Hi everyone and welcome back to Travel Time Stories with Shannon, the show where we dive into real stories, real journeys, and real healing. I'm your host Shannon from Texas, and I'm joined by my co-host and best friend Ann Today we're exploring a fascinating concept, luxury travel that changes lives.
Our guest is Christopher Hill, founder of Hands Up Holidays and Impact Destinations, two groundbreaking brands that combined high-end travel experiences with meaningful philanthropic impact. Christopher joins us from New Zealand where he lives with his wife, two boys, and their dog, Zola. We'll talk about what inspired him to create this unique model, how it works in practice, and why more travelers are seeking purpose alongside pleasure.
Get ready to rethink what it means to travel. Welcome to the show, Christopher. Thank you so much, Shannon and Ann, thank you for being here. As we see on travel time stories, grab your favorite beverage. Let's get into it. All right, Christopher. Tell us a little bit about your journey, where you started. What inspired you to combine luxury travel with philanthropic?
Well, it all really began on a trip I took to South Africa when I was living in London. I had been living in London for about six years and working in investment banking there, and on this trip in South Africa. In addition to going on Safari and exploring the wonders of that beautiful country, places like Cape Town and the Garden Route and the Winelands, and, and I also helped to build a house for a family in one of the slum area townships just outside of Cape Town.
And this experience, well, I mean, frankly, it, it changed my life and it added two extra dimensions to. To travel for me that I hadn't had before were, firstly, I, I got to actually interact with the local people and hear their stories and gain insights into their lives and engage with them. On a, on a level that just enabled me to go deep and, and get some cultural immersion as well.
And, and then secondly, it just felt great to actually make a difference in the lives of the family that we were helping alongside to, to build the house. And so I got thinking, well, I've learned some good business skills. Why did I put these into something that I would find a bit more meaningful and fulfilling and, and make it easy for other travelers to have similar experiences to our, to what I've just had?
And so that was the. The genesis of, of what became hands up holidays, an amazing concept. So the work that you do has just a major impact on these families, these communities, people helping local commun, you know, these communities and the, in these, these locals. And in return, getting to know them and, and building friendships, a life connections, even probably with some of them.
Yeah, for sure. For sure. And you've really hit the nail on the head, Anne, in that the, the, the benefit is, is mutual and it's, it really is a two-way exchange. Our model is something I describe as philanthropy, volunteering, and what I mean by that is that the benefit that our clients bring is the funds to get the projects completed, say the house, the.
Built in terms of paying for the materials and employing local people to do, actually do most of the work before the clients get there so that the clients come and spend a few days really doing the finishing touches, still with the supervision of the, the local experts and, and the local experts doing it, the tricky parts, but they bring the fund, their clients bring the funds, and that's the.
The main benefit they bring, then the benefit that they get is what you've just described in terms of that interaction and exchange and forming these, these lifelong friendships. So yeah, it's, it's pretty powerful to, to be able to do something that is really, truly mutually enriching. So, I, I have to ask, can you share a story with us that really moved you emotionally?
Yeah. There's many. I'd say one that springs to mind would be. Uh, a family traveled with us to Morocco some years ago, and they, in addition to exploring the Sahara Desert and, and hiking in the Atlas Mountains and, and wandering around, wandering through Marrakesh, they also helped to. To build a library at a school about 45 minutes outside of Marrakesh.
And their, their children were a, a range of ages. And so for the children, it was a combination of, of helping build a bit and then also playing with the local kids. The trip went well. I didn't dwell on it particularly. It was just another great trip essentially until a, a few months later when the, the family got in touch and it was the holiday season.
And they said, our kids decided that for Christmas this year that they didn't want to have their gifts. They wanted to send their gifts to the children that they were playing with in, in Morocco. Wow. And yeah, I, I teared up at that and yeah, hugely moving for me to, to hear that. 'cause that really speaks to what we tried to achieve.
That speaks volumes. Yeah, it really does. To see that it made such a huge impact on children. Mm. Yeah. 'cause I mean, they're our future. So if we can get them to understand and see and want to be help and be involved, then that's how we change the world. Right? Yeah. Well it is, right. And when I first set up hands up holidays.
I had young professionals in mind as our main target audience, 25 to 35 year olds, cash rich, time poor, who wanted to have a great vacation, but also wanted to make a difference. But really right from the beginning, we were getting bookings from families and mostly American families. I should add, and this blindsided me to be honest, the families weren't on my radar at all when I was sitting.
Have up holidays and it just, it really just didn't occur to me that that, that they would want to be traveling with us. But they'd say things like when I'd ask them why they're booking with us, they'd say things like, well, our kids come from pretty privileged backgrounds and we really want 'em to appreciate how fortunate they are.
Or they'd say We're looking for a great family bonding experience and this really nails it for us. And, and that really resonated with me and all the more so now that I do have children of my own. So we have shifted our focus not to exclude any other groups, but certainly primarily our focus is on families.
And like you say Shannon, because they are that the future and, and so if we can instill them with these great values, then the future looks a lot more positive. Right. Exactly. And you mentioned how the majority of your clients are US based. Hmm. Why? Why do you think Americans are more drawn to this type of travel experience versus those other countries?
It is a great question and I dunno the answer for sure, but it just seems to me that it's in your DNA to want to help and make a difference more so that than in other countries. I dunno, the, you know. Exactly why that is, but that's certainly been my experience. Just a spirit of wanting to help when, when possible.
And I mean that, that's a generalization, but it, it largely holds true in my experience. Right. I was thinking too, maybe one of the reasons is no, like in Europe and other countries, they travel more in general. Than Americans do as far as visiting other countries and that type of thing. 'cause it's so much easier, um, in Europe to bounce from one country to another versus from going from America across the pond.
Right? It's a lot. And most everybody in other countries have passports. Here in America, most of us don't have passports. 'cause usually we just travel within the United States itself. So it's very rare that we have passports unless we're specifically planning a trip that we would need one. Sure. Yeah, I think, I think that's true.
And further to that, I, I get it because, and there is so much to see in, in the United States as well. Right that, yeah, that you could spend a lifetime traveling just around the, the 50 states for sure. And so you live in New Zealand with your wife and your kids and your dog. How does your family influence your work and values?
Well, yeah, that's a great question. I think. They keep me grounded for sure. And it's certainly been a, a great pri privilege to be able to travel with my whole family and, and do the sort of the trips we were describing. Uh, a recent one, for example, was to, we, we went to, to Bali, Indonesia, and, and in addition to.
Going snorkeling and whitewater rafting and mountain biking and, and hiking through beautiful rice paddy fields. And then onto stunning waterfalls. We also got to build a disabled accessible bathroom for a paraplegic in a, in a more remote village of Bali. And the context for that is that Bali is a Hindu island.
If you are born with a disability, it can be considered as bad karma. And so someone who is say paraplegic can lead a actually a very lonely, isolated life because they are hidden away from the rest of the world. And so to be able to bring a measure of independence and dignity into something that's so personal, IE going to the bathroom is really profound.
And so it was. Really special to be able to involve my, my kids in this project. They were able to get involved with, uh, drawing water from the village well, and taking that water over to where the cement was being mixed by hand. They would get involved with, with that, uh, mixing of the cement and then laing that cement into the wheelbarrow and then wheeling it over to, to the experts as a mentioned who, who were doing the tricky parts of, of actually, you know, um, putting the, the bathroom together.
And they also got on the end of a paintbrush. And, and also got to place, you know. Soccer with the local kids, so they got that immersion that way as well. So that was, yeah, hugely special. And we've done other trips with them, uh, to, to, to Mexico with doing some turtle conservation there and in French Polynesia with some reef, uh, coral reef restoration work.
So yeah, it's, it's great to, to be able to do these projects with them and, and see them gain, you know, a, a greater worldview and, and develop these, you know, soft skills around empathy and compassion and, and generosity as well. So I just have a question. How do you ensure that the giving back component is meaningful and it's, it's not just a, a token gesture?
Great question, Anne. I think one of the, the main ways come stems from really what I was talking about in terms of the philanthropy volunteering approach. And so by our clients funding the projects, they even, even when though they have a, a short period of time, the benefit actually is multiplied because it's the funds that that is doing the.
Actually doing the work. Right? And so technically for the benefit to happen, they don't need to be there, like we spoke about. They do need to be there for them to get the benefit of, of that hands-on involvement and engagement. But the, the funds enable, like, like I mentioned, the um. Accessible bathrooms or houses or eco-friendly stoves to be built.
And when you are there, you not only do you get that interaction and engagement, but you see firsthand where your funds are actually going and you see that it's not tokenism, it's, you see that these things are genuinely making an impact. So that's the, that is another part of the, the, the mutual.
Enrichment is that you, you see firsthand where the, the money, money goes and, and the benefit that those funds are bringing. That would be so satisfying, um, to be part of that. So what advice would you give to someone like me who would love to start traveling consciously, and where do I start? Hmm. Yeah.
Well, it, uh, basically I'd suggest entering into a conversation with, with myself, I actually handle all inquiries that come through, and so the, the typical way that that works is that our, our clients would fill out our plan, my trip form, and this is a no obligation form that's completed, which basically is information gathering, exercise, and really, you know, seeking to.
Get as much information as possible and, and lay the foundation for a, a conversation. And that can be literally over the phone or, or, uh, you know, on Zoom or, or by email. And so it's asking things like where you'd like to go, the ways you'd like to help, how long you'd like to help for how long your vacation is for the time of year, and you know, what sort of things you like to do in, in your leisure time as well.
And so when that information comes through to me. I've been doing this now for 20 years, and so I've, you know, I've got the experience and those hours accrued to be able to identify pretty quickly what would be a good fit with that, with all the information that's provided. And as I say though, that's still just, that's the foundation for entering into that conversation to fine tune those.
Ideas that I have and put forward a suggested itinerary, and then that can be a, a backwards and forwards of, of fine tuning to then create that, the perfect itinerary. It can be as simple as, you know, for someone who's looking to get involved, give in a way that is giving back. Still the information exchange can be around.
Do you want to, are you interested in rolling up your sleeves and getting involved or, or which can be, you know, on say the sort of the billing project we've described or it might. With a bit of uncovering it might see that actually you are more interested in, um, helping with say, at, at a literacy project or, you know, an afterschool teaching program.
Or it might be a case that you, you, you love animals and, and want to do something in the wildlife conservation space. So, so there's that bit of unpacking to, to find out and, and then we, you know, we'll tailor everything. Along those lines, or, and this leads on to the, the second brand that I've developed impact destinations.
And so I'll quickly describe that because for some people it might be more appropriate. And the idea with impact destinations is that it's a traveler's philanthropic donation, which enables the experts to do what they do best, but still will unlock a unique experience for the traveler. And so it's, it's a shift away from actually physically.
Getting involved in the project, like physically building a house or physically being a reading partner, or physically helping with preparing meals and creating stimulations for animals at a rescue center. And as I say, enabling the experts fully to do what they do best. It might sound a bit hard to conceptualize, so I'll give you an idea of what that could look like, would be, say, on a safari day in South Africa.
At a reserve that's facing a lot of rhino poaching fund a rhino relocation from a reserve that is from this reserve to a better protected reserve in Botswana. So this is where the guests actually go into the helicopter with the veterinarian. Wally is darting a Rh. Once the rhino has been darted, land the helicopter and spend some time with a sedated rhino before seeing it get airlifted off to Botswana.
So this is about really leaving a legacy and saying, you know, being able to say, I saved the life of a rhino whilst on safari. So, wow. Yeah. So, so again, it's unpacking what really what you wanna get out of the trip and, and steering in the right direction. That's amazing. You know, you mentioned, um, Mexico and working with the turtles or the tortoises.
So on an A, that one, you know, really got my attention on an average, just say that particular vacation, if I were wanting to do that. I know all of your vacations are specialized and a client, client base for that client and, you know, carefully put together for them. So if, if I were wanting to say, do that trip for seven days, what am I kind of looking at?
Just curious, because this is amazing. Yeah, it, it is a bit of a case of how long is a piece of string question because so many different drivers, one of them, one of the significant ones is the intimidation that you're staying at. You know, we tend to focus at, at the luxury end. So typically it'd be around for seven days around the four to $5,000 per person.
Um, I see. Mark. Having said that, I am so passionate about this that I do my utmost to fit within anyone's budget. So part of the questions on that form is what is your budget? Right. As I say, you know, sometimes it's not possible, but I definitely do try to yeah, create that ary within the budget. Awesome.
That's amazing. Yeah. That's really great 'cause that, that lets me know that. It's not just only rich people that can exactly do one of these, one of these trips. Someone such as myself, which I consider myself, like middle class, could potentially afford to be able to do one of these types of adventures or travels.
Yeah, absolutely. There are, um, you know, some destinations, as you know, are more expensive than others to go to, so Right. As I say, we do our best to, to, to fit within any budget. It's amazing. Just gets it out there that, hey, you're not, you're not limited to just maybe a cruise or an all inclusive, I mean, this is another concept of traveling.
I think it would be amazing to do this. Exactly, and I don't think a lot of people know, I mean, I didn't know about this until, no. Reached out about being on the show. So I had never heard of luxury travel with the philanthropic, uh, aspect to it at all. E even as a travel agent, I had never heard of that.
So now I'm excited that I know about it and can, you know, make this suggestion to some of my clients and say, Hey, if you want a totally different type of experience, you know, this is something you could try. Yeah, definitely. Yeah, that, that's right. It's, uh, I guess how. Ultimate goal would be that this category of trip would be, how to describe it, sort of as part of the, you know, the general consideration for people when they're thinking, you know, what do I do on vacation?
Is it a cruise? Is it a safari? Is it a trip to Alaska, or is it a. Volunteer, vacation, you know, that sort of thing. Right. I think a lot of people would be interested in this concept or really do, so I'm excited to get it out there and share it with others that, that this is available. Yeah. Awareness is our, is our biggest challenge.
Uh, even though, you know, we've been able to, we've been fortunate to have some great coverage in, you know, um, New York Times Wall Street Journal. Mm-hmm. And a nest. We won the Trevor and Leisure World Saver Award, the Global Vision Award, back in like 2009. We were in Forbes just like two weeks ago, but still the number of people I say I meet that have never heard of it.
The concept is extraordinary. So it's, it's an ongoing challenge for us, for sure. Yeah. Is there anything else that we haven't touched on that you would like to share with our listeners? Well, it's, it's been a, a whirlwind that's covered a lot of ground. Um, I, I guess to say. We cover about 30 destinations, and those are primarily in Latin America, Africa, and Asia.
But there's, uh, orals are some opportunities in, in the United States itself and in Europe and in the Pacific. So it's, it's pretty global and every trip is, is customized. So you may have five days, you may have five weeks, and we can prepare something for, for everybody. I love that, but what's the longest trip that you've ever prepared for someone?
Well, we were very fortunate to, uh, be part of a family's trip. Um, actually not from too far from where you guys are from Kentucky. They took a year out to travel the world and we didn't arrange their whole trip, but we did arrange a, a reasonable chunk of it through. What did we do? Australia, New Zealand, Cambodia, Laos, and Japan for them.
Yes. An amazing trip. That was a absolutely incredible trip for them. Yeah. Wow. Can't imagine that's, that's amazing. Yes, definitely. Okay, well, uh, Christopher, thank you so much for sharing your incredible vision and stories with us today. Luxury Travel with the Heart. What a powerful ideal. If our listeners would like to learn more about hands up holidays or impact destinations, what, what is your, uh, social media handles or website address?
Yeah, so our handles are all either hands up holidays or impact destinations, and that's the, the websites as well. So hands up holidays.com and impact destinations. Awesome, and we'll make sure to include all those links in the show notes as well For everyone, if this episode inspired you, don't forget to subscribe, leave a review and share with someone who loves to travel.
Until next time, keep making memories for life.
Thanks for joining me today on Travel Times Stories with Shannon. Don't forget to subscribe. Leave a review and share this podcast . Until next time, keep making memories for life.
