A good friend of mine was visiting Singapore recently and by chance,
I happened to be back home too.

A few years ago, she lived here for 2 months for work. But this time, when I brought
her around the Singapore I grew up with, old neighbourhoods, hidden spots, little
local rituals, she kept pointing out how different it felt from the version of
Singapore she thought she knew.

It got me thinking about how easy it is to spend time in a place and still only
experience one version of it. It’s a good reminder to myself that wherever I travel
next, I absolutely need a local to show me their version of the place.

If you want to experience Singapore in a more authentic way, or at least
the Singapore I grew up with, check out our Singapore Mini-Guide 🇸🇬

xoxo,
Gabby & The TRAppe. Team

Inspired by the island, this playlist by Otentic Eco Tent in Mauritius captures the feeling of slowing down and embracing the simple side of island life. Expect laid back rhythms, feel good tracks and the kind of music that makes you want to stay awhile.

🎧 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.

🌻 Like a local: USE-IT shares free European city guides created by young locals, offering their best tips to help you experience their cities more authentically.

🐌 Slow food: Explore how food, local communities and slower travel can rebuild deeper connections between people and place in Slovenia.

🛎️ Check-in: Here’s a debunk of why hotels sometimes seem cheaper on booking platforms and what’s actually happening behind those prices.

💼 For job seekers: One of our favourite NGOs, Planeterra, is looking for a fully remote (Europe, North Africa, East/Southeast Asia based) Partnerships Coordinator to support communication, coordination, and relationship management.

📍Tuscany, Italy
Website | Google Map

Set in the small village of Piloni, home to just 50 people, in southern Tuscany, this family run agriturismo is surrounded by forests, rolling countryside and a slower pace of rural Italian life.

The farmhouse dates back to the 19th century and today welcomes guests into a stay centred around home cooking, nature and a strong connection to the land around it.

What makes staying here special is how closely daily life revolves around the farm itself. Olive oil, honey, vegetables and seasonal ingredients come directly from the surrounding land, while homemade meals reflect the traditions of the region rather than a curated version of Tuscany made for visitors.

Days here are intentionally simple. Long breakfasts outdoors, walks through the countryside, evenings spent around the table and the kind of quiet many travellers do not realise they have been needing.

From producing food directly on the farm to maintaining a slower and lower impact way of hosting guests, Casa del Chiodo reflects a version of Tuscany that still feels deeply tied to its landscape and community.

At the centre of it all is Paola, who realised her dream of creating a family farm, guided by her love of the countryside and a desire to build a life more connected to nature, food and community.

Today, the space is run across generations and is very much a family affair. Irene brings new ideas and energy to the house, Giulia welcomes guests and prepares homemade cakes, while Marisa, Renato, Paolo and Marco each play their part in keeping everything running. It is a place built on people, where daily life, food and hospitality are all closely connected.

Explore the other businesses we feature in Tuscany, each offering a more authentic way to experience the region.

In this week’s What’s Hot & What’s Not, meet Silva, our very own social media intern!

Born on an island built for tourists, trying to find the antidote. That search eventually led Silva to TRAppe., where she works as our social media intern spotlighting operators doing things differently.

Now based in the Netherlands, she is drawn to local food spots, creative communities and the kind of travel that gives something back. Art, music, sculpture, and a well cooked meal, that’s her language.

🔥 What’s Hot

meeting strangers in unremarkable places, sitting with a culture long enough to actually feel it, getting deliberately lost, feeling the sunset's warmth after a full day of wandering, effort and intention over itineraries, saying yes to plans and having a blast, visiting new markets, a cameral roll full of cats you meet on trips.

❄️ What’s Not

treating IG/TT as a travel planner, not researching (at least a bit) the history behind where you stand, thinking everyone speaks your language, people that cross with their phones without looking, skipping lines at the airport gate (we're all going to the same place!), food poisoning, "but everybody is going", racism biasing travel decisions, treating locals as props for your content, visiting museums just to take pictures.

🤫 Hidden Spot

Madame Marie
📍Leiden, The Netherlands

A tiny café inside someone’s home, where the owner bakes apple pies all day using apples from her own orchard. Her friends, her daughter, neighbours passing through, it feels less like a café and more like a small window into what it looks like when someone cooks something they genuinely love.

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.