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Jennifer Kingsley

Reason I travel frequently: I work as a guide for National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions on small ships around the world. I also write about places far from my home.

Number of countries visited: No idea.

One thing I always pack: Headlamp. Whether I’m stumbling for the bathroom at night, trying not to wake a shipmate, or reading (so many places don’t have reading lights), I’m always happy to have this small item. Also, my own hair conditioner.

One way I prepare for a trip: Lists. As in four pages of bullet points specific to each destination where I work. I also make sure to see family as close to departure as I can manage. I’m often away for one or two months.

Aisle seat or window? Aisle.

A hidden gem I’d recommend: Polynesia, the largest nation on earth. Take your pick from anywhere within the Polynesian triangle which stretches from Hawai’i to Aotearoa/New Zealand, to Rapa Nui/Easter Island.

Top travel planning tip: Do it your way. Some people love to have all the details, some like to pre-read, some like it all to be a surprise. There is nothing wrong with any of these, so don’t judge yourself (or your travel buddies).

Favourite travel splurge: Earrings.

Tip for budget travel: Get a job where you get paid to travel?

Overcoming jet lag hack: Because I cannot sleep on planes and I regularly travel to places with 24- to 36-hour transit times, I’m often so exhausted when I arrive that I don’t seem to get much jet lag. That said, I would not recommend this approach. Sleep when you can.

Most used app when travelling:

Memorable wildlife experience: I was scuba diving (not my speciality) in French Polynesia, and we were at a depth of 32 metres in a lot of current. We were holding on to the bottom to maintain our position, and I was starting to feel afraid. I closed my eyes to breathe and calm myself down. When I finally looked around, an enormous manta ray was swimming in front of us, from right to left, leaving a sense of grace and calm in its wake.

A challenging travel experience I’d rather forget: Helping to administer Covid tests in rough seas in the Drake Passage between South America and Antarctica. Nothing has made me feel more seasick than those nose swabs and their little test tubes. 

Parting thoughts: Travel, like so many things, can be both destructive and constructive. It’s fun and rewarding to be on the constructive side whenever possible, but travel always has an impact.

Where to find me: ,

John Lee

Number of countries visited: Approximately 25.

One thing I always pack: Teabags.

One way I prepare for a trip: I make sure our cat, Max, is not sleeping under the clothes in my suitcase.

Aisle seat or window? Window, preferably in a two-seat row.

A hidden gem I’d recommend: I’m a big fan of London’s esoteric smaller museums, including the Museum of the Home, London Canal Museum, Emery Walker’s House, Freud Museum and the Musical Museum.

Top travel planning tip: Before you arrive, book the best-reviewed walking tour you can find.

Favourite travel splurge: Good theatre tickets.

Tip for budget travel: Visit the nearest supermarket to your hotel and stock up on a few items so you won't have to eat out for every meal and snack stop. A room with a fridge is especially useful.

Overcoming jet lag hack: Don’t go to sleep when you arrive—try to stay awake until the local bedtime hour. And don’t drink on the plane; it makes the time adjustment even harder.

Memorable wildlife experience: Finding a friendly and inquisitive wallaby on my cabin’s deck in Tasmania.

Memorable culinary experience: A warm bag of buttery boiled potatoes bought from a train station vendor in Russia’s Lake Baikal region, while travelling for six nights on the Trans-Siberian Railway. 

A challenging travel experience I’d rather forget: Covering several English seaside towns for a Lonely Planet guidebook during a week of relentless, monsoon-like rain. And it was off-season, so almost everything was closed. I didn’t plan that trip very well!

A moment I’ll remember forever: I was caught in a snowstorm while crossing a footbridge over a frozen river in Iceland. I stopped, gripped the rails and gazed at the thick flakes swirling around me. It was so quiet, I felt like I was the only person on the planet.

Where to find me: and, after abandoning Twitter, now on

Lucas Aykroyd

Reason I travel frequently: I write about travel for outlets like National Geographic and the Toronto Star and cover the Olympics and world hockey championships for IIHF.com.

Number of countries visited: About 50

One thing I always pack: Resistance bands. Sometimes you only have 15 minutes to squeeze in your workout. I’ve used them in hotel rooms from Paris to Pyeongchang.

One way I prepare for a trip: I like re-reading books that originally stoked my interest in the destination. For Berlin, that could be Fatherland, Robert Harris’s alternative-history thriller. Or for Peru, Prisoners of the Sun, Herge’s classic Tintin comic album.

Aisle seat or window? When you’re 6-foot-3, it’s aisle seat or bust.

A hidden gem I’d recommend: Easter Island—not just for the statues, but also for its incredible network of caves and its wild horses.

Tip for budget travel: If you’re self-disciplined enough to combine lunch and dinner, there’s a large country that shall remain nameless (known for its large portions) where you can survive on happy hours.

Overcoming jet lag hack: Stay on your feet and keep moving. Last year, days after flying back from Switzerland, I went to New York and walked more than 6 km from the Grolier Club in Manhattan to the Great NY Noodletown in Chinatown.                                                            

Memorable wildlife experience: The gorillas got hands-on during my press trip in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. A mother gorilla suddenly put down her baby and placed her hand on the knee of the photographer next to me. Minutes later, a scar-faced blackback stood up, mock-slapped a fellow writer’s lap, and marched off.

Memorable culinary experience: Drinking kumiss (fermented horse milk) I bought at a supermarket in Ufa, Russia.

A challenging travel experience I’d rather forget: Choosing the seafood paella at an all-inclusive Mexican resort.

A moment I’ll remember forever: Gazing at the giant Abu Simbel statues in Egypt and flashing back to the LEGO model I saw as a child at the original LEGOLAND in Denmark.

Parting thoughts: Women’s sports—soccer, hockey, basketball—will become a big driver of sports tourism over the next 10 years.

Where to find me: ,

Nik West

Reason I travel frequently: I love wandering around new places and meeting people with different cultures.

Number of countries visited: 18

One thing I always pack: Camera

One way I prepare for a trip: Research locations I want to photograph.

Aisle seat or window? Aisle.

A hidden gem I’d recommend: For a quick bite… a , 159 Brick Laine, London. So Good!

Top travel planning tip: Always have a copy of important documents (driver’s licence, passport, medical insurance) in Google Drive on my phone.

Favourite travel splurge: Making sure I have the right gear… might be a good pair of walking shoes.

Tip for budget travel: Pack light.

Overcoming jet lag hack: Get out and walk. Don’t nap.

Most used app when travelling: Google Maps

Memorable wildlife experience: Photographing in the water off the east coast of Australia and a dolphin shooting right past me. I thought it was going to hit me.

Memorable culinary experience: Eating iguana in Panama.

Where to find me:

This article appears in the UVic Torch alumni magazine.

For more Torch stories, go to the UVic Torch alumni magazine page.