decade, like this one with Pico Iyer, essayist and author, best known for his travel writing and one of the most revered and respected travel writers alive today.

Pico brings an understanding of the beauty and wisdom of cultural differences and shares how an emerging global culture benefits your travel adventures how we can all be more mindful travelers.

For over four decades, he’s written 16 books, translated into 23 languages, on subjects ranging from the Dalai Lama to globalism, from the Cuban Revolution to Islamic mysticism. For Pico, travel is a professional devotion as much as a spiritual one. 

Travel is a key theme in most of Pico's works. He tries to see within a society or way of life from an outsider's perspective. Pico shares his thoughts and curiosity about the bigger world to help us rethink assumptions and to be mindful about new ideas and insights. 

Get ready to dive into Pico's world of thought-provoking stories and unforgettable insights! Whether he's in a Benedictine hermitage or suburban Japan, his quest for understanding the world is ongoing and endlessly fascinating. “A person susceptible to "wanderlust" is not so much addicted to movement as committed to transformation.” Thank you Pico! 

A must listen. Only on Speaking of Travel. Find out more about Pico Iyer. 

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

Marcy Berra shares her travel stories and reflects on travel memories spanning many years and many countries. Marcy explains how to immerse yourself in the local culture by connecting with the people, history and food. 

Listening to Marcy's stories fuels imagination. She has the courage to open herself up to taking risks and making changes. She is flourishing and adapting her strength to help make travel memories for her family. 

Marcy shares some clues into what travel teaches us and how it's alright to leave your comforts to make new friends, try new things, and appreciate other cultures.

She also provides some timely travel tips if you're traveling with different generations and why sometimes you just have to have the mustard.

A must listen! Only on Speaking of Travel.

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

Travel insurance continues to be one of the most confusing aspects of the travel experience. Ben Camille is a foremost travel insurance expert and founder and CEO of Travel Defend, the leading insurance broker. Ben answers questions and shares tips on how to know what to look for to travel smarter.

Ben is an entrepreneur and shares how his businesses begin and develop into leading industry leaders. If you're wanting to begin a business, find out from Ben how he does it.

Smart travelers plan for known travel safety risks. This can include the weather and potential health concerns. Of course, it’s impossible to plan for the unknown, but the good news is there are experts who are there to help you. 

Ben Camille is an expert who gets travel insurance. He can put himself into the mindset of travelers and has deep connections in an industry that is still something of a mystery.

If you have a passion for travel and want to be as prepared as possible to get out and about, listen to this special episode of Speaking of Travel!

Contact Travel Defend for quick, professional information. 

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

The Speaking of Travel and Leave No Trace TV series continues with host Richard Crawford and director and camera person, Ben Alcott. They share tips for safety and health while traveling and what’s coming on Season Two. 

You can now watch all episodes of Leave No Trace TV, Season One, on Tubi, the leading free, premium, on-demand video streaming app, and on Bingenetworks.tv.

Ben and Ricky share Season One highlights and what stood out most and when we will be seeing Season Two.

Also, they share what plans for growth and development are in store for Leave No Trace TV moving forward. And some top tips for staying safe and healthy while traveling.

A must listen! Only on Speaking of Travel. 

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler. 

Ukrainian-born pianist Inna Faliks shares her new book, "Weight in the Fingertips: A Musical Odyssey from Soviet Ukraine to the World Stage,” a memoir of her adventures in music and her hopes for tomorrow.

Inna shares what it was like growing up in Odessa, studying in Chicago, and teaching in Los Angeles. Her poignant, beautiful story about love and hope includes the special people in her life who supported her growth and desires, her own “love story," and how the war in Ukraine and her own life journey in music fosters empathy and compassion.

She also explores how a person’s humanity makes their art honest and their voice unique, and how the life-long challenge of retaining that voice is fueled by a balance between being a great musician and being a human being. Inna provides powerful insights into the role of music in a world of conflict, change, and hope for a better tomorrow.

A must listen. Only on Speaking of Travel. Tune in.

For more information, visit www.innafaliks.com

Thanks for listening to Speaking of Travel! Visit speakingoftravel.net for travel tips, travel stories, and ways you can become a more savvy traveler.