Dear Ageless Traveler,

When I ask people about their greatest barrier to travel one word comes up again and again: responsibility. On the very first episode of The Ageless Traveler podcast, I listed those barriers, like money and health. But I’ve discovered that the toughest to overcome are work and childcare duties for younger folks and caring for a spouse, looking after grandchildren, helping aging parents, managing a home, or pet care. Those responsibilities can make even the dream of travel feel out of reach.

At the same time, the travel industry is talking about responsibilities of its own. We hear about responsible tourism, sustainable travel, overtourism, protecting local cultures, conserving water, reducing waste, and making sure tourism benefits the people who live in the places we love to visit. These responsibilities can also make travel more challenging.

Every responsibility can become another reason to travel smarter and more confidently. This week's issue is filled with ideas to help you travel more responsibly:

• Ask Adriane: How To Travel with A Pet or Find a Responsible Pet Sitter.
• News You Can Use: Practical Ways to Travel More Responsibly While Still Having An Unforgettable Adventure
• Culture Vulture: Alternatives To Overcrowded Tourist Hotspots
• Luxury Travel For Less: Destinations That Welcome Families Across Generations

If you love discovering the people behind a destination, rather than simply checking another place off your bucket list, you'll especially enjoy this week’s podcast episode. I interview Gretchen Wilbur who married a Jamaican Maroon and lives her everyday life amid this fascinating culture.

Never stop traveling

Cheers,

Adriane

This Week's Highlights

On This Week's Podcast For the Adventurous Traveler, The Indigenous Jamaican Maroon Community, Beyond the Beaches of Jamaica, Total Cultural Immersion.

Here’s what happens when you don't just visit a culture but become part of it. On this week’s podcast, I talk with Gretchen Wilbur, who married into the Jamaican Maroon community and has spent years learning its traditions from the inside. The Maroons are descendants of formerly enslaved Africans who fought for their freedom and preserved a rich cultural heritage that continues today.

Gretchen shares the customs, beliefs, celebrations, and responsibilities that have allowed this remarkable community to protect its identity while adapting to the modern world. You'll also learn how her foundation, Respecting Culture and Earth, is helping strengthen communities while honoring their traditions for future generations.

Many of the most famous cultural destinations are so overcrowded they now limit tourism or charge a hefty extra tariff to visit. And when you do get there, other tourists crowd the streets, reservations become impossible, and local residents often feel overwhelmed.

Here's the good news. You don't have to give up the experience. Some of my favorite trips have been to places that offer the same history, culture, and beauty without the elbow-to-elbow crowds.

My Pick: Trieste, Italy "I fell in love with Trieste on a pre-cruise trip and ended up dreaming of owning a house there. The grand home museums, the elegant buildings, town beaches, wonderful cafés, sea views, and fascinating history, are one alternative to Venice if you want to discover a laid-back place that is real yet filled with history and art.

Luxury Travel for Less

After visiting more than 140 countries, and observing hundreds of families on vacation, I've learned something I put into practice for myself. The vacations families enjoy most are the ones where grandparents, parents, and grandchildren laugh together, discover something new together, and make memories together.

Here Are Places I Have Vacationed Where Generations Play Together

​The Hotel Hershey (My family was there last Christmas) proves chocolate isn't just something you eat. Families can create candy together, enjoy Hersheypark, stroll beautiful gardens, or even indulge in chocolate inspired spa treatments.

​Great Wolf Lodge Grandparents float the lazy river while the grandchildren race down water slides, and everyone gathers later for games, stories, and evening activities.

​Warwick Castle in England turns history into live theater with jousting tournaments, birds of prey demonstrations, medieval battles, and costumed performers. Children don't simply learn history. They become part of it.

​Colonial Williamsburg lets families step back into America's past together. Watch blacksmiths at work, join colonial games, meet historical characters, and experience history instead of just reading about it.

My Pick: Surprise-Las Vegas

Vegas has become one of my favorite places for grandparents traveling with older grandchildren. Start at Meow Wolf's Omega Mart, where an ordinary grocery store becomes a wildly imaginative adventure filled with secret passages, glowing rooms, interactive art, and mysteries waiting to be solved. You'll laugh almost as much as the kids.

Then spend a few hours exploring the Las Vegas Arts District, where colorful murals, artist studios, galleries, and fun cafés make it easy to slow down and talk about everything you've just experienced. The kids feel sophisticated and you feel safe and in control as an experienced Culture Vulture.

​The Grand Tetons Covered Wagon Experience Our kid’s rode horses, I hiked and Stu…well he sat in the covered wagon. It’s all good. You pitch your own tent under the stars, and the chuck wagon serves you like a pioneer with room service.

​Smugglers' Notch Resort in Vermont (where I took my Mom for a few days before the kids arrived) specializes in bringing generations together with scavenger hunts, kayaking, mountain adventures, zip lines, and organized family activities.

​Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa (which my son and daughter-in-law love) on Oahu offers something different from a traditional Disney vacation. Families learn Hawaiian culture together through canoeing, hula lessons, storytelling, tide pools, and hands-on cultural experiences.

​Annecy, France: (that’s my next rip with my family) I’ve heard the lake, one of the cleanest in Europe, water sports and storybook French town create an unforgettable experience for every generation. I will report back after my trip.

Friends Meeting Friends

Please check out the great podcast, Older Women & Friends: Stories of Aging Well, with host Jane Leder

Award-winning author Jane Leder and guests take a deep dive into the joys and challenges of being an older woman.

“Older Women & Friends: Stories of Aging Well” is a podcast that sets the record straight, dispels myths, explores the many contributions older women make, and the wisdom they’ve earned and are anxious to share. Older women know a thing or two about living with a keen sense of wonder and an abiding appreciation for the gift of longevity. So, it’s time to change the perception that the gig is just about up when, in truth, the second wave of the journey has just begun.

Congratulate Jane on supporting Good Grief. You’ll love the way she gets the most interesting guests to tell the most interesting stories.

Another Champion of Good Grief and a powerhouse podcaster:

Attention The AGELESS TRAVEL WOMEN: Want no boundaries advice from a savvy lady who knows how to craft success? ​Tune into Aging with Purpose and Passion: The Strategic Blueprint for Women Over 50.

Host Beverley Glazer, Reinvention Strategist and Empowerment Coach, is honest and grounded. Beverly tackles everything from grief and identity shifts to ageism, sovereignty, and libido with confidence and depth.

Beverly is my go-to voice when I’m stuck …you will love her show!

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