In this episode of The Balancing Tourism Podcast, Ged speaks with Richard Lindberg, founder of One Planet Journey and keynote speaker at the upcoming Tourism Seasonality Summit in Rimini.

Richard shares how a slow, five‑month winter journey transformed his own approach to travel and inspired his work exploring what travellers truly seek: meaning, connection, and a sense of belonging.

Together, they unpack the philosophy of deep travel — a mindset that prioritises intention over itinerary and personal relevance over social‑media‑driven bucket lists. Richard explains why deep travel is naturally aligned with low‑season tourism, offering richer experiences, more authentic interactions, and a calmer rhythm that benefits both visitors and residents.

The conversation also touches on:

• How One Planet Journey blends storytelling and research to understand high‑value, experience‑driven travellers
• Why the planning phase is an overlooked joy
• How destinations can shift from volume to value
• The role deep travel can play in addressing over‑tourism

A concise, insightful discussion for anyone rethinking what meaningful travel looks like in 2025 and beyond.

The Pre‑Journey Journey… with Emma Valahu

Most travel brands obsess over the moment someone books. But what about everything that happens before that moment — the research, the anticipation, the doubts, the excitement, the endless tabs open on a browser?

In this episode, Ged speaks with Emma Valahu, who specialises in what she calls the pre‑journey journey — the long, emotional decision‑making phase that determines whether a traveller ever chooses your experience, your destination, or your low‑season offer.

Emma helps experiential travel founders transform brochure‑style websites into systems that actually capture and nurture the right travellers over time. Together, they explore:

• Why 99% of website visitors disappear — and how to stop it
• Why “more traffic” is rarely the answer
• How to turn passive browsers into engaged future guests
• What a powerful educational email journey looks like
• How destinations can influence low‑season demand months in advance
• The biggest mistakes travel brands make on social media
• Why LinkedIn is the most overlooked platform in travel marketing

If you care about responsible tourism, seasonality, or building deeper relationships with travellers who value culture and meaning, this episode will reshape how you think about digital strategy.

Emma will be giving a keynote at the Tourism Seasonality Summit on 17-18 May in Rimini.

What happens when an industry built on “sustainability talk” is forced to confront the reality of its own impacts? In this hard‑hitting conversation, Professor Harold Goodwin — one of the world’s most influential voices in responsible tourism — joins Ged Brown to dismantle the myths, expose the contradictions, and challenge the complacency that still dominates global tourism.

Together they explore:

• Why responsible tourism is still misunderstood — and too often misused
• The tragedy‑of‑the‑commons problem at the heart of modern travel
• How Airbnb reshaped destination control
• Why climate change is already rewriting seasonality
• The uncomfortable truth about “business as usual”
• What destinations must do now if they want to use tourism rather than be used by it
• Why transparency, evidence, and action matter more than ever

Harold also shares insights on the upcoming Tourism Seasonality Summit in Rimini, where ICRT global joins as the official Impact & Responsibility Partner.

This is not a gentle conversation — it’s a necessary one.

If you care about the future of tourism, you’ll want to hear every minute.