Travel that Touches Your Soul

What if your next trip left you feeling more energized than when you left home — nourished instead of depleted, present instead of checked out? That's not a fantasy. That's exactly what today's guest designs for travelers all over the world. Kilty is a yoga educator from Kāneʻohe, Hawaiʻi who traded a career in civil and environmental engineering for a life on the mat — and eventually, a life on t...

What happens when you combine one of the fastest-growing sports in the world with a deep commitment to community, connection, and conscious travel? You get something unlike anything you've seen before. Today's guest has taken pickleball far beyond the court — into schools in the Dominican Republic and headed all around the world. Melinda helps heart-centered people and communities design travel ex...

Have you ever seen photos or videos of tiny Italian villages — the laughter, the food, the friendship — and wondered how to find that for yourself? Today's guest did exactly that, and she now lives it every day. Elizabeth Heath moved from Florida to a hilltop village of 200 people in Umbria, Italy, and after 15 years immersed in the culture, she created Villaggio Tours — small-group immersive expe...

The Secret to Happiness: What Finland Taught Us What is the secret to happiness? My guest today went searching for that answer in the United Nations' happiest country in the world — no, not Disneyland, but Finland — and not only found the answer, but also went through her own personal soul-touching moments and transformations in the process. Welcome to Travel That Touches Your Soul podcast and vid...

Cooking classes, markets, vineyards, and the kind of stories you can taste. Are you the kind of traveler who learns a culture through markets, meals, and what locals are sipping at the next table. Then this episode is for you. Karen Cleveland sits down with Susan Reinke, Founder and Director of Global Palate Adventures, to talk about travel that revolves around food, wine, and the people behind it...

Taking a leap of faith after 40, into an unfamiliar world. In this episode of Travel That Touches Your Soul, Karen Cleveland sits down with award-winning travel writer, blogger, and tour operator Mariellen Ward, founder of Breathedreamgo and India for Beginners. Mariellen shares the deeply personal story of leaving her life in Canada after 40 and traveling solo through India for six months with no...

How a physician and coach turned grief and transition into awe-filled adventures that restore perspective, vitality, and connection. In this episode, Karen Cleveland sits down with Stacey Funt, founder of LH Adventure Travel, to explore the transformative power of travel for the mind, body, and soul. Stacey shares the deeply personal story that changed everything. Becoming an empty nester. Losing...

Portugal’s Vicentina Coast. A river crossing. And the kind of mentoring you can only hear when you slow down and walk. Have you ever had a mentor? Or heard about mentorship programs at work? Now imagine mentorship that happens while walking in nature, day after day, in a place powerful enough to quiet your mind and tell you the truth. In this episode, Karen Cleveland sits down with Dana and João,...

Enter the Morocco most travelers never see. Where insider access awakens connection and every moment transforms you from within. In this episode of Travel That Touches Your Soul, we open a doorway into a Morocco guided not by checklists or crowds, but by relationship, trust, and lived experience. Host Karen Cleveland is joined by Siham Lahmine, founder of Morocco Travel Organizer, whose work is ro...

What if just one trip could awaken your soul and change your life forever? It can, it happened to me connecting with wild places and wise beings have a way of waking up parts of us we forgot existed. Imagine standing eye to eye with a wild animal that sees you, or meeting and talking with people that opens up something deep and meaningful inside you. If your soul is craving something deeper, you'r...

A random meeting with a wild giraffe changed the direction of my life forever, and you will hear all about it in this first episode of Travel that Touches Your Soul. In The Doorway Episode: A First Glimpse you’ll hear what makes this podcast and video channel extraordinary, it takes you far beyond sightseeing buses and tourist markets to find the places that touch your soul. You'll be invited to c...