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Adventure Travel Podcast - Big World Made Small
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Adventure Travel Podcast - Big World Made Small

Author: Jason Elkins - Big World Made Small Adventure Travel Marketing

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Welcome to the Big World Made Small Adventure Travel Podcast, where we go far beyond the beaches, resort hotels, and cruises to explore the really cool places, people, and activities that adventurous travelers crave. If your idea of a great vacation is sitting on a beach at an all-inclusive resort, you’re in the wrong place. However, if you’re like me, and a beach resort vacation sounds like torture, stick around. You’ve found your tribe.


My name is Jason Elkins, and as an adventure travel marketing consultant and tour operator myself, I am on a mission to impact the lives of adventure travelers, the tour operators they hire, and the communities that host them, creating deeply meaningful experiences that make this big world feel just a bit smaller.


Are you ready to discover your next great adventure, whether that looks something like climbing Mt Kilimanjaro in Africa, SCUBA diving in the South Pacific, or hot air ballooning in Turkey?  Then you’ll be happy to know that each episode of the Big World Made Small Podcast features a fascinating interview with an adventure travel expert that has agreed to share, with us, their own personal stories, favorite adventure destinations, and even some incredibly helpful tips and tricks they’ve learned while in the field. I trust that by the end of each episode you’ll feel like booking a ticket to enjoy the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of these amazing places, and getting to know the incredible people that live there.


I’ll be your guide as we explore this amazing planet and its people on the Big World Made Small podcast. I am a former US Army paratrooper, third generation commercial hot air balloon pilot, paramotor pilot, advanced open water SCUBA diver, and ex-Montana fly fishing guide and lodge manager. I have managed boutique adventure tour operation businesses in the Rocky Mountains of Montana, off-shore in Belize, the Adirondacks in New York, and the desert of Arizona. I also spent nearly a decade with Orvis International Travel, leading a talented team of tour operation experts, putting together and hosting amazing fly fishing and adventure travel excursions around the world. I have tapped into my experience and network of travel pros to put together a weekly series of exclusive expert interviews that I am excited to share with you.


For the last couple of years I have lived a fully nomadic lifestyle, feeding my passion for exploration, creating amazing adventures, and meeting some of the most fascinating people along the way. I record every episode while traveling, so in a sense you’ll be joining me on my journey. Let’s discover some great adventures together and make this big world feel just a bit smaller.


And, don’t forget to take a quick trip over to our website at bigworldmadesmall.com and join our adventure travel community, where you’ll benefit from new episode announcements, exclusive adventure travel opportunities, and special access to the experts you’ve met on the show. You can also follow us on social media, using the links in the show notes below. And, if you’re getting value out of the show please help us grow by sharing it with your friends, family, and anyone else you know that wants to get far beyond the beaches, resort hotels, and cruise ships, the next time they travel.


I’ll publish another episode soon. Until then, keep exploring. It’s the best way to make a big world feel just a bit smaller.


https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/podcast




158 Episodes
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Guest Bio Jackie Nourse is the founder of Traveling Jackie and host of the award-winning podcast JUMP with Traveling Jackie, where she shares stories that inspire others to explore the world boldly. A lifelong traveler and storyteller, Jackie chose a path of global adventure at age 18 and never looked back — turning her love for travel into a full-time lifestyle over the past two decades. She has collaborated with leading outdoor brands including Osprey Packs, Oboz Footwear, Atomic Skis, Ca...
Guest Bio Rhiannon Hutton is the founder of The Luxury Travel Specialist, where she curates high-end, deeply personalized travel experiences for clients seeking more than just a getaway. With over two decades of experience in the travel industry, Rhiannon’s career began in a traditional shopfront agency and has evolved into a niche role centered around bespoke luxury journeys. Her own transformative experiences — including a life-altering incident during a trip to China — have shaped her miss...
Guest Bio Amanda Black is the founder of The Solo Female Traveler Network, a global community empowering women to explore the world with confidence and connection. With over a decade of experience in immersive travel and community design, Amanda has helped thousands of women break out of their comfort zones and find belonging through adventure. Her passion for creating transformative group experiences has taken her across the globe — from remote villages to vibrant cities — always in search o...
Guest Bio Al Ste-Marie is the founder of Unsold Antarctica, a travel company that specializes in connecting adventurous travelers with last-minute, discounted voyages to the White Continent. With a background in hospitality, Al brings a deep understanding of customer service and traveler psychology to the world of expedition travel. His work helps make Antarctica more accessible to curious explorers, families, and first-time adventurers who might not have realized this dream trip was within...
Guest Bio Scott Davis is the co-CEO and owner of Cheeseman’s Ecology Safaris, a wildlife-focused expedition company known for immersive nature and photography tours across the globe. With a background in marine biology and wildlife research, Scott has built a life around exploration, photography, and conservation. His work has taken him to all seven continents, where he has led international expeditions and contributed to major documentary and editorial projects. Scott is also a National Ge...
Einar Torfi Finnsson CEO & Lead Guide Arctic Hiking and Expeditions https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/einar-torfi-finnsson/ Guest Bio Einar Torfi Finnsson is the founder and CEO of Arctic Hiking and Expeditions, and a pioneering figure in Iceland’s adventure travel scene. Born in Kópavogur in 1965, Einar grew up immersed in Iceland’s natural beauty, inspired by nature-loving parents. His passion for the outdoors took root early through mountaineering with the Reykjavik Alpine Clu...
Bianca Rappaport Creator Wanderwell Club https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/bianca-rappaport/ Guest Bio Bianca Rappaport is the founder of Wanderwell Club and a full-time nomad who has spent nearly a decade house and pet sitting across more than 20 countries on five continents. Since 2016, she has crafted a lifestyle that fuses financial freedom with meaningful travel—saving over $300,000 in rent, leveraging travel hacks for low-cost flights, and building a multi-six-figure investment...
Guest Bio Jerry Elkins is a lifelong adventurer whose journey has spanned skies, caves, coastlines, and countless open roads. He began flying hot air balloons in 1979 and, for nearly a decade, made his living as a traveling balloon barnstormer — eventually becoming the first pilot to fly in all 50 U.S. states. But Jerry’s adventures go far beyond the basket. Over the past four decades, he’s explored underwater worlds through SCUBA diving, delved into deep caves, traveled extensively, and buil...
Richard Lindberg Founder & CEO One Planet Journey https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/richard-lindberg/ Guest Bio Richard is a serial entrepreneur and proven change-maker, leveraging 15+ years of leadership in sustainable finance and tourism for innovative solutions in the travel industry. As the founder of One Planet Journey, the authority on deep travel, he helps brands and destinations future-proof their operations by connecting them with the high-value, conscious traveller. His...
Anietra Hamper Owner ThreeWordPress https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/anietra-hamper/ Guest Bio Anietra Hamper is an award-winning journalist, outdoor adventure writer, and founder of ThreeWordPress. After nearly two decades as a top-rated television news anchor and Emmy-nominated investigative reporter, she transitioned into the world of travel journalism, where she now specializes in destination storytelling and fishing features. Anietra’s work has appeared in publications like Ne...
Christopher Byrd Founder & Managing Director Adventure Cycling Thailand https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/christopher-byrd/ A formerly enlisted U.S. Marine that originally came from Maryland, Chris lived in Washington, DC for the last 12 years that he was living in the United States. Chris moved to Bangkok in April of 2002 and resided there until August of 2008 when he moved down to Hua Hin to include day tours and multi-day tours as part of his bicycle touring business. He plans...
Tony Thorne Managing Director Wilderness Explorers https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/tony-thorne/ Tony Thorne first visited Guyana in 1988 as a Project Leader with Operation Raleigh and loved the adventure and rawness of the country. He returned in 1991 to watch the West Indians and Australians battle out a test match at Bourda Cricket Ground and decided to stay and accept a position to manage Timberhead Rainforest Resort. In 1994, when he started Wilderness Explorers, tourism was st...
Dorothea Hochleitner Extreme Solo Bicycle Traveler IG @doro.on.the.go https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/dorothea-hochleitner/ Dorothea from Austria was a police officer for nearly twelve years before she decided to swap her stable job for exploring the world. She has now been on the road for more than two and a half years – first backpacking for 15 months through Southeast Asia and India, before switching the backpack to a bicycle in September 2024 and starting to cycle towards India...
Vaibhav Kala Founder Aquaterra Adventures https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/vaibhav-kala/ Vaibhav has guided experiences from Morocco to the Inca trail, from the Colorado to the Yangtze, from the Futaleufu to Aconcagua, Ahansel to the Zambezi and from Kilimanjaro to the Everest trail. His leadership and expertise in both mountain and river environments, safety, risk management, knowledge, and impeccable planning has been the mainstay of the globally acknowledged Aquaterra Adventures....
Purvi Shah Head of Sustainability and Senior Travel Planner Kampur Travel Diaries https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/purvi-shah/ Purvi’s passion for travel was fuelled from the road trips and visits to national parks around Kenya with her family as a child. Some of her earliest memories are watching elephants at a salt lick in the Aberdares. During her university years, she travelled extensively around Europe, USA, South America and Australia, but there was always a great ...
Leigh Barnes President of the Americas Intrepid Travel https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/leigh-barnes/ Leigh has recently stepped into a new role as President of Americas, where he will oversee Intrepid’s expansion into the USA, the company’s fastest growing market. Leigh will manage direct, industry and white label sales as well as operations across North, Central and South America. Previously Chief Purpose Officer and then Chief Customer Officer, he’s been instrumental in building ...
Mariam Khuberashvili Product Supervisor Magic Roads Georgia https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/mariam-khuberashvili/ Mariam is an experienced tour guide and product manager with deep expertise in the Caucasus region, particularly in her home country, Georgia. She currently serves as Product Manager at Magic Roads Georgia, where she designs and develops unique travel experiences across Georgia and the wider Caucasus. With her background in guiding and her passion for cultural discovery...
Danielle Finch Founder & CEO Equera https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/danielle-finch/ Mission-driven and people-centered leader with 10+ years of experience driving global initiatives in operations, product, and project management. Passionate about creating scalable solutions that improve lives and strengthen communities, combining strategic execution with empathy-led leadership. Proven track record of mobilizing teams, fostering collaboration across diverse stakeholders, and del...
Emma Valahu Founder Inbox Journeys https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/emma-valahu/ Emma is the founder of Inbox Journeys and helps experiential travel founders build an automated system that turns website visitors and social media followers into warm, qualified leads—without them having to manually nurture every prospect. summary In this episode of the Big World Made Small podcast, host Jason Elkins speaks with Emma Valahu, founder of Inbox Journeys, about her journey in transformatio...
Christopher Hill Founder and CEO Hands Up Holidays https://adventuretravelmarketing.com/guest/christopher-hill/ Christopher is founder of luxury philanthropic travel brands Hands Up Holidays and Impact Destinations, and serves his majority US-based clients from New Zealand where he lives with his wife, two boys, and dog, Zola. summary In this episode of the Big World Made Small podcast, Jason Elkins interviews Christopher Hill, founder of Hands Up Holidays and Impact Destinations. They discus...
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