National Geographic Family Journeys: Meaningful Travel with G Adventures

Are family holidays starting to feel a little… surface-level?

In this episode of the Family Holiday Destinations podcast, I’m joined by Emily Mikus from G Adventures to explore what travelling with purpose really looks like for families.

We dive into National Geographic Family Journeys and unpack how these trips go beyond the typical holiday - combining storytelling, science, conservation, and hands-on experiences that connect families more deeply with the places they visit.

In this episode, we cover:

•  What makes these journeys different from a standard family holiday 
•  How meaningful travel shows up in real, practical ways 
•  Why small-group travel can take the mental load off parents 
•  How these trips create a genuine positive impact 
•  What families take home beyond souvenirs 

We also touch on a few travel trends and updates shaping family travel right now, from new family-friendly accommodation in Australia to immersive experiences in Singapore and unique travel opportunities across the country.

If you’ve ever thought, “We’ll do meaningful travel when the kids are older…” — this episode might just change your mind.

Because the best time to create meaningful shared memories is sooner, not someday. 

🎧 Listen now and discover how family travel can be more than just a holiday.

For more family travel inspiration, destination guides and practical planning tips, visit familyholidaydestinations.com

LINKS from this month's episode:

• Win a Year Travelling Australia with BIG4's BIG Aussie Review
• Singapore New Attractions: What’s Just Opened (and What’s Coming Next)
• A New Family-Friendly Resort Opens on the Murray River in Mildura
• Why Travel With Kids? 10 Reasons Family Trips Are Worth It
• G Adventures

Transcript

Introduction & Welcome

Jessica Palmer 0:05

Welcome to the Family Holiday Destinations Podcast, where we inspire your next family adventure. I'm Jessica Palmer, mother of two and founder of Family Holiday Destinations. And today we're chatting about travelling with purpose and how national geographic family journeys with G Adventures are helping families experience the world in a more meaningful way.

Jessica Palmer 0:30

Now, I don't know about you, but I've noticed something lately. Families aren't just looking for kid-friendly anymore. They're looking for connection, for culture, for conservation, something that actually sticks, something that makes travel feel more worthwhile. So today we're talking about what meaningful travel really looks like with kids and how small group adventures can completely change the experience.

Jessica Palmer 1:00

But first, let's quickly run through what's happening in family travel right now.

NEWS - A New Family-Friendly Resort Opens on the Murray River in Mildura

Jessica Palmer 1:12 Jessica Palmer 1:12

A new family-friendly resort in Mildura. If you're planning a regional escape, Mildura just leveled up. Trenton Waters Resort has opened on the banks of the Murray River and it's giving strong Palm Springs vibes. But in regional Victoria. It's the vision of former V8 Supercars champion Rick Kelly and his family, and it blends architecturally designed villas with ensuite caravan sites.

Jessica Palmer 1:40

So it works whether you're a resort family or a caravanning family. Highlights for kids: a 48-metre lagoon pool with splash park, tennis and basketball courts, a kids' room, and direct access to the Murray River with a private boat ramp. It's still in soft launch phase, but early rear views are strong. For families who want sunshine, water sports, and space without battling coastal crowds, this could be one to check out.

NEWS - Singapore New Attractions: What’s Just Opened (and What’s Coming Next)

Jessica Palmer 2:16 Jessica Palmer 2:16

Singapore's new attractions. Singapore continues to quietly dominate when it comes to reinvention. Some of the newest highlights include a completely free 3.3km rainforest boardwalk at Mandai, an adventure-style wildlife park called Rainforest Wild Asia, a massively expanded Singapore oceanarium, and dinosaurs continue to take over gardens by the bay. What I love about these newish attractions in Singapore is that it's not just about seeing things anymore, it's about immersing yourself in them. And that actually ties beautifully into today's topic. But first, I've got a fantastic competition for you.

NEWS - Win a Year Travelling Australia with BIG4’s BIG Aussie Review

Jessica Palmer 3:09 Jessica Palmer 3:09

Win a year travelling Australia.

Jessica Palmer 3:12

And finally, if you've ever half joked about quitting your job and travelling around Australia full time, who hasn't, Big Four might be your sign. Their big Aussie review competition is offering one lucky family, group of friends, couple or single, a fully kitted out Ford Ranger, a Crusader caravan, and 12 months travelling Australia as their official reviewer. All you have to do is upload a 60-second video reviewing something you love. I'll put a link on how to apply in the show notes.

Jessica Palmer 3:46

Now, let's move into something a little deeper.

INTERVIEW - Interview with Emily Mikus on National Georgraphic Family Journeys with G Adventures

Jessica Palmer 3:59 Jessica Palmer 3:59

So to explore this idea of more meaningful travel, I recently sat down with Emily Micus, partnerships director at G Adventures to chat about their national geographic family journeys and what makes them different from your standard family holiday?

Jessica Palmer 4:16

Okay, well, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me today. And for families who are new to guided family or guided group tour, how would you describe national geographic family journeys with G Adventures in a nutshell? Like what makes them different from a standard family holiday or tour?

Emily Mikus 4:36

Yeah, it is a great question because obviously thinking about family travel versus group family travel, it is a very different type of way of getting away together. But before I go into that, I just wanted to uh give a little bit of information around G Adventures and the partnership with um National Geographic. Just for people who don't know it. So uh G Adventures has been around for uh just over 35 years, and we're a small group tour operator with over 1200 trips worldwide, so a huge variety, and we operate in all seven continents.

Emily Mikus 5:17

I've been lucky enough to go down to Antarctica with G Adventures and going to the Arctic this uh this summer. So I've been with G now for 15 years, so I've had a lot of enjoyable travel experiences with G. And really our main focus as a as a tour operator is around community tourism and uh having travel as a force for good. So, as you said, Jess, you had heard our founder, Bruce Poonttip, talk about um his purpose and that really is the ethos around everything that we do at G.

Emily Mikus 5:51

So uh in 2015, because of that, National Geographic actually approached G Adventures because of what we're doing and our values and asked to partner up um to offer uh a travel product or a line that really leaned into the pillars of National Geographic. So when we think of that, it's around like photography, conservation, wildlife, storytelling. So bringing that all to life. And then we created National Geographic Journeys with G Adventures, which was a huge success. And in 2019, we thought of bringing this travel style to our family audience. So before we got into our got into the family, offering family product, we wanted to do some research, which is what makes the travel product different.

Emily Mikus 6:42

So a big thing around that we found was that it was actually multi-generational families. So a lot of the times when we think about it, we think about it parents and kids. But what we found was there was a lot of interest for grandparents and kids. Yes, uh, all three generations, one solo parenting, bringing the kids away for that quality time. Um, so when we thought about that, again, another key important part was around activities. So uh I think it was 85% of people were looking for activities that would be exciting for the whole family. So when we've got this multi-generational audience and then creating activities that really speak to them, that was kind of a really interesting part of building out this product.

Emily Mikus 7:33

So all of our trips have very cool experiences without it, and I'll I'll talk about some of those later on, but where it sparks the interest of the children, but also the excitement of the adults. So making sure that it's for both. Um yeah, it is. I it it's one of those things where I have three kids, and so I wish I could take them on all of our family trips. When I read the activities, I'm like, they would love this. I know.

Jessica Palmer 8:00

I had a look at them as well. I was quite inspired. And the bucket list got longer, that's for sure.

Emily Mikus 8:04

Absolutely, absolutely. And then another element that we found which was really important for the audience was around getting outside. So I think a lot of the times we're inside between like work and school and everything. So getting outside, having that outdoor time. And a lot of our destinations, you get to go to really iconic, beautiful places. So jungles, seringettes, deserts in some of the most iconic cities in the world. So that's really part of the excitement. And then for family travel, which we loved hearing was that learning was a really important aspect of travel. So I think that's so different when looking at different travel styles. Parents wanting this to not only be an eye-opening experience, but also for their children to have a chance to learn to take that textbook to the real world. Yes. And luckily, education and learning is one of the core pillars of National Geographic. So it really leans into what we do well. So that is what I would say is our key differentiator is really leaning into that learning aspect, you know, creating quality time for people to bond together and make some incredible experiences that everyone can enjoy.

Jessica Palmer 9:25

Absolutely. Just to clarify something. So the family tours that G Adventures do, are they all in partnership with National Geographic? Or are there some that are National Geographic and some that are just regular G Adventure family tours?

Emily Mikus 9:42

Yeah, so we have, so we have our National Geographic Family Journeys line. And that is our that is the majority of the family product that we own as a business or sorry, operate as a business. Uh, and then we do have um a small selection of G family trips. So there's at least about five destinations that we go that's not in partnership with National Geographic, but the or the majority of the product line is um in collaboration with National Geographic.

Jessica Palmer 10:16

So National Geographic is known for storytelling, science, education, and conservation. And how does that DNA show up on family trips?

Emily Mikus 10:27

Sorry, I just took a sip of water. Um yeah, well, so as I mentioned, that learning is really a pillar of National Geographic. And it was so important for us to make the world our classroom. And I mean it is for all of us. So an example is in Costa Rica. We we take families to, I mean, on let's say, example, a regular trip, you might go visit the cloud forest, but on our family trip, you go visit the cloud forest in Costa Rica, and then you also go visit a reforest project. And this is where the kids get to learn about the conservation of the forest, how you rebuild it, that the importance of nature and the importance of giving back, which is so key. Another important fact is we really pride ourselves in the concept of raising global citizens. So it's more important now than ever to raise global citizens and to have children aware of all different cultures and communities and backgrounds and foods and and so getting them out there, this is really a key, key way for them to understand how different the world is, but also enjoy it and learn and love it and be part of it. So another example is in Tanzania. We actually go to a community just outside of Arusha where there's 120 tribes that live. And there the families get to meet the local families in the community, have lunch with them, but then also try traditional hand painting. So learning more about their cultures. And so this is really key experiences that kids get to have that hands-on learning. I was just about to ask that.

Jessica Palmer 12:20

I'm assuming that this is all hands-on.

Emily Mikus 12:22

Absolutely. Like Leah, who you had met, she said something that was really great and I loved it. Like you can take a kid, a kid to the Coliseum, and as an adult, you'll be like, whoa, and you can spend hours there, right? And uh and as a kid, probably they'll be like 10, 15 minutes, something like that. Whatever. Yeah, yeah. And but then the fact is, is part of the experience with the Coliseum, you they then go to gladiator training school and learn how to become a gladiator. And so it's like you take that experience that would be incredible for an adult, but then you add this layer of fun and education onto it in a way that the kids get so immersed into the experience that's so special. And I love that it's so true. I brought, I was in um, I was in Lisbon with my kids, and I was like, isn't the architecture beautiful? And they're like, um, yeah. And it's just they just, you know, with adults, everyone would be like, yes, but the kids were like, sure.

Jessica Palmer 13:32

Yeah, yeah, that sounds amazing. And you know, as a parent, it always feels pretty good when you've snuck in some learning and they don't know it too, I think.

Emily Mikus 13:40

Absolutely, absolutely. And they retain it, right? They'll retain these facts, they'll share it with their friends um because they had so much fun learning all about it. So many parents worry about the logistics.

Jessica Palmer 13:53

So things like getting from A to B, safety, food, and the needed downtime. How does G Adventures help take that pressure off families?

Emily Mikus 14:04

Yeah, this, I mean, this is really one of the benefits of going on a group trip, is around the logistics being organized. So, as part of it, the accommodations are all pre-vetted. One thing that we find really important is making sure that, you know, we're applicable. There's a pool because we know that is so important for kids, uh, is having a pool there. I was with my husband and we had booked an Airbnb. And just before getting going there, I saw a review that said the pool was green and they couldn't use it. And I was like, Oh no, no, yep. I know, and I I literally looked at them and I said, This is a campaign as to why to book group travel because you uh you don't have to stress about is the pool green? We have that sorted. And then also all of the transportation is organized from point A to point B. So along the like along the uh getting that quality time while you're on destination, it also gives you that time back for the planning, planning part of it. So there's so much logistics that go into it. Whereas on a group trip, you're told, okay, we'll pick you up, you know, the car will be here at 9 a.m. You don't have to worry about any of that. That is organized. We have two expedition leaders on all of our trips that help with the logistics of it.

Jessica Palmer 15:28

So a lot of the times So even if something went amiss, like a driver didn't show up, which I'm sure doesn't happen, there's someone to fix it for you basically. How good's that?

Emily Mikus 15:39

Absolutely. And also then you have someone who's able to focus on the kids, entertain them, but also uh organize the point A to point B, which is which is so important. And then also a big thing for family travel is food. So uh as part of it, we I I'm very lucky. I have great eaters, but I also, my nephew, when he was younger, all it was was like pasta. That's it. That's all he wanted. Pasta.

Jessica Palmer 16:08

I've got one of them, yep. But if it's a dessert, that'll be quite adventurous. Yeah.

Emily Mikus 16:13

Anything sugar give it to me, no problem. So as part of as part of the organization of these trips, we there's so many interesting cooking lessons, learning about the food of the culture. Um, and for kids to get more involved in the food and trying different foods and making it exciting and they get to learn oh, what's in it and get to make it. And but also we understand that we need sometimes a variety of food as well. So that those sort of logistics are all pre-thought of so that the families don't have to worry about it. So we always have lots of food options, but then also make it kind of part of the experience as well.

Jessica Palmer 16:56

Yeah, great. So for families considering their first small group adventure, what advice would you give them to help them choose the right destination or itinerary?

Emily Mikus 17:07

Yeah, I I that's probably the funnest part is choosing the destination. Um, I would say so we have a dedicated team of specialists that are available. There, we've got they're available for 24 hours a day because we are an international company. So we're able to support um someone who calls in and they, I would say, really identifying what energizes you or excites you as a family. Um getting kids involved, right? Getting the kids involved in the what do they want to, what do they want to experience, and then the uh specialist will be able to help help them or their local travel agent as well. But some of the great examples I know Japan, for instance, is so looking at kind of key activities. There's sumo wrestling in learning how to sumo wrestle in Japan or seeing the monkey snow monkeys or learning um about samurai masters. So there's some really key activities that they could look at and and talk to their kids about okay, what would you rather do? Or I think Italy is also a great option for the pasta lovers. I mean, is one of my favorite countries in the world for pasta. Um, but they do a cooking class and learn how to make pasta. Um, and then I was mentioning about that gladiator school. So bringing kind of the history of the destination and then the fun of it as well. So I think the great thing is the world is so beautiful and you can't go wrong. Um, it just depends on it. I agree. Family, the family wants to do.

Jessica Palmer 18:53

I agree, and Japan's certainly very popular at the moment as well. Are you finding that with the tours? Yeah. I know in Australia, there's a lot of Australians heading to Japan at the moment. And I mean, I went for the first time earlier last year, last January, and you know, it was amazing. I couldn't believe I hadn't gone a decade ago.

Emily Mikus 19:13

Yeah, it's such a cool destination. Yeah. Um, and even our like our kids are asking. So not only is it popular, but our kids are wanting to go to Japan as well. Um, and my sister is taking her family to Japan shortly, I think in a couple months. Um, so it is that it is definitely a very unique place to take the family, very safe. Transportation's amazing, even though there's so much going on, it's such a country and it's got like order and calmness within the chaos.

Jessica Palmer 19:47

Absolutely. I found um with Japan, I personally think that the real benefit is that um when you go to some Asian countries, there can be a bit of a culture shock when it comes to the toilets, especially. So, an example is before we went to Japan last year, we were in Harbin, which is in northeast China. Yeah. Up near Russia. So that's where you'll find those uncomfortable squat toilets that which I'm okay with, but the kids they struggled. And when you get to Japan, the culture shocks, they're not uncomfortable, they're fascinating more than anything. And I find that's why it's so easy with kids because the culture shock is not uncomfortable in the slightest bit.

Emily Mikus 20:30

Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. I it is it it's more of a conversational piece afterwards. Yes, absolutely. Did you try the toilet?

Jessica Palmer 20:39

Yeah, it is, yeah. You need Google Translate on your phone while you're using the toilet.

Emily Mikus 20:46

I know, it's so true. Yeah, I think I, you know, culture shock is really an interesting part when you talk about it. And something that I found, I've been very lucky, as I said, been with G for 15 years and I've traveled all over the world, but now getting to see the destinations through their eyes, it gives you that feeling of being able to see the destination brand new again. So it's seeing that excitement and oh my gosh, I can't wait to take them through a crowded market and see all like the fish and the fruits and um absolutely they're just gonna be like wide-eyed. Um, so yeah, I think I think that's a a part of it that's so unique for going from independent travel to family travel.

Jessica Palmer 21:36

Absolutely. So we're seeing more families prioritize responsible travel. How do the family journeys support sustainability and the positive local impact? And how do kids get involved in that?

Emily Mikus 21:50

Yeah, I love this question. I think it, I think it's so great that families, you know, that this is important to families and important for them to. Educate their children around. So G Adventures has been leading in responsible travel for 35 years. This has always been an important pillar to us. And something that we have. So we have something called Trees for Days, which is where every single traveler. So if you're a family of four, every single person on the trip we plant a tree for for every day that they travel. So just by booking the trip, you know, you're already starting to make a positive impact towards sustainability and conservation. And then the next part of what we do is something called the ripple score. And this is a score that we put on each of our trips to ensure that the tourism dollar is going back into the local communities. So the trip has to have a high score. And this is what we're always looking to achieve when we're building out our products, looking at our activities and experiences, that it does have this positive impact on the communities that we go to. But in particular with National Geographic and the partnership with them, we a portion of the trip also goes towards the National Geographic Society. And the society is in place to fund uh research and research around the improvement of our world. So this is really going to the scientists and the explorers to positively impact and improve our planet, which is just it makes me so proud to be part of those three pillars within or three aspects. And that's you haven't even left yet. That's just part of your purchasing. But then when you're on trip, something that's really cool, because we also, as part of National Geographic, we work with um citizen science. So it's an app that you um we ask the parents to download before going on, or uh depending how old the kids are, they might have their own phones, uh, but to download before they go. And our expedition leaders teach them about how they can positively contribute to citizen science. And that's taking photos of wildlife, nature, and logging it. And this is for scientists to be able to track, uh track what's happening all around the world. So this allows the families and the children to participate. And actually, we encourage people to start before they even go so they can learn a bit more about citizen science. And then a lot of families carry on well after their trip is done.

Jessica Palmer 24:36

Oh, amazing. So finally, for families listening who are dreaming about a more meaningful way to travel together, what do you hope they take away from a family journey with G Adventures?

Emily Mikus 24:50

Yeah, it I honestly, I think the even the idea around taking your kids away to a new destination and showing them the world is already, I hope this ignites some sort of spark to take them somewhere new and and show them the destination. So with that, I think raising global citizens is so important. I think it's just a really important part of what we do that the class, the the world can be your classroom. So they'll learn way more getting out there than well, I shouldn't say than they do in school, but no, they do.

Jessica Palmer 25:28

I think most people would agree with you there. They they definitely learn more outside the classroom.

Emily Mikus 25:34

Totally, totally. So they'll just they'll they'll learn so much more. Um, and also a big, a big part that I think kids are just craving for these days is the quality time. So quality time with their parents or their grandparents and creating those lifelong lasting memories that they'll they'll continue to talk, talk about through their ages and even you know, they'll reflect back on it in their adult years. So making that decision now to take them somewhere will be um a positive, positive influence for the rest of their life. Absolutely. And then hopefully they grow up and take their own kids. Absolutely. The continuation of raising global citizens.

Jessica Palmer 26:21

Absolutely.

Emily Mikus 26:23

One of the things maybe we we didn't touch base on that is also really important and a differentiation from like group travel and independent travel is around the the fact that you get to meet other families from around the world. So not only do we bring you to a destination and you get to learn about the cultures and uniqueness of that place, but then you're also traveling with different families because we have an international market. So you could have someone from Australia or Canada or Germany on the trip. And the beauty of that is the kids get to make friends and create not only those bonds as a family, but create unique new bonds with the other children on the trip and same with the parents as well. So it is really a unique way to travel is through group travel with that. That you create this community within it.

Jessica Palmer 27:22

Absolutely. And certainly the appeal for myself as someone who's never gone on a family like guided trip. We've always done it independently, is that is that the kids would make friends and then they would be playing with their friends where you have other like-minded adults to talk to. And you know, it's always easier when your children have someone else to play with as well. They don't they're not in your hair the whole time. Yeah, absolutely.

Emily Mikus 27:48

Exactly, exactly. So I think that is very much a key kind of differentiation for why you know the benefit of going on a group trip versus doing it on your own. And you don't have to worry about the green pool. That too. Exactly.

Jessica Palmer 28:09

Yeah. Thank you. Thank you so much for that. I I really appreciate you um talking with me today and devoting some of your time to this.

Emily Mikus 28:18

No, I'm happy to. It's a a passion of mine to be able to talk about aid travel, but family travel, I think, is so such a beautiful thing that we we can do.

Jessica Palmer 28:29

What I really love about this model is that it removes the pressure from parents, but it seems to keep the depth. You're not spending your holiday googling the logistics and you're actually present. And that presence, especially with kids, is where the family holiday memories tend to happen.

TIP - 3 Reasons to Travel With Kids Sooner Rather Than Later

Jessica Palmer 28:47

Three reasons to travel with kids sooner rather than later. If you're listening and thinking we'll do something like that when they're older, here are three gentle reasons not to wait. Number one, shared memories are being built right now, not when they're teenagers, not when they've moved out, now. Number two, travel builds empathy early. Seeing different cultures, hearing different languages, understanding conservation, these things shape how kids think about the world. Number three, there is no perfect time. Health changes, circumstances change, kids grow incredibly fast. If meaningful travel is important to your family, the best time is sooner, not someday. Yes, it's messier and yes, it's slower, but it's also deeper. So that wraps up our chat about travelling with purpose through National Geographic family journeys with G Adventures. I'm sure

Wrap Up and Outro

Jessica Palmer 30:07

there are many other great experiences out there to be had, and we would love to hear some of yours. Thanks for joining me on this journey through more meaningful family adventures. I hope this chat has inspired you to explore it with your family. For more tips and detailed guides, head on over to the Family Holiday Destinations website at FamilyHolidaydestinations.com. And until next time, happy travel and enjoy making those family memories.