The Best Part of Travel | Inside the Business of Destination Experiences

Safaris, Climate Strategy & Small Group Tours: Intrepid Travel’s Journey from Small Groups to Global Brand

Nov 25, 2025

Join James Thornton, the CEO of Intrepid Travel, a leader in sustainable adventure tourism, as he discusses the soaring popularity of multi-day tours and the importance of authentic small group experiences. He dives into how Intrepid has embraced a purpose-driven strategy, moving from carbon offsets to genuine sustainability efforts. Thornton highlights thoughtful AI adoption and the necessity of human connection in travel. He also shares insights on fostering diverse leadership and building a brand that resonates with conscious travelers.

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INSIGHT

Human Connection Drives Travel Demand

Human connection is the core reason travel matters and will drive demand for multi-day experiences.
James Thornton believes travel counters loneliness and online algorithm-driven isolation.

ADVICE

Make Your Brand Stand For Something

Stand for something clear and make consistent high-quality products that deliver the promise every time.
Invest in brand marketing, not just digital channels, to build awareness and growth.

INSIGHT

Product Design Can Deliver Local Benefit

Intrepid built its product to benefit local communities through local accommodation, transport, and food.
The company views community benefit as central to the product, not an add-on.

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In this episode of The Best Part of Travel, we sit down with James Thornton, CEO of Intrepid Travel, to explore why multi-day tours are taking off, and how authentic small group experiences, people-first leadership and a thoughtfully integrated climate strategy have been essential to Intrepid’s success.

🗺️ Topics we cover:

The rise of multi-day tours & meaningful travel: Travelers are increasingly seeking authentic experiences that foster real human connection — and finding them in small group tours.

Brand identity & post-pandemic growth: How Intrepid Travel has grown since the pandemic by focusing on “conscious travelers,” and the importance of having an engaged workforce that believes in your brand.

Growing with purpose… and profit: Why Intrepid Travel is moving away from carbon offsetting to focus on “Travel for Good” and positive impacts, and how “baking sustainability in” to their products has helped them grow their bottom line.

Thoughtful AI adoption: How Intrepid travel is approaching AI while maintaining its focus on the importance of human connection.

Urban Adventures & brand strategy: How Intrepid Travel has adapted its day tour brand to amplify its brand and build awareness about its multi-day offerings.

Leadership in action: James Thornton’s and Intrepid’s people-first approach to leadership and teams, and the importance of diversity of age, gender, country of origin and so on in building a strong leadership team.

The future of small group travel: and why James Thornton is optimistic about the power of human connection, especially with the challenges in the world today, such as the toxic news cycle, geopolitical uncertainty and the loneliness pandemic.

Learn more with these resources:

🔗 Intrepid Travel

🔗 ⁠The Multi-Day Moment: On the rise of multi-day travel and the top challenges and opportunities of this rapidly-growing sector of travel experiences.

🔗Join the next Multi-Day Track at ⁠Arival 360 | Valencia

The Best Part of Travel podcast is brought to you by Arival. Season Two is sponsored by Protect Group.