Zero To Travel Podcast

✈️ The Zero To Travel Podcast has been downloaded 14+ million times, has been featured in The NY Times, The Washington Post, Travel + Leisure, The Telegraph, and Forbes, and is a 3x iHeartRadio Podcast Award "Best Travel Podcast" nominee. Join our incredible, travel-obsessed listening community and see what it's all about! Packed with life-changing perspectives, inspiration, and practical advice for everyone from travel newbies to nomads, this podcast will give you everything you need to travel the world on your terms, regardless of your situation or experience. Welcome to our amazing global listening community. Since 2013, "Travel Ambassador" Jason Moore from zerototravel.com has been picking the brains of adventurous people living an unconventional life on the road so you can discover new ways to travel endlessly. Along the way, you'll get actionable advice and key resources that will improve your life AND help you travel mor

Zero To Travel Podcast is a society podcast hosted by Jason Moore, with 300 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 86.

Jason Moore hosts Zero To Travel Podcast, a society show with 300 episodes published.

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  Zero To Travel Podcast

  Is Traveling to Every Country in the World Worth It? Less Crowded Destinations to Visit and the Joys of Unorthodox Road Trips with Ric Gazarian

  Oct 6, 20261h 12m

  Why have more people been to outer space than to every country in the world? Ric Gazarian grew up in Boston and spent years in financial services before a 2008 layoff sent him on a year-long trip and into a remote real estate business that has funded his travels ever since. He has now visited around 190 countries on his quest to reach all 193 UN member states. Ric hosts the Counting Countries podcast, organizes the Extraordinary Travel Festival, and has turned his tuk-tuk and rickshaw road trips through Cambodia and India into films. In this conversation, Ric and I talk about what traveling to every country in the world really involves, less crowded destinations worth visiting, unorthodox road trips by tuk-tuk and rickshaw, and how to get comfortable traveling to less visited places. Only around 500 people have ever been to every country on Earth, and Ric spends a lot of his time with them. That gives him a rare view of where the world's most traveled people actually go, and which places deserve far more visitors than they get. It's also a reminder that the best travel stories rarely come from the smoothest trips. If you've been craving something a little less mainstream for your next adventure, Ric makes a strong case for stepping a bit further outside your comfort zone. If you built a road trip around something you've never tried before, what would it be? I'd love to hear your ideas, and I hope you'll share by sending me an audio message. Tune In To Learn What keeps Ric going on his quest to visit all 193 UN countries, and why some people give up along the way How the most traveled people in the world debate what actually counts as a visit How one book about a priest in the slums of Bangkok changed the course of Ric's life What Thailand's visa crackdown means for digital nomads and long-term visitors Where to find a Thai island with no 7-Eleven and barely a working ATM Why Ric calls Uzbekistan his favorite country in Central Asia, and the Tajikistan road trip he ranks as the best of his life How a $1,000 tuk-tuk that keeps breaking down can beat a luxury road trip Advice for getting comfortable with less visited countries, plus the safety systems Ric relies on Advice for leaving a career behind to take a year-long trip Which country surprised Ric most after he expected the worst Resources Sign up for our FREE newsletter GlobalGaz Counting Countries Podcast Extraordinary Travel Festival (code ZERO for $100 off!) Instagram Hit the Road Films Mercy Centre Mumbai Xpress Rickshaw Rally Every Passport Stamp Facebook Group Want More Visiting Every Country in the World…TWICE! With Gunnar Garfors Finding a Quest That Can Change Your Life: An Interview With Chris Guillebeau Independent Travel Gold With Graham Hughes Thanks To Our Sponsors Explore 100% human-made itineraries at exploreworldwide.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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  Zero To Travel Podcast

  8 Million Ways to Happiness (Wisdom from the Heart of Japan) with Hiroko Yoda

  Sep 29, 202659 min

  Can you be culturally religious without being religiously religious? What if happiness had less to do with what you believe and more to do with what you notice? Hiroko Yoda is a Tokyo-born author, translator and folklorist who first came to the US at 17 as an exchange student in rural Indiana. She went on to earn a master's degree in international peace and conflict resolution and co-founded AltJapan, a localization company, with her husband. A former Tokyo editor for CNN Go and a certified Shinto cultural historian, she has coauthored several books on Japanese folklore and is the author of Eight Million Ways to Happiness: Wisdom for Inspiration and Healing from the Heart of Japan. In this conversation, Hiroko and I talk about the Japanese idea of 8 million kami, how spirituality became part of everyday culture in Japan, and how travelers can visit Japan's shrines and temples with more understanding. Most of us grew up with the idea that you either believe or you don't. Hiroko offers a different way of seeing it, where Japanese spirituality and happiness grow out of a worldview that treats the sun, the wind, and even the words we speak with quiet respect. It's a worldview that shapes everything from how people eat to how they relate to nature, and it's hiding in plain sight for anyone traveling through Japan. Hiroko is honest that none of this makes life easy, which is exactly what makes her perspective feel useful. What's one small thing in your everyday life you could start noticing, and appreciating, a little more often? I'd love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you'll share by sending me an audio message. Tune In To Learn: How an exchange year in rural Indiana in the 1980s sparked a lifelong mission to build bridges between cultures What the ancient concept of 8 million kami reveals about the Japanese worldview Why most Japanese people struggle to answer the question "Are you religious?" How a Shinto priest's definition of kami turns gratitude into a daily practice How losing her mother led Hiroko back to Japan's spiritual traditions What Japan's mountain ascetics, the yamabushi, can teach us about our place in nature Why the Japanese words for seafood and vegetables say so much about happiness How the Seven Gods of Happiness reflect Japan's radical inclusivity Advice for visiting shrines and temples respectfully, plus one major Tokyo spot Hiroko calls a textbook example of Japanese spirituality What a 107-year-old calligraphy master taught Hiroko about happiness and perspective Resources: Sign up for our FREE newsletter Eight Million Ways to Happiness HirokoYoda.com Japan Happiness Newsletter Hiroko Yoda Instagram AltJapan Youth For Understanding Want More: Exploring Kyoto Japan, Creative Expression Through Street Photography, Connecting With Your Heritage Abroad with Taro Moberly How A Pilgrimage Can Transform Your Life w/ Paul Barach The Spiritual Journey + Travel and Creativity with Karan Bajaj Thanks To Our Sponsors: Become a Fora Advisor today at foratravel.com/zerototravel Experience intelligent trip planning for calmer travel with the TripWaffle app Earn points on rent and mortgage payments. Apply at joinbilt.com/zerototravel Explore 100% human-made itineraries at exploreworldwide.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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  Zero To Travel Podcast

  Top 7 Hidden Gems in Northern Norway with Joël Schwalenstöcker

  Sep 22, 202659 min

  Norway is already known for its fjords, Northern Lights, and wide-open nature, so what makes Northern Norway an even better place to have it all to yourself? Joël Schwalenstöcker is a Northern Norway native who grew up in Tromsø with a German father and a French mother. For about 15 years, he has worked as a music agent, booking tours and shows for artists across Norway and Scandinavia. He is also the founder of Noraventura, which designs tailor-made trips through Norway for travelers who want to see the country beyond the usual tourist stops. Joël shares seven hidden gems in Northern Norway that most visitors miss, and why the region’s best-known spots have become so crowded. We also share Northern Norway travel tips on renting a car, packing for changing weather, and choosing when to go. Northern Norway is bigger, emptier, and wilder than most people expect, with the midnight sun in summer and the northern lights in winter shaping the rhythm of life there. It’s also a region where a short drive can change the entire feel of a trip. If you’re planning a visit, or you like the idea of seeing Northern Norway off the beaten path, this conversation gives you plenty to think about. Have you ever skipped the famous stop on a trip and found something you liked even better? I’d love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you’ll share by sending me an audio message. Tune In To Learn: Why a sailing trip toward the Arctic ended with Joël’s parents settling in Northern Norway for good How Northern Norway’s light, milder-than-expected climate, and freedom-to-roam traditions set it apart from the rest of the country Why the same few places dominate every search and social feed, and what that does to the travel experience Why the stretch of coast most people just drive through might offer the best mix of beaches and mountains in the country Where you can catch a concert inside a natural cave on a remote island community that has been inhabited for thousands of years What you’ll find when you turn right instead of left on a famous island chain How locals near the region’s biggest city escape to sandy beaches when the sun finally comes out How to trek the far northeast by following reindeer trails, close to the Russian border Advice on getting around, packing for weather that changes by the hour, and timing a summer trek to avoid the region’s fiercest insects How to get a real shot at the northern lights, plus one Lofoten stop worth adding to any itinerary Resources: Sign up for our FREE newsletter Noraventura Unlisted Cheat Sheet (use code ZERO) Instagram Trænafestivalen Ytri Island Retreat Hov Gård Varangerhalvøya National Park Want More? Hidden Norway: 7 Off The Beaten Path Gems You’ll Love, Popular Norwegian Concepts Worth Stealing, Trekking In Bhutan, & Living At The Crossroads of Magic & Science w/ Torunn Tronsvang from Up Norway How To See The Northern Lights In Norway Top 7 Hidden Gems in Oslo, Norway with Curtis Rojak of Viking Biking Thanks To Our Sponsors Become a Fora Advisor today at foratravel.com/zerototravel Experience intelligent trip planning for calmer travel with the TripWaffle app Earn points on rent and mortgage payments. Apply at joinbilt.com/zerototravel Explore 100% human-made itineraries at exploreworldwide.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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  Zero To Travel Podcast

  5 Techniques for Relearning to Read: Opening Up New Ideas About Yourself and the World with Ann Morgan

  Sep 15, 20261h 4m

  What happens when the way you were taught to read stops working the moment you step outside your own culture? Ann Morgan is a UK-based author, speaker, and editor best known for reading a book from every country in the world in a single year, a project she chronicled on her blog A Year of Reading the World and in her book Reading the World (published in the US as The World Between Two Covers). In her newest book, Relearning to Read: Adventures in Not-Knowing, she looks at what it actually takes to read well across cultural and linguistic lines. Ann returns to walk through five techniques for relearning how to read, covering how to notice your own hidden bias, why every reader fills in a story's gaps differently, what a book's assumptions reveal about who it expects you to be, and why this should all matter to us curious travelers. This conversation gets into something bigger than books: what it actually means to sit with not knowing, and why that discomfort might be exactly where the growth happens. Ann pushes back on the idea that understanding everything is the goal, and the reframe she offers reaches well beyond the page. If you've ever wondered what it actually looks like to get better at reading books from other cultures, this episode lays it out step by step. What's one time you filled in a story's gaps completely differently than the writer intended? I'd love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you'll share by sending me an audio message. Tune In To Learn: Why the way Ann was taught to read stopped working once she started reading internationally How growing up in a culture that caters to you can hide how much of reading has been made easy for you Why she encourages readers to hold onto their questions instead of rushing to answer them How paying attention to what annoys you while reading can reveal a hidden bias Advice on knowing when to push through a challenging book and when to just put it down How noticing what a book explains, and what it assumes you already know, tells you who it was written for Why every reader fills in a story's gaps differently, and what that reveals about you How AI and shrinking attention spans are reshaping the future of reading and storytelling A story from Ann's recent trip to Greenland with her friend Tété-Michel Kpomassi, sixty years after his first journey there Resources: Sign up for our FREE newsletter Relearning to Read: Adventures in Not-Knowing A Year of Reading the World Ann on Instagram Reading a Book from Every Country in the World with Ann Morgan Michel the Giant: An African in Greenland Want More: Traveling While Black with Nanjala Nyabola The Geography of Bliss With Eric Weiner The Vagabond's Way: Meditations on Wanderlust, Discovery, and the Art of Travel w/ Rolf Potts Thanks To Our Sponsors: Become a Fora Advisor today at foratravel.com/zerototravel Experience intelligent trip planning for calmer travel with the TripWaffle app Earn points on rent and mortgage payments. Apply at joinbilt.com/zerototravel Explore 100% human-made itineraries at exploreworldwide.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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  Zero To Travel Podcast

  Top 7 Hidden Gems: Bosnia and Herzegovina (Focus on Sarajevo) with Local Experts Nermin and Katrin Numic

  Sep 8, 20261 hour

  With centuries of layered history and some of Europe's most uncrowded natural beauty, why isn't Bosnia and Herzegovina on more travelers' radars yet?  Nermin Numic grew up in Sarajevo and spent over a decade living and working abroad in South Africa and Europe, where he met his wife Katrin, who is originally from Germany. In 2020, the couple returned to Bosnia and Herzegovina during the pandemic and decided to stay. They went on to found .Cheyf, a boutique travel agency built around the Bosnian concept of ćejf, showing travelers the local side of Sarajevo and the country beyond it.  Nermin and Katrin share seven hidden gems in Sarajevo, Bosnia, that most visitors miss, along with the history behind the city's mix of Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, and Yugoslav influences. They also talk about day trips into the surrounding mountains, must-try local food, and starting a travel business together as a couple.  Sarajevo is a city where four major religions have lived side by side for centuries, where the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand helped ignite World War I, and where the Bosnian War left scars that are still part of daily conversation decades later. Nermin and Katrin don't shy away from any of that history, but they also refuse to let it be the only story visitors hear. By the end of this episode, you'll understand why they believe this is exactly the right moment to experience it for yourself.  What's a place you discovered by accident that ended up being the highlight of your trip? I'd love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you'll share by sending me an audio message.  Tune In To Learn:  Why Nermin and Katrin decided to build their life and business in Bosnia after meeting abroad  What the Bosnian concept of ćejf means and how it shapes the way they run their tours  How Sarajevo's layout reveals itself once you leave the old town behind  Why a quiet riverside walkway just outside the old town is worth the detour  How a centuries-old bridge and a Viennese-style coffeehouse capture the city's cultural blend  A thousand years of Sarajevo history, from the Bosnian kingdom through Ottoman rule, Austro-Hungarian rule, and the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand that helped spark World War I  Why Nermin and Katrin built their tours around food and culture instead of the Bosnian War, and how that decision paid off  Why a mountaintop observatory and a rooftop terrace offer some of the best views in the city  How to see one of the world's most valuable religious artifacts during a narrow weekly window  Advice for exploring the mountains, canyons, and villages just outside Sarajevo  Resources:  Sign up for our FREE newsletter  .Cheyf  Insgram  Want More?  Top 5 Alternative European Destinations (to Avoid the Crowds) with Joseph Reaney  Hidden Norway: 7 Off The Beaten Path Gems You'll Love, Popular Norwegian Concepts Worth Stealing, Trekking In Bhutan, & Living At The Crossroads of Magic & Science w/ Torunn Tronsvang from Up Norway  Tbilisi Travel and Hidden Georgia Gems with Local Guide Levan Giorgadze  Thanks To Our Sponsors  Become a Fora Advisor today at foratravel.com/zerototravel  Experience intelligent trip planning for calmer travel with the TripWaffle app  Earn points on rent and mortgage payments. Apply at joinbilt.com/zerototravel  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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