Meet the Tour Expert: Carla Gimelli
For our Travel Tour Expert, Carla Gimelli, joining an organized tour used to be a hard-sell. What changed her mind about sharing her adventures with others? Hint: a monk or two may have had something to do with it.
1. How many times have you been on an organized tour?
4
2. How many countries have you visited while on an organized tour?
Five countries.
3. What makes travelling on a tour better than doing it on your own?
It removes a lot of the hassles of a lone traveller. It can open up so many different countries and opportunities as well as giving you the opportunity to make some amazing friendships when travelling with like-minded people. On top of those great benefits, it makes budgeting for an entire trip a lot easier.
4. What is the most common misconception about organized tours?
Getting up super early and not having a chance to explore on your own.
5. What surprised you the most about touring?
Organized touring, for me, used to be a hard-sell. Once I realized that there is a tour for just about every type of traveller out there, and experienced it first hand, I was blown away with how much everything suited the type of traveller that I am.
6. What’s your favourite tour company and why?
G Adventures – they are fantastic with allowing you the freedom to explore on your own while having someone available to help organize what you might need. They also allow you to fully immerse yourself into the various cultures you are visiting, while giving back to a lot of local communities.
7. What are your top 3 tips for a client about to experience their first guided tour?
1. Pick a tour company that speaks to your interests
2. Read your trip notes
3. Pack your sense of adventure
8. What’s your favourite travel memory from a tour you’ve taken?
Visiting a Buddhist orphanage just outside of Hue, Vietnam. Getting the opportunity to mingle with those beautiful little souls and to learn about their backgrounds and ways of life. Afterward, we were treated to a beautiful lunch by the monks for a small donation. It’s a day I will never be able to forget; the appreciation for everything that we have when seeing the happiness shine from people with minimal possessions.
9. What made you fall in love with touring?
The overall experience of seeing places and experiencing aspects of a country that I wouldn’t have been able to experience on my own.
Looking for more information on travelling with G Adventures? You can connect with Carla online, visit her in-store, or call 1-855-395-3027.
About the Author
Emma Hackwood a freelance copywriter, amateur glider pilot and full-time adventure seeker, has travelled extensively in pursuit of her lifelong dream of simply seeing it all. Up to over 50 countries, she lists American Samoa and the seldom visited Marquesas Islands as her current favourite destinations, with a wandering eye on Guam and Tonga to complete her Pacific escapades.
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