The LANDED Podcast

LANDED Podcast 011 ISLAS SECAS by ANDREY GOMEZ Andrey Gomez is at the top of his game. After more than 25 years as a general manager at top-tier retreats in Costa Rica and Nicaragua, Andrey was named Managing Director of Islas Secas—Panama’s premier island hotel—in late 2020. This appointment caps an impressive string of bar-raising accomplishments. Those successes are especially inspiring when yo...

LANDED Podcast 008 CHOCOLATE AS CHANGE ENGINE: AJ WILDEY, EL CACAOTAL AJ’s been traveling throughout Peru’s cacao growing regions since 2013. Her work brings together Peruvian farmers, chocolate makers, and chocolate lovers. In 2017 she opened  El Cacaotal , a showcase for the finest Peruvian craft chocolate. Here in the  Lima neighborhood of Barranco , visitors immerse themselves in the...

LANDED Podcast 007 ENRICHING LIVES AND THE ENVIRONMENT–LUZ & ROBERTO: BOENA LODGES  Luz Cacares and Roberto Fernandez make the most out of life.  When we visited them  for this interview, we spent the day hiking in the private rainforest reserve at  Lapa Rios , on  Costa Rica ’s  Osa Peninsula . Simultaneously, they were directing operations at four hotels, working with education and con...

LANDED Podcast 010 Aria Cruise: Exploring Peru’s Amazon Basin with George Davila and Roger Tejada East of the Andes, Peru’s landscape descends into a densely-forested river basin.  The waters collected here merge with those from the northern half of the continent to form the tributaries of the Amazon. In the north, the island city of Iquitos is the launching point for multi-day river cr...

LANDED Podcast 009 IBITIPOCA: Rewilding the land through tourism, with Renato Machado and Nadja Hoffman Reserva do Ibitipoca  is located in the interior state of Minas Gerais,  Brazil —about an hour by private charter flight from  Sao Paulo  or  Rio de Janeiro . The project is dedicated to the reforestation and rewilding of 9,800 privately-owned acres of temperate grasslan...

 LANDED Podcast 006 Responsible travel in the Galapagos, with DOLORES GANGOTENA de DIEZ Dolores Gangotena de Diez, along with her husband Eduardo Diez, founded Quasar Expeditions in 1986. Their mission was to show the world why the  Galapagos  was a global treasure, not just another fishing ground and guano mine. Dolores first came to the Galapagos in 1969 as a teenager aboard an Ec...

LANDED Podcast 005 Luxury of Experience — Matias de Cristobal, Director General of Awasi Matias de Cristobal is the Director General of  Awasi .  He’s also a member of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of Relais & Chateaux, and a Board Member of the W Hotel in Santiago, Chile. In a relatively short time, Awasi has developed a reputation for operating some of the fi...

LANDED Podcast 004 Brazilian style with mad genius Bob Shevlin Bob Shevlin is a true character. In person, he’s the definition of cool: “cool doesn’t say much, but it knows what to say.” He’s a creative genius, but he’s humble and a little camera shy. That’s why I’m posting a photo of his bull terrier, Zero. Happily, Bob was willing open up and offer...

  LANDED Podcast 003 Sunniva Sorby Sunniva, or Sunny, is a polar explorer, fundraiser, motivational speaker, and friend. Although she’s disarmingly friendly and self-effacing, Sunny has jaw-dropping resilience and strength. In 1993, as part of a historic four-woman expedition, she skied 67 days across Antarctica, covering more than 700 miles in -60 degree weather. Headwinds topped 50 miles pe...

LANDED Podcast 002 Experiencing Belize and Guatemala with Coppola Family Hideaways Francis Ford Coppola is widely regarded as one of the best directors in the history of cinema; a 2002 Sight & Sound readers’ poll put him at #4, and the critic’s poll listed him at #10. His films have earned more than 20 Oscars and 17 Golden Globes. His body of work includes such classics as the Godf...

LANDED Podcast 001 Petit Miribel Marie Helene (know as “Petit”) Miribel and her husband Franz Schilter are the creators of Sol y Luna , a Relais & Chateaux boutique hotel located in the town of Urubamba, Peru. Petit was born in France. She studied economics, and then came to Peru for her work in the mining industry. There she met Franz, and began exploring the Andes. The Sacred Val...