After 35 years of innovation in travel, the pioneering founder of Toronto-based G Adventures remains focused on the future.
By Robert Liwanag
In 1990, while on a backpacking trip through Asia, Bruce Poon Tip had a lightbulb moment: He could combine his twin passions of adventure and entrepreneurship to foster the travel style he adored. His idea? Small-group tours of 12 people utilizing local transportation to explore less-traveled countries like Ecuador or Belize. “It was unheard of,” Poon Tip recalls. “No one was doing travel this way.” Over the years, what became G Adventures expanded its focus to support local guides, establish nonprofit organizations like Planeterra (which provides resources and training to local businesses) and offer affordable experiences that make expedition travel more accessible.
This year will be G Adventures’ “most innovative” yet, says Poon Tip. Two newer additions to its line of travel styles include Geluxe, which blends active itineraries with luxury stays and elevated dining, and Solo-ish, group tours designed exclusively for solo travelers. This fall, the company will celebrate its 35th anniversary in Jordan, a longtime tourism partner, with an itinerary that starts and ends in Amman, including stops at landmarks like Petra and Wadi Rum, as well as the Dead Sea. “We’re 35 years old and still feel we’re doing really cool things,” he says. “And that comes from a sense of community – the people behind me allows us to do extraordinary work.”
Q&A
Range: How do G Adventures’ newest offerings tap into the latest travel trends?
Bruce Poon Tip: Geluxe came to be because we saw that mature travelers are now staying active longer. The oldest members of Gen X, for instance, turn 60 this year, they’ve been around the block and they want to visit unique destinations. Before, it was places like Peru and Costa Rica, but now you have people who want to go to Kazakhstan and Albania. Meanwhile, Solo-ish appeals to people whose travel partners aren’t as active or adventurous as they are. These days more and more couples are taking the time to have separate vacations – and Solo-ish responds to that.
Range: Which tech innovation excites you the most?
Bruce poon Tip: We still don’t fully understand how artificial intelligence will impact travel, but it’s certainly going to change how people research destinations. With more information at their fingertips, people can be more purposeful, and that’s what we need: people who travel because they actually want to see a very specific country that matches their values.
Range: What’s next for sustainable travel?
Bruce Poon Tip: In the next five years, you’re going to see travel companies try to meet their 2030 climate goals, but the spectrum of sustainability is much wider than that. It includes visiting some of the poorest countries in the world and making sure their communities benefit from tourism. People often point that other side of sustainable travel gets more representation, respect and understanding in the coming years as well.
Range: Is there a destination you’d love to revisit?
Bruce Poon Tip: I can return to the Galapagos Islands over and over again, But one of the best trips I’ve ever taken was a journey along the Karakoram Highway, which follows the ancient Silk Road routes. It starts in Ürümqi, China, and extends all the way to northern Pakistan. I made that trip in the mid-’90s, and of course, Pakistan has been through a lot in the last 30 years. I would like to do that trip in a Jeep.