Adventure Travel Podcast - Big World Made Small · Jason Elkins - Big World Made Small Adventure Travel Marketing

Adventure Travel with Leigh Barnes - Intrepid Travel

·1 hr 4 min·4 clips

Walking through the Himalayas showed him how insignificant people are, and how alike they still are.

1. Adventure Travel Podcast - Big World Made Small features Jason Elkins talking with Leigh Barnes about Intrepid Travel and Barnes's path from Melbourne to Seattle. 2. Leigh Barnes is president of the Americas for Intrepid Travel, and Jason Elkins is the host who frames the interview around Barnes's background and role. 3. The episode asks what shaped Barnes's travel philosophy, career choices, and sense of purpose after years at Intrepid Travel. 4. Barnes gives Intrepid's elevator pitch: travel to hundreds of countries, thousands of itineraries, small groups, local leaders, and sustainable experience-rich tours. 5. He names examples like Everest Base Camp, a food tour of Vietnam, gorillas in Rwanda, and the souks in Marrakesh. 6. Barnes says Intrepid tries to minimize environmental impact, reduce carbon emissions, and push dollars into communities that need them most. 7. Jason describes Intrepid as large enough to make an impact yet still connected through people on the ground in many places. 8. Barnes says Intrepid has been around for 35 years, has DMCs in more than 30 locations, and builds trips with local communities. 9. He says the company's scale lets it multiply impact through wildlife initiatives, project funding, and climate work. 10. Barnes says Intrepid's foundation has raised over $20 million for projects and that the company is a B Corp. 11. Barnes identifies trekking to Everest Base Camp through the Himalayas as the biggest pivotal moment in his career and life. 12. He says the trek showed him how insignificant people are and how similar everyone's daily goals can be across places. 13. Barnes recalls growing up in Werribee, a suburb about 40 minutes from Melbourne, in a blue-collar neighborhood. 14. He says family travel meant an hour's drive to the coast, a caravan, cousins, grandparents, cricket on the road, and beach holidays. 15. His mother told him and his sisters not to get married until they had seen the world, and his father pushed self-reliance. 16. Barnes says cricket and sport first opened his eyes to life beyond Australia, especially watching matches in England. 17. He says he studied journalism and PR, wanted to be a sports journalist, and planned to live in the UK rather than map out a grand career. 18. Barnes says he left for Edinburgh with about $3,000, struggled with phone cards, banking, and jobs, and doubted himself regularly. 19. The conversation is casual, reflective, and personal, with Jason asking follow-up questions and Barnes answering with specific memories and self-criticism. 20. People interested in Intrepid Travel, Australia, or career-changing travel stories will likely connect with this episode.

As heard by us

A plainspoken look at adventure travel that makes the harder parts part of the story.

Big World Made Small stays close to the practical side of adventure travel. Lee Barnes, president of the Americas for Intrepid Travel, talks business and the harder parts of the work, while Jason Elkins keeps the conversation loose enough to move from destinations to self-doubt,…

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Hear how adventure travel really works, and how a seasoned industry insider keeps it moving.

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