Travel Tales from the #nerdbirds

For the last episode of Travel Bingo, Rachel settles on the word "suitcase." Kai & Sebastian share stories of how to choose the right baggage for your needs and how NOT to lose it along the way.

This week's January Travel Bingo word is "kids," which sent almost all #nerdbirds running away screaming except for Brendan and Charlie. Rachel and Brendan reminisce about 1980s gum (and soda) flavors, and Charlie finds new ways to mess with his travel karma when flying with family.

For this week's Travel Bingo, #nerdbirds Rachel, Sebastian & Kai chat about... coffee! And also about drinks to get at a coffee house/cafe when traveling if coffee really isn't your thing, along with some serious time warp advice on finding cool coffee spots in Hawaii.

Season 7 starts with an offshoot from Travel Bites: Travel Bingo! #nerdbirds Rachel & Kai take one word and offer a tale and a tip. This week they talk about ATMs & money - how to get it when you're travelling and how to pay for things in this increasingly cashless society!

#nerdbirds Rachel & Kai finish off Season 6 with a Travel Bites episode of the interesting story of Thor Pedersen, a Dane who is attempting to visit every country in the world without flying.

#nerdbirds Rachel & Kai provide a travel bites tip for the holidays (and really all year round!). Those near-ubiquitous QR codes have helped to create a touchless environment when eating out, searching for information or getting you on a plane, train or bus. On rare occasion though, a QR code may point you towards something malicious. Listen in for a tip or two on keeping your information safe!

#nerdbirds Rachel & Kai talk about an article from Vivienne Dovi, founder of Melanin Travel - outlining bias and privilege in travel, and how stereotypes unfairly paint countries or entire continents in negative lights, when in reality they're perfectly fine places to visit. Pro tip: Apply your critical thinking skills to whatever you hear about a certain destination.

#nerdbirds Kai & Rachel delve into the science-based aspects of travel and how the act of travel improves our moods, creates joy and gets us of our comfort zone.

After digesting Thanksgiving, your first thoughts probably aren't about airport announcements, but #nerdbirds Rachel & Kai chat about the slow reduction of airport-wide announcements and how technological improvements have made audio announcements less necessary - and the concept is spreading to airports around the world.

#nerdbirds Rachel & Kai chat about how to take care of yourself when travelling - planning for any and all eventualities, espousing BYO... whatever in case Plan A isn't available.

Any rules for when to purchase travel have gone out the window since 2020. #nerdbirds Kai and Rachel try to answer the #1 question asked by their non-travel-obsessed friends, using stories of their own attempts to book international travel in recent weeks.

#nerdbirds Rachel & Kai riff on selected ways to travel responsibly from an article - and also reminding viewers Ameri-centric views don't apply everywhere, so do your research!

#nerdbirds Kai & Rachel chat about the future of hotels and how they've been affected by the pandemic, and what the path forward will be for hotels, such as work from hotel packages or the unbundling (or accelerated unbundling) of items previously included as part of hotel prices.

Co-hosts Kai and Rachel chat about the changing nature of airport lounges and trying to stay healthy during long-haul travel.

It only took 18 months from our first episode for #nerdbird Mark to finally appear for his intro with our now-vintage lightning round questions! Unlike the founding #nerdbirds, Mark was not on the Virgin America final flight in 2018 and brings different perspectives on aviation, including his time at Boeing and decades-long loyalty to Delta (not to mention the decade of roadtrips with co-host Rach...

#nerdbirds Rachel & Kai bring you another Travel Bites episode, opining on an opinion article about overgrowth and overtourism. While the opinion piece covers the Vancouver, BC metro area and especially the Sea to Sky Highway between Vancouver, BC and Whistler, BC - Rachel & Kai talk about other places they've experienced overtourism/overgrowth and the best ways to mitigate it on a personal level.

#nerdbirds Rachel & Kai riff on where queer travel has come from and where it's going, and how it's helped other marginalized groups improve their own travel experiences, too.

#nerdbirds co-hosts Rachel and Kai taking a bite-sized look this week at an article about how major European cities like Amsterdam, Prague & Barcelona are looking to restrain, curate, and generally enhance positive tourism (read: rowdy tourists, hen/stag parties, etc.)

For Season 6, #nerdbirds co-hosts Rachel and Kai are playing with a new format -- a maximum 5-minute chat about one "thing." This week looks at an article about the origins of wheels on luggage and the surprising role gender had in its slow adoption. Read the in-depth article here: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/jun/24/mystery-of-wheelie-suitcase-how-gender-stereotypes-held-back-his...

#nerdbirds Sebastian and Rachel say goodbye to Season 5 by pondering the 20th Anniversary of 9/11, from where they were on that day to what's happened with travel since -- including changed packing habits and navigating the new world of Security Theater. They also chat about the tribute musical "Come From Away" and Rachel's unplanned stop in Gander, Newfoundland, which then spurred stories of medi...

It's Labor Day weekend in the US -- picnics and BBQs galore -- and #nerdbirds Brendan and Rachel reminisce with travel stories of all things drinkable: whiskey tasting in Tennessee and Japan, Guinness in Ireland, unique wineries in Central and Northern California, a surreal submarine bus tour in LA, Italian drinking culture, and nonalcoholic cocktails in the airport lounge.

#nerdbirds Rachel & Kai talk about travelling with animals, travelling to see animals, and the experiences we have with animals during our travels. Goats in Mongolian buses, dog guides in Ireland and long-haul parrots in New Zealand!

#nerdbirds David and Rachel talk about life in New England in the fall -- from where to see different types of fall colors to other activities in Vermont, with a sprinkling of New Hampshire, upstate New York, and Maine. David shares stories from growing up in southern Vermont, and Rachel shares a trip to find fall colors that includes a train from New York and driving from Vermont to Maine.

425. 452. 457. 470. 498. 500. For a group that loves flying, the thought of going that many days nowhere near a plane seems unthinkable. Find out what #nerdbirds Tom, Brendan, and Rachel did and how they felt while literally being grounded during the first part of COVID-19.

At the end of the last episode, #nerdbird Rachel wondered how she and Kai could make their seemingly innate travel skills accessible to others, especially in the smartphone/COVID era where human interaction is not practiced or encouraged. They come up with the idea of cultivating your creative travel muscle in the gym of the world -- whether your neighborhood or further afield. In Level 1 training...