Travel with purpose in 2027 by letting these new trips and experiences introduce you to inspiring local champions, trailblazing social enterprises and celebrated community projects.
Behind the scenes of every adventure, you can find incredible communities, organisations and businesses already busy at work, doing amazing things. But often, we don’t get to see them. Happily, it’s these kinds of experiences that Intrepid loves to spotlight – with a raft of new trips and experiences for 2027 offering up fresh ways to not only see a place, but to do something meaningful, too. So, why not help carve a path out of domestic violence by trying an Indonesian craft, walk through a rainforest in Cambodia to learn from local conservationists or break bread with women in Turkey to support employment opportunities? All while making your adventure go further next year.
1. Engage with women-led Sri Lankan crafts
The Sri Lanka Women’s Expedition centres local women as group leaders, hosts and storytellers on this new-for-2027 adventure. On one stop, you’ll meet a group of women adept at palmyra weaving, one of Sri Lanka’s oldest living crafts, where handmade goods like baskets are woven with dried leaves from a native palm. These skilled workers didn’t have access to opportunities when they were younger, but now they’re opening doors for themselves. Other trip highlights include plenty of homecooked meals, taking part in a henna ceremony and exploring the Pekoe Trail.
2. Protect elephants in Cambodia
The new Cambodia Family Holiday with Teenagers is packed with opportunities to make life-long memories, from seeing Irrawaddy dolphins along the Mekong to spending the day hiking in Cambodia’s largest elephant sanctuary while learning about Indigenous Bunong culture. You’ll observe former working elephants being rehabilitated in a 1500-hectare forest and learn about their welfare as you see them going about their day. Afterwards, you’ll sit down for a local lunch, made by Bunong cooks. Depending on the time of year, you and your kids may also help with reforestation or small building projects.
Read more: 27 new Intrepid trips to fill your calendar with in 2027
3. Help tackle domestic abuse in Indonesia
Intrepid’s new Sumba Island Discovery trip in Indonesia takes you places where you can swim in lagoons and soak up island life in coastal villages. In Letehakapuna village, you’ll visit Karaja Sumba – a social enterprise giving women the chance to escape domestic abuse by gaining financial independence. The women here preserve ikat weaving, a traditional craft that involves hand-dyeing and hand-weaving thread before it’s woven into cloth. You can join a workshop, learning the basics of this centuries-old technique, all while supporting a very important cause.
4. Safeguard life-supporting bees in Kenya
The Kenya Safari Adventure is where you’ll spot the ‘Samburu Special Five’ – the reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra, Somali ostrich, oryx beisa and gerenuk – alongside ‘regular’ Big Five animals like lions, leopard and rhino. But this new experience brings you face to face with one of nature’s mightiest and most important creatures: bees. Women-led Yatta Beekeepers is all about sustainable practices and training women and young people as future beekeepers. After a guided tour learning all about how honey is produced, you’ll head to the apiaries to visit the bees and sample some of their liquid gold.
Read more: Offbeat trips to help you discover new destinations next year
5. Knot a carpet the traditional way in Armenia
This new heritage experience on the Classic Azerbaijan, Georgia & Armenia trip takes you to an ethnographic house that’s been set up by a local non-profit which is dedicated to preserving Armenian traditions and safeguarding them for the future. You’ll join a rug-weaving workshop where you can learn how to knot a carpet on a large loom and see firsthand the craftsmanship behind Armenia’s renowned designs. The revenue generated from this experience supports artisan livelihoods and, while there, you’ll also get a peek into baking traditions passed down for generations.
6. See the Grand Canyon with a conservationist
A new trail on the Southwest USA Canyons & Cultures trip gives you the chance to join an instructor from Grand Canyon Conservancy‘s Field Institute for a walking tour along the South Rim. Your guide will share stories about the canyon’s history, its geology, fossils and wildlife – and the Indigenous communities who have long called the canyon home. Mind expanded, body restored, the rest of the day is yours to rent a bike, join one of the park’s ranger-led programs or secure a suitable sunset spot.
Read more: The Not Hot List is here to inspire lesser-travelled adventures
7. Break bread with local women in Turkey
A new stop on the Classic Turkey trip brings you to a women-run cooperative restaurant in Demirciler village. You’ll learn about how they renovated a village school into a restaurant that now serves traditional, local food – all while creating employment for women in the area. You’ll also watch how they prepare gozleme (a traditional flatbread, stuffed with spinach and feta or meat) and then enjoy a meal together.
8. Restore native plants in New Zealand
A new experience on the Premium New Zealand South Island trip gives you a chance to take part in some hands-on restoration with the Okarito Plant Project. This community-led initiative is focused on regenerating native forests and protecting the unique ecosystems in this wild western stretch of coast. For a few hours, you’ll be right in the thick of it, helping the effort along. The rest of the time, you’ll be exploring glaciers and fjords – and sampling local wine.
9. Conserve a Costa Rican rainforest
The Costa Rica Family Holiday has a new experience that will wow the whole crew. In Monteverde, you’ll visit the Children’s Eternal Rain Forest for a guided walk – which gets its name because school children from around the world helped raise money to protect this land back in the 1980s. It’s now one of Costa Rica’s largest private reserves. You’ll follow a seasoned naturalist along misty trails below gigantic vine-draped trees, keeping your eyes peeled for wildlife like sloths and howler monkeys. Younger family members will have a great time on the forest treasure hunt as they look for different species and actively learn about conservation and biodiversity.
Launch a year of adventure with Intrepid’s new trips for 2027 and beyond.
