Meet the inspiring women leading our tours around the world

Diversity and inclusion have always been at the forefront of everything we do.

In 2019, Intrepid Travel had 2,400 staff and leaders from more than 70 nationalities based in 40+ offices all over the world. We know that our strength comes through our differences and the freedom for everyone to be themselves – locals, leaders, and travellers. Around 65% of Intrepid Group travellers are women, and 60% of global staff are women. In the past, however, most of our female staff worked in our offices and this something we are working to change.

Our plan for gender equality

In 2017, we set a goal to double the number of female leaders globally by 2020. While this may not be a difficult target in many countries, in traditional societies such as India and Morocco recruiting women is a much greater challenge. When we first set our goal in 2017 we only had 150 female leaders around the world, but by June 2019 we were excited to hit our target. We now have more than 300 female tour leaders working for us, which is almost 30% of all leaders. We want to keep getting better when it comes to diversity so with this target achieved we’re now working on a few new gender goals. We have committed to increasing employment opportunities for women in the travel industry. This includes doubling the number of female porters by globally who assist travellers on mountain hikes in Tanzania, Peru and Nepal, by 2022.

We're going to start reporting on the gender pay gap, so we can have more open conversations and put goals in place to address any issues. From 2020, we will have equal gender representation through our company spokespeople to ensure we are better reflecting the diversity of our people in public.

We also know that we can have a huge and positive impact on our supply chain. As we work towards our next B Corp certification, we’ve committed to working with our 200 largest suppliers to reduce gender inequality, share best practice and mentoring by 2022.

Meet our female local leaders

With the support of Intrepid Travel, our local leaders like Nadia, Sana and Pilar hope to inspire and empower other women to follow in their footsteps and chase their dreams. We’re committed to providing a working environment that encourages people of all ages, physical abilities, cultures, races, religions, sexual orientations and genders to have the same opportunities.

Nadia is one of Intrepid's local leaders in India.

‘Travellers on my tours are very positive about my gender, they give me the motivation to work harder. I give travellers lots of cultural experiences. I show them where young people hang out in cafes, where old people hang out in parks. I encourage them to chat with the locals.’ – Nadia, Iran

Sana is one of Intrepid's local leaders in India

‘One thing I love about my job is that I meet so many people. There are so many stories to share. I am still in India but exploring so many things. Of course we go to the famous places, but I also take travellers to the authentic places that don’t have tourists. In Goa we go to specific local shacks run by families. In Mumbai I take food trips and say “just follow me”. If time permits, I take them home to my mum’s house.’ – Sana, India

Pilar is one of Intrepid's local leaders in Mexico.

'I love to tell travellers everything about the local life here, social and political issues as well food. For me, that's the one and only way to understand the country better. That's what a real experience means, right? I'm more than a guide. I am the friend hanging out with them, showing them my culture, my people and my daily life.' – Pilar, Mexico

How we changed travel in India

Our team in India have been particularly proactive in trying to improve the gender balance of their leaders. By specifically advertising for female applicants, creating targeted Instagram and Facebook campaigns, putting up posters in beauticians and cafes, and asking staff to approach female friends, for the first time ever we have achieved a 50/50 gender split of new leaders in India. We now have a passionate group of female leaders who are ready to pave the way towards gender equality in Indian tourism.