Adventure Travel Podcast - Big World Made Small
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://bigworldmadesmall.com
Episodes
Guest Bio
Gaurav Bhan Bhatnagar is the Founder and CEO of The Folk Tales, a company dedicated to crafting conscious travel experiences across India. With more than a decade of experience, he has focused on responsible tourism that fosters deep cultural connections and supports local communities. Recognized as part of the FORTTUNA Global 100 class of 2026 and awarded the Best Cultural Immersion Operator by the Indian Responsible Tour...
Guest Bio
Elinor Fish is a Tourism Business Consultant and founder of Open Air Consulting. With over 14 years of experience building and leading an international travel company, Elinor has firsthand insight into the challenges of growing a tourism business and preparing it for sale. After successfully scaling her own company and navigating the complexities of a business exit, she now helps travel industry owners understand the true ...
Guest Bio
Kristine Eksteine-Nizka is the founder of Love Your Italy, a travel planning service and blog focused on helping travelers explore Italy, with a special emphasis on the Dolomites. Kristine and her husband Michal live in Europe and draw from their personal experiences living in Northern Italy and extensive travels throughout the country to create tailored itineraries and practical advice for visitors. Her approach combines ...
Guest Bio
Peter Bergman is an Australian expedition leader and the founder of Beyond Expedition Consulting. With nearly a decade of experience guiding expeditions across diverse and remote regions including Antarctica, the Arctic, and the Indo-Pacific, Peter has developed a broad expertise in expedition cruising. His career began with Silversea Expeditions, where he advanced from Staff Assistant to Expedition Leader, managing comple...
Guest Bio
Gregg Bleakney is the founder of WhereNext Travel, a premium destination management company (DMC) serving international travel advisors, luxury tour operators, and experiential travel brands across Colombia, Peru, and Latin America. Before launching WhereNext Travel, Gregg spent more than two decades leading a creative agency that produced campaigns for global lifestyle brands, tourism ministries and international developm...
Guest Bio
Gilly Gwilliams is the founder of Retreats In Greece, a travel agency focused on wellness retreats throughout the country. After a career in the British Army as an intelligence analyst, Gilly relocated to the island of Kos where she transitioned into fitness and Pilates instruction. Combining her love of holistic health with her deep connection to Greece, she created a platform that offers carefully matched retreat...
Guest Bio
Eva Westerling is the co-owner of Berber Adventure Tours Morocco. Originally a radiologist, Eva spent many years working in global hospital consulting, which took her to countries such as Iraq, India, and Chile. After deciding to take time off to travel, she returned to Morocco and has remained based there ever since. Her deep connection to the country, especially the desert regions, shapes her approach to life and...
Guest Bio
Chris Prewitt is the owner and operator of Chris Prewitt Surf, bringing over 25 years of experience in luxury surfing experiences across yachts, resorts, and villas in tropical destinations worldwide. Specializing in bespoke surf coaching and guiding, Chris works with busy professionals, families, and solo travelers who seek private, discreet, and tailored surfing improvement holidays. His expertise lies in creatin...
Guest Bio
Hayley Donigan is a brand voice strategist and copywriter specializing in responsible travel brands. Based in the UK, she combines her expertise in content marketing with a personal commitment to slow, thoughtful travel. After moving from the US to England in 2010, Hayley adopted a flexible lifestyle that blends remote work with extended stays in diverse locations, allowing her to develop a deep understanding of how travel...
Guest Bio
Mike Engiles serves as the Executive Manager of Crystal River Watersports, a family-run business since 2014 dedicated to offering sustainable nature experiences along Florida’s Nature Coast. Under Mike’s leadership, Crystal River Watersports specializes in guided manatee swim tours, scuba diving, scalloping excursions, and river cruises, all focused on observing and preserving the local aquatic environment.
Orig...
Guest Bio
Felex Musinguzi is the Managing Director of Kazinga Tours, a leading travel company based in Uganda. With over two decades of experience in the tourism industry, Felex has dedicated his career to creating meaningful travel experiences while supporting sustainability and community empowerment. He grew up near Lake Bunyonyi and has channeled his deep connection to Uganda and commitment to local development into building one ...
Guest Bio
Rolando Campos is the founder of Chayote Lodge, a boutique retreat nestled in the mountain village of Llano Bonito de Naranjo, Costa Rica. With over 30 years of experience in the travel industry and a career that took him to more than 60 countries, Rolando combines a global perspective with deep local roots. He believes Costa Rica’s true strength lies in its people, which is reflected in the authentic experiences off...
Guest Bio
Becki Rupp is a certified Personal Trainer and Adventure Travel Coach, and the founder of Trailblazer Wellness. Through her coaching, Becki helps travelers build the strength, stamina, and confidence they need to take on meaningful adventures without feeling overwhelmed by the physical or mental preparation. Her work is especially valuable for people preparing for big hikes, cycling trips, Camino-style journeys, Kilimanjar...
Guest Bio
Aiste Stanley is the founder of Trabeona Travels, an award-winning boutique travel agency specializing in meaningful, immersive, and highly personalized travel experiences. Born and raised in Lithuania, Aiste brings a global perspective to her work as a luxury travel advisor, helping clients move beyond surface-level vacations and into journeys shaped by culture, connection, learning, wellness, cuisine, history, and advent...
Guest Bio
William “Will” Blair is the manager of Best of the Wild, a pioneering explorer, conservation-minded fly-fishing guide, and destination developer whose career has been shaped by remote rivers, wild fisheries, and a deep respect for places few travelers ever reach. Through his work with Best of the Wild and Best of Kamchatka, Will has spent decades helping anglers experience some of the world’s most...
Guest Bio
Nuno Santos Fernandes is a mentor and partner at Walking Mentorship, a Portugal-based personal and team development company that uses walking in nature as a powerful setting for reflection, clarity, and growth. A lifelong walker with a curiosity for paths less traveled, Nuno’s professional journey has moved through marketing, entrepreneurship, animal care, environmental work, veterinary clinics, land manageme...
Guest Bio
Daan Oxener is the co-founder of Home of Friends Guesthouse & Community Experiences Uganda, a community-rooted guesthouse and adventure travel hub based in Kapchorwa on the slopes of Mount Elgon. Originally from the Netherlands, Daan’s path to Uganda began with an early fascination for Africa, later deepened through travel, social entrepreneurship, youth development, and sport.
Over the past seven years, Daan ...
Guest Bio
Sally Guillaume is the founder of Undiscovered Mountains, a specialist adventure travel company based in the Southern French Alps. Originally from the UK, Sally’s path has included work as a science teacher, outdoor pursuits instructor, and BBC journalist before her love of mountain life led her to France in 2005.
Through Undiscovered Mountains, Sally helps travellers experience a quieter, more authentic side of the A...
Guest Bio
Justin Wateridge is the Managing Director of Steppes Travel, a specialist tour operator known for designing immersive, tailor-made journeys around the world. With decades of experience in the travel industry, including previous leadership as Managing Director of Abercrombie & Kent UK, Justin brings a deep understanding of both luxury travel and meaningful exploration.
Raised in Zambia and educated at Oxford, Justin&rsqu...
Guest Bio
Dimitry Elias Léger is an award-nominated novelist whose work blends global storytelling with deeply human themes of identity, resilience, and belonging. A finalist for the PEN Open Book Award, his writing has appeared in leading publications including The New York Times, Time, Fortune, Granta, The Miami Herald, Literary Hub, and The Millions.
Before focusing on fiction, Léger built a career in international affairs, studyi...
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