The dry river bed of The Darling River. Look at how massive the root of the tree is. For 15 years at Qantas, I thought I knew what made a destination remarkable. I worked in sales, marketing, then market research. I analysed routes. I ran global brand studies and customer satisfaction surveys. My job was literally to understand why people travel. And I thought I had a pretty good idea. Then I spent a few weeks driving through western New South Wales. And realised I’d been lo

Summary Most women did not travel solo to feel brave. They travelled to feel steady again. The first solo trip mattered emotionally more than any destination choice. Familiar places, light structure, and optional connection reduced anxiety. Preparation mattered more than confidence. The biggest change happened quietly, after they came home. Who this article is really about This article is based on patterns we see again and again among divorced women who choose to travel alone

No Cruise Ships, Please”: Carol’s Story of Choosing Movement, Not Maintenance Short Insight: Carol isn’t just travelling, she’s rewriting...

My first solo travel experience to Lulea, Sweden at 17 It was January 1989. 38 degrees in Bayside suburban Melbourne when I left. The kind of stifling summer heat that clings to your skin and makes the air hum. When I landed in Sweden, it was minus 20. And the sun didn’t rise. I was seventeen. I had never left Australia. In fact, I’d barely left my home state. But somehow, there I was — in Lapland. A place I hadn’t even known existed when I first applied to Rotary Exchange an