A few weeks ago, we asked if you’d be up for the occasional opinion piece in this newsletter, reflections, observations and a few hot takes on travel.

Since many of you enjoyed the last one about
Why I think Finland is about to be what’s up in travel…

Here’s another one today on navigating local cultures as a traveller 👇🏻

xoxo,
Gabby & The TRAppe. Team

In this episode of Womenpreneur Asia podcast, follow Audrey, Co founder and Editor in Chief of Eastside, as she shares how she is building a different kind of travel media platform, one shaped by Asian voices for Asian audiences and what it takes to balance creative risk with discipline in a space that often rewards sameness.

🎧 Share your go-to travel playlist or podcast with us. Whether it's road trip anthems or deep-dive travel stories, we want to hear and feature what fuels your adventures.

A few weeks ago I came across a LinkedIn post about an Indigenous community refusing to offer vegetarian options to guests, because it simply wasn't part of their culture.

Honestly, I get the argument on both sides.

We all travel with our own values, diets, beliefs. For some people, those aren't preferences, they're non-negotiables.

But on the other hand, coming from a Chinese background where culture and tradition run deep, I also feel strongly about preserving what’s authentic. Not adjusting it, not softening it, not reshaping it to fit someone else’s expectations.

Because once you start doing that… where does it stop?

I think about places like Bali. Streets lined with cafés serving the same smoothie bowls, the same menus, the same aesthetic and barely a local Balinese restaurant in sight. You could be anywhere in the world. At some point, you have to ask, how is this connected to Bali at all? And if it’s not, then what are people really coming here for?

If I had to answer the question, I don’t think culture should be reshaped to fit travellers. If anything, we should be the ones adapting when we choose to step into someone else’s world.

I think part of the complexity comes from the fact that we all travel for different reasons.

For me, I travel because I’m curious. I want to understand how people live, experience different traditions and see how culture shows up in everyday life.

But I also know that’s not everyone.

Some people travel for rest. For beautiful views. For a break from reality. And there’s nothing wrong with that either.

And if you do have specific needs or preferences, whether it’s dietary choices, values, or the kind of experience you’re looking for, there are travel planners designing experiences that align with those choices while still keeping them meaningful and authentic.

So if that’s how you want to travel, it’s worth seeking out the right experiences from the start, rather than expecting every place to adapt.

And maybe that’s where the tension lies.

Because when you travel for comfort, you look for familiarity. But when you travel for understanding, you’re more willing to meet a place on its own terms, even when it's uncomfortable.

I’ve been in that position myself.

A few years ago, I visited one of the last remaining whale hunting villages in the world, on the island of Lembata, part of Flores, Indonesia. I went in knowing exactly what I was getting myself into. And to be clear, I am completely against whale hunting.

Even now, I still don’t fully know how I feel about the experience. I am conflicted as to whether it was the right decision to have visited but it definitely opened up my mind about how different survival can look in parts of the world we don’t fully understand.

But while I was there, I was 100% respectful. Because that experience wasn’t about agreeing. It was about understanding.

What most people don’t realise is how isolated that village is. There are no real forms of employment, no conventional way of earning money. Whale meat isn’t just tradition, it becomes a form of currency for survival, traded for vegetables, for rice, for things they don’t have access to.

And to some extent, I could appreciate the primal nature of it all. There was something beautiful about it, a way of living that felt completely removed from the systems we’re so used to.

I also found myself asking… who am I to judge a way of life that has existed for generations, from a completely different context to my own?

I think travel, at its best, is meant to stretch us a little. To challenge what we think we know. To sit in that discomfort instead of trying to reshape it into something more familiar.

That discomfort, sitting with something I don't agree with and trying to understand it anyway, is, one of the most valuable things travel has given me.

At TRAppe., that’s the kind of travel we curate, experiences that are kind to the planet and good to its people but also ones that reflect the real culture and traditions of a place. Not the adapted version. Not the one designed to please everyone.

From there, it’s up to you to decide what you want to be part of.

Just like everything else in the world, not everything is for everyone.

We all travel differently, want different things, believe in different values. And that’s completely okay, I think that’s also what makes the world beautiful.

Not everything needs to be adapted to fit us. We choose what we want to be part of and leave the rest.

What matters, at least for me, is staying open minded. Trying to understand before judging, especially when it comes to cultures and ways of life that are different from our own.

So the next time you are travelling and something feels uncomfortable or unfamiliar, especially when it reflects a local way of doing things, it is worth asking whether it is something to change or something to understand.

Thanks for hearing me out, folks. Hope my little hot take lived up to your expectations. Till the next time I have an opinion.

xoxo,
Gabby

SeedFuture is building real pathways for regenerative food systems, starting with their first initiative centred on sustainable coffee.

This July, they’re opening up a small, curated 5 day journey into Bali’s coffee landscapes. Expect a mix of ecological coffee systems, landscape stewardship, cultural context and the people holding it all together.

📍 Bali, Indonesia
📅 22 to 26 July 2026

Learn more and express your interest here

In this week’s What’s Hot & What’s Not, meet Isabel, the Founder of Village Adventures, a travel platform for rural and community based tourism.

Originally from Germany, Isabel is a passionate traveller and adventurer. Through stays, day trips, multi day experiences, events and workshops, she opens up ways for travellers to spend time with locals beyond the usual routes through experiences on Village Adventures.

Her mission is simple, moving away from mass tourism and towards more genuine, human connections.

🔥 What’s Hot

Traveling during low seasons, community-based tourism, rural areas of an destination, exploring one region/destination for a longer time/slow travel, hiking, adventure tourism, staying in homestays (live, cook, experience every day life with locals, sharing stories), cultural tourism, India as an underrated travel destination, unexplored islands, farm stays, participate in local ceremonies and festivals, volunteering projects, supporting local businesses & restaurants.

❄️ What’s Not

Mass tourism & overcrowded places, typical instagram selfie hotspots, Take photos first, before enjoying the place, inauthentic experiences, Cruises & all-inclusive resorts, not treating the environment, people and animals with respect, only ticking off sights.

Want to get featured too? Drop your details here.

Hook your friends up with Help! I’m TRAppe-d and score a free copy of our Bali e-guide! Just refer 10 people, and the guide is yours ✌🏻

Psst… want to see what all the hype’s about? Flip through the Bali e-guide preview, to get a little taste of what’s inside: 100+ curated stays, eats, and experiences that are kind to the planet and good to its people ✌🏻

Or refer just 1 buddy and gain access to our weekly updated TRAppe Travel Cheat Sheet.