View From Afar

View From Afar

View From Afar is the travel industry podcast made by the travel industry, for the travel industry. Hosted by the editors of Afar, the show sits down with the CEOs, tourism experts, hoteliers, and destination leaders shaping how the world moves. These are travel industry interviews with the people actually making the decisions, from national tourism boards to the newest hotel brands, often recorded in the room where it happens, including live from major travel industry events like IPW. Every episode is a real conversation, not a press release. Afar editors talk with travel changemakers about what the next era of travel will be built on: the rise of sustainable tourism, smarter destination management, the travel innovation reshaping the guest experience, and the travel industry challenges no one wants to say out loud. Expect tourism experts interviews that move from travel marketing strategies and travel consumer insights to local tourism initiatives, destination highlights, and the future of travel and tourism development. Past guests have led the tourism efforts of entire states and cities, run major transit and hospitality brands, and steered destinations through record years and hard pivots alike. If your work touches travel, think of this as your briefing. As a travel podcast built for professionals, View From Afar delivers the travel industry news and travel industry insights that help destination marketers, hospitality industry leaders, tour operators, and travel professionals stay ahead of travel trends 2026 and beyond. It is travel storytelling with a purpose: honest, curious, and grounded in the real experiences of the people building the business of travel. Afar has spent more than a decade telling travelers where to go and why it matters. View From Afar turns that same lens on the industry itself, giving you a front-row seat to the ideas, the debates, and the travel experiences defining what comes next. New episodes bring new voices and new destinations to the table. Follow View From Afar wherever you listen, and join the conversation shaping the future of travel.

Episodes

June 10, 2026 23 mins
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Phoenix⁠ president and CEO Ron Price⁠ sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most surprising travel industry interviews yet: a look at Phoenix tourism, and why so many first-time visitors leave saying, "I had no idea." Ron has worked in tourism for 30 years, with a career that spans Marri...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Austin⁠ president and ⁠CEO Tom Noonan⁠ sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most forward-looking travel industry interviews yet: a conversation about Austin travel at the exact moment the city is tearing itself down and rebuilding on purpose. Tom has led Visit Austin since 2016, capp...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Colorado Tourism Office⁠ director ⁠Timothy Wolfe⁠ sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most instructive travel industry interviews yet: a look at why the smart way to visit Colorado is also the more sustainable one, from a state that has spent years managing tourism rather than just marketing ...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Louisiana Office of Tourism assistant secretary Doug Bourgeois⁠ sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most flavorful travel industry interviews yet: a case for Louisiana travel well beyond New Orleans, from bayou to byway. A Thibodaux native who has spent 26 years in state tourism, Doug lea...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Discover Puerto Rico⁠ CEO ⁠Jorge Perez⁠ sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most fascinating travel industry interviews yet: a look at the Bad Bunny Puerto Rico effect, and how one artist's residency rewrote the island's tourism story. Jorge's history is intertwined with the star. He ran ...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Detroit⁠⁠ president and CEO ⁠⁠Claude Molinari⁠⁠ sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most energizing travel industry interviews yet: a look at how Detroit tourism finally caught up to the reality of a city that has quietly transformed. Claude has led Visit Detroit since 2021, after a...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Discover South Carolina director Duane Parrish sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most revealing travel industry interviews yet: a case for why you should visit South Carolina well beyond its famous beaches. Duane has led Discover South Carolina for 15 years, and tourism is now one of the s...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Seattle president and CEO Tammy Canavan sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most timely travel industry interviews yet: a look at the Seattle tourism surge heading into a World Cup summer, and why first-time visitors keep leaving surprised. Tammy came to Visit Seattle after destination...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Brightline Holdings CEO Nicolas Petrovic sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most future-facing travel industry interviews yet: a real look at whether American train travel can actually work. Nicolas stepped into the role in February, bringing decades of international rail experience from...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Florida Keys and Key West president and CEO Kara Franker sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most candid travel industry interviews yet: a look at what smarter Key West travel looks like when a tiny string of islands is breaking visitor records. Kara arrived about a year and a half ...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Huntington Beach president and CEO John Urdi sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran, who happens to have grown up in Surf City USA, for one of our most personal travel industry interviews yet: a plan to turn Surf City USA from a day trip into an overnight destination. John took the helm of Visit Hunting...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Explore Minnesota executive director Lauren Bennett McGinty sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most heartfelt travel industry interviews yet: a look at how Minnesota tourism answered one of the hardest years in the state's memory. Lauren leads tourism for a state that spent the past year...
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Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Domenic Bravo⁠, executive director of the ⁠Wyoming Office of Tourism⁠, sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most grounded travel industry interviews yet: a look at Wyoming tourism beyond its world-famous icons, from a leader who started his career as a park ranger. Domenic moved to Wyoming in...
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Welcome to a special scene-setter for our IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, U.S. Travel Association president and CEO Geoff Freeman sits down again with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran, one year after their last IPW conversation, for one of our most wide-ranging travel industry interviews yet: a candid read on the travel trends 2026 will hinge on. Geoff leads the trade group that advocates for the U.S. travel i...
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How do you bring ultra‑luxury hospitality to the high seas? For Anna Nash, President of Explora Journeys, it starts with reimagining ocean travel as a floating boutique hotel experience rooted in European elegance, emotional connection, and slow‑travel sensibilities. In this episode of View From Afar, Anna joins Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran to discuss how Explora Journeys is redefining cruising for a new generation of travel...
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Nayara Resorts is confronting one of tourism's most overlooked problems—the housing crisis that forces local workers out of their communities in remote areas—by building homes for its most vulnerable employees. In this ILTM episode, recorded live in Cannes, Leo Ghitis, CEO of Nayara Resorts, joins Afar editor in chief Julia Cosgrove to discuss how the luxury resort group is addressing both environmental devastation an...
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Langham Hospitality Group is proving that heritage brands can innovate without losing their soul, transforming historic buildings into contemporary luxury destinations while maintaining the personal service that defines true hospitality. In this ILTM⁠ (International Luxury Travel Market), recorded live in Cannes, Bob van den Oord, CEO of Langham Hospitality Group, joins Afar editor-in-chief Julia Cosgrove to share how he's guided...
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For more than four decades, Matthew Upchurch has been a driving force behind how high-end travel is sold, experienced, and understood. As CEO of ⁠Virtuoso⁠ , one of the world's leading luxury travel networks, he's championed human connection in an increasingly digital world and advocated for the enduring value of trusted advisors and transformative, purpose-driven travel. In this ILTM episode, recorded live in Cannes, Afar cofound...
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Matter of Form is proving that luxury travel brands need therapy—not to fix what's broken, but to discover what makes them singular in a sea of "elevated experiences" and "art of luxury" clichés. In this ILTM episode, recorded live in Cannes, Anant Sharma, founder and CEO of Matter of Form, joins Afar cofounder Joe Diaz to dissect why luxury hospitality has become awash with homogenized language and how brands can reclaim t...
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AmaWaterways is expanding river cruising's appeal beyond its traditional audience, drawing in solo travelers, active families, and wellness-focused guests who are discovering this style of travel for the first time. In this ILTM (International Luxury Travel Market) episode, recorded live in Cannes, Catherine Powell, the new CEO of AmaWaterways, joins Afar editor in chief Julia Cosgrove to reveal the brand's fresh visual identity a...
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