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Transformational travel is the latest buzzword in the travel world right now.
It is defined by the Transformational Travel Council (TTC) – an organisation that sets standards and promotes the development and participation in more ethical travel experiences to enrich travelers and positively impact travel destinations – as “intentionally traveling to stretch, learn and grow into new ways of being and engaging with the world,” this form of travel is paving the way for a more conscious means of exploring the world.
With this in mind, many years of hospitality experience under her belt and a personal tragedy, Niamh Keohan has co-founded the world’s first booking and content platform for life-changing travel experiences: We Love Transformational Travel was her brainchild, born in the UAE earlier this month.
“Experiential travel is engaging with a particular destination or activity for the period of your trip, whereby you return home pretty much the same person, without having impacted anyone else’s life or the world around you, ” Niamh explains.
While the holidaying concept has been on our radar for a few years now, many aren’t exactly clear about the purpose behind the mission; transformational travel starts with an intention and ends in mindful action.
“When travelling with intention, you’re not only fully engaging with the community and environment you encounter, but simultaneously learning and growing, so there is a an internal and an external benefit,” notes Niamh. This results in the spill-over into your everyday life of the lessons you’ve learnt on your travels, ultimately creating long-term positive changes for yourself, your social circle and the world around you.
In today’s fast paced and anxiety ridden lifestyles, where our careers run away with us. it’s too common for family life to get disconnected. It’s hard to keep resolutions and fitness routines going, so for those with a passion for travel, weaving personal goals into their trips is exactly what the company offers. The positive psychological and emotional aspects of transformational travel are bound to appeal.
Transformational Travel trips are tailored to personal goals with the personal transformation process at the heart of each. Whether it be high performers seeking serenity, or a tired parent looking for some respite from mundane daily routines or those seeking to kick start a healthy lifestyle, options are unlimited.
Niamh herself was driven to transformational travel, after the loss of her mother in 2019. “I needed more guidance and understanding of the grief process. By taking a spiritually focused trip it allowed me to transform my overall outlook on life, to heal and live more peacefully,” she says
This proved to be the catalyst she needed to cement her determination to use her knowledge and experience within the industry to create something in the travel world which had the power to impact positively on people’s lives.
Currently the company offers nine different categories of trips. From leadership retreats in South Africa, to disconnecting from modern life in the Amazon rainforest, to pioneering sustainable travel in the Arctic circle, a myriad of categories provides options for everyone.
As Middle East’s first TTC Ambassador, Niamh shared that she will be hosting virtual bi-monthly hubs for anyone who works in or is interested in the transformational travel industry, the first of which kicks off in September this year. Her meaningful parting words to team Bazaar will surely continue to resonate with us all, “The power of travel is in its ability to help us all to grow, learn and heal.”
