This story is courtesy of EF Educational Tours.
Let’s set the scene. Your EF student tour is booked, you’ve been researching your destination, and maybe you’ve even gotten a head start on expertly packing your carry-on. (Color us impressed.) Now you’re ready for the even more fun part of planning: getting your students excited for your upcoming trip!
To help, we’ve scoured the EF offices to gather recommendations for the best travel podcasts for students. Added bonus: they’re also the perfect thing to help make the most of the plane ride. So, share these with your students, and while you’re at it, grab your headphones and cell phones, too—because we have a feeling you’ll also end up wanting to download these shows.
If you’ve ever wanted to listen to a podcast hosted by the most interesting woman in the world (according to Outside Magazine), you’re in luck. Kellee Edwards is an award-winning travel expert, journalist, and TV host who’s visited over 50 countries—so far. She’s also a Black woman who’s passionate about highlighting the unique travel experiences of people from all different backgrounds. Case(s) in point: Episodes of this Travel + Leisure show feature a former surfer who climbed Machu Picchu in a wheelchair, the first Black woman to travel to every country on Earth, a deaf traveler who loves exploring the world solo, and so many others. The show is all about inspiring people to explore the world, and we think that after listening to an episode (or twelve—there are a lot of good ones!) you’ll be more than ready to hit the road.
Recommended by:
Karen L., Senior Project Manager
Inspirational Itinerant
The title basically says it all. If you haven’t heard of Atlas Obscura, it’s an online magazine and travel company that’s, well, an atlas of obscure travel stories. Podcast episodes transport you everywhere from Iceland to join a puffin patrol to the Library of Congress’ Hair Collection (yes, you read that right) in Washington, D.C. Along the way, you learn about the people behind the stories—like the kids who grew up saving puffins who’ve wandered away from their nests. It’s fun, it’s informative, it’s often weird. And, each episode is 15 minutes or less. A guide to undiscovered gems all around the globe you can listen to in the amount of time it takes you to walk to the coffee shop and back? We’re playing it next in our queue.
Recommended by:
Aaron O.R., Senior Market Development Manager
Random Roamer
03. The Abroad Pod
Turns out one of our own has a podcast! Nicole R. is the Content and Social Media Manager for EF Gap Year, but she’s also an independent content creator in the travel space. Her passion for travel began on—where else?—an EF tour to Italy, which inspired her to eventually study abroad in Florence. Most episodes have two segments: a travel tip and a destination segment. We found one about packing tips to be especially helpful, and we also loved her interview with Lexie Alford, known as Lexie Limitless, who at 21 became the youngest person to travel to every country. While Nicole’s website and podcast are geared towards travelers in their 20s, often ones who are studying abroad, we still think it’s interesting and useful for younger students. Who knows? It might even inspire students to start thinking about a future study abroad experience of their own.
Recommended by:
Ashley H., Human Resources Coordinator
Trendsetting Traveler
04. Exploring the National Parks
Meet Ash. She’s a former park ranger who started Dirt in my Shoes, which helps you plan epic national park trips, with her partner John. Their show Exploring the National Parks is definitely one of the best travel podcasts for students—it’s an insider’s guide, taking you to Zion National Park, the Grand Canyon, and more. Episodes are full of fun facts, cool things to see, and tips and tricks. (For instance, did you know that the youngest rocks at the Grand Canyon are 270 million years old? And that there’s an endangered plant called the sentry milk-vetch that can only be found at Grand Canyon National Park?). What we may like the most, though, is their insight about being at the Grand Canyon. People might look different than you; they might think differently than you. But when you’re standing at this natural marvel in wonder, you’re all connected. That feeling is part of why we love travel so much—it has the power to bring all of us together.
Recommended by:
Jack F., Front Desk Coordinator
National Park Pilgrim
05. Radiolab
At first listen, Radiolab might not scream travel podcast. But that’s kind of our point. The show’s hosts are “on a curiosity bender” and “ask deep questions and use investigative journalism to get the answers.” The perfect example? “The Humpback and the Killer” episode. It explores this phenomenon of humpback whales saving seals from killer whales. They discuss theories—selfishness, altruism, revenge—but when they hear about incidents of humpbacks passing a dead seal amongst themselves, they don’t know what to make of it. Sure, it looks like what humans would call grief, but that’s our lens, and there’s no way to know for sure. The hosts realize that “maybe this thing we thought we knew, we actually don’t know” and “that’s when the universe gets big again.” These curiosity-sparking conversations sound a whole lot like the kind of perspective-shifting moments travel brings.
Recommended by:
Roxy B., Associate Director of Email Marketing
The Maestro of Musing
06. Stories from Flying the Nest
Back in 2015, Stephen and Jess decided to shake up their lives. They became full-time travelers and never looked back. The Australian couple has traveled to over 80 countries, and they document their adventures on YouTube, which you can also listen to in podcast form. The episode “Our Top 10 Travel Experiences in the World” is the perfect recipe for wanderlust. From swimming in the Nile to living with monks in South Korea to a 14-day trek through Alaska, you’ll love going along for the ride.
Recommended by:
Veronica C., Employee Experience Specialist
Vicarious Vlogger and Vacationer
07. Out of Office: A Travel Podcast
If impromptu singing, witty banter, a quest to get famous travel writer Rick Steves as a guest, and quirky museums sound like the perfect combination for a podcast episode, have we got a recommendation for you! In “Obscure Museums of London, Part 1,” Ryan Davis and Kiernan Schmitt take you off the beaten path and into London’s lesser-known museums, like the Wimbledon Windmill Museum, a museum dedicated to—you guessed it—windmills, and Sir John Soane’s Museum, the former home of the English architect and his collection of all kinds of objects (including the sarcophagus of the pharaoh Seti I!). And of course, there are more episodes you’ll want to check out: “Gaudí’s Barcelona (Return Trip),” “Southern Peru,” and “Glacier National Park,” are just a few that come to mind.
Recommended by:
Alex C., Production Coordinator
Explorer of All Things Enigmatic
