JRNY Podcast

Marcelline Kuonen worked at Switzerland Tourism for 15 years and was the UK & Ireland Director from 2010 to 2015. She has worked all over Europe to share the stories of Switzerland, originally hailing from the Valais region in the south of the country, before moving to Zürich, then Berlin, then London.She returned to her homeland in order to join Valais/Wallis Promotion as Head of Tourism, and since 2020 she has been the Director of Canal9, the local TV channel in Valais. Marcelline paints a picture for us of her career with Switzerland Tourism and beyond, and then shares a little about her own journey, moving from Valais to Zürich to Berlin and then to London, and now back to Valais. She tells host Si Willmore about the cuisine and the culture of the area, and how they are heavily influenced by the confluence of two elements: either French and German traditions, or the modern lifestyle in the towns of the Rhone valley and more traditional ways of life up in the mountains.Marcelline highlights some local experiences that tourists should seek out when they visit Valais and closes by offering some top tips for visitors to the region.In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.

Martin Frankiny is a local guide and destination expert on Zermatt, in the Valais region of southern Switzerland. Working for the NostalChic guide company on the Gornergrat railway, his tours include insider information on local produce and travel experiences around the Gornergrat, including the famous - and miraculous - railway itself. He has extensive hiking experience in the region and has even climbed the Matterhorn, and he regularly shares climbing tips, local history, fun facts and hidden gems.Martin tells host Si WIllmore how he became a NostalChic guide and his former career working on the railway. He also shares information on the NostalChic class and recalls the history of the construction of the Gornergrat railway.Martin shares travel experiences available to visitors to Zermatt and discusses what makes it special - in both winter and summer. He also recounts climbing the magical yet imperious Matterhorn. To close, he offers recommendations to someone who's never visited the Gornergrat.In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.

Johanna Dayer is a Master of Wine candidate and the managing partner at Hedonistica, a company creating food and wine experiences that focuses on the education of production and tasting. Having graduated from the Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne in Switzerland, she became managing partner at Clos de Tsampéhro, a premium organic boutique winery in Switzerland focusing on fine wines from the Valais terroir in southern Switzerland. She then sold her shares to focus on her family estate, build her company Hedonistica and spend more quality time with her family.Johanna shares what attracted her to viticulture as a career and what it's like to study for the Master of Wine certification. She and host Si Willmore discuss wine in Switzerland and the Valais region in particular, including flagship grapes and tastes local to the region and how they are influenced by the geography of the area. Biodiversity is becoming more important in wine in particular but for food production in general so Johanna tells Si how producers in Valais are maximising biodiversity. And she outlines some culinary experiences visitors can enjoy at Hedonistica as well as sharing tips for people visiting the Valais region. To finish, she outlines the next steps for her all-important Master of Wine candidacy.In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.

Bastian Gaerner is a hotelier from Germany with worldwide experience in luxury-brand hotels like Jumeirah, Intercontinental and Kempinski. Working mainly in city and beach destinations during his career, he decided to settle down in the car-free mountain village of Aletsch Arena, at 2000 metres above sea level, in the Valais region of southern Switzerland. He tells host Si Willmore about life on the Aletsch Glacier, longest glacier in the Alps and a UNESCO site, and shares what attracted him to life in the mountains after a career spent solely in huge cities such as Bangkok, Dubai, Baku and Tallinn. He discusses the differences between his life then and his life now, comparing the role of managing a hotel in the car-free Aletsch Arena to doing so in the busy global cities he knows so well.Bastian shares his experiences of life working next to the Matterhorn and the town's involvement in the Grand Tour of Switzerland. And he shares some local secrets and insider tips for things to do in Aletsch Arena, including visiting the only place in Switzerland where you can see the Aletsch Glacier in its entirety - for just 20% of the ticket price of similar destinations. Bastian  also mentions Villa Cassel, initiated in 1902 by British financier Ernest Cassel, and the home of Winston Churchill while he wrote his memoir.In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.

Emilie Mariéthoz is a hiking guide based in Nendaz in the Valais region of southern Switzerland. Her guiding focuses on local heritage such as Hérens cows and the world-famous raclette, the iconic dish of cheese melted under a lamp and served with potatoes and bread.Raised as a cow-herder's daughter, Emilie has an authentic connection to alpine farming life and knows the Nendaz region by heart. She offers unique insights into the traditions of the region combined with a deep understanding of the area’s hiking trails and natural landscapes.Emilie paints a picture of life in Nendaz and shares what makes the region so special in terms of hiking and skiing. She shares some favourite itineraries and hiking routes, and outlines what we might see along the way, including those Hérens cows and the heart-of-the-family meal raclette. She also discusses experiences for visitors beyond outdoor pursuits, for example cultural activities like 'Life at the cowshed' as well as musing on makes Nendaz such a special year-round destination – both in summer and winter.In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.

English ski instructor Pat Gracey has lived in Saas-Fee, in the Valais region of southern Switzerland, for six years. A keen mountaineer, he fell in love with the destination and even bought a flat here. He spends his days in the high alpine terrain participating in activities such as hiking, ice climbing, skiing and snowshoeing.He tells host Si Willmore what life is like in the Saas Valley with its breathtaking glacier landscape and 18 peaks over 4000m high, and shares the numerous activities on offer in summer and winter, such as hiking, biking, climbing, skiing and snowshoeing. They also discuss what's available to visitors beyond outdoorsy activities, including foodie experiences and family-friendly days out such as the Mittelallalin with revolving restaurant and underground railway.Pat compares life in Saas-Fee to life elsewhere in the world: Saas-Fee is completely car-free which adds to the intuitive concept of a remote, clean, alpine environment. And he recommends destinations and restaurants for tourists, particularly people visiting for the first time.In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.

Kathryn and Peter Straughan are the General Managers at Leshiba Wilderness, a private wildlife and ecotourism destination located on top of the Soutpansberg Mountains in the Limpopo region of South Africa. On a day to day basis Peter is in charge of reserve management and Kathryn is in charge of hospitality.Featuring rock paintings that were made by local bushmen up to 2000 years ago, Leshiba affords the opportunity to wander among 380 species of indigenous trees and spot 93 documented mammal species, spread across 2500ha of ancient African Wilderness. There’s the chance to learn about local Venda culture and enjoy stargazing, self improvement workshops and hiking, swimming and cycling.They tell host Si Willmore about the arrival to Leshiba that is a crucial part of the experience as well activities on offer: besides the classic hiking and biking, a huge part of the experience centres around the rock art trail that features Bushman (San) paintings. And, naturally, safari game drives are a big draw so Peter tells us what animals we can we expect to see. Kathryn talks about the accommodation which is set in an old Venda village, as well as her work in transformational tourism and tourism that is not focused solely on a safari experience. Kathryn and Peter share tips and advice for people thinking about visiting Limpopo including the Ribolo Art Route, culture and archaeology, birding, and visiting Mapungubwe and Kruger national parks.In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.

Over a decade ago, Tom Wortley traded the comforts of his UK home for island life in the South Atlantic Ocean. He relocated to one of the world’s remotest islands – St Helena, to start a family with his St Helenian wife.In 2019, Tom opened Rock Mount, a beautifully restored stone cottage offering guest accommodation for tourist and locals. Recently, expanding his venture, Tom launched Rock Mount Walking Tours, where he offers guided hikes of varying difficulty, enabling visitors to explore the island’s natural beauty.Tom tells host Si Willmore about relocating to such a remote island and his first impressions of St Helena. He shares a little about what life is like on St Helena, especially the differences between his experiences growing up in the UK and what he sees nowadays for his own kids -- especially the higher levels of freedom and safety.He discusses his gorgeous off-grid accommodation with 'postbox walks' and recalls how Rock Mount Walking Tours started and shares his favourite hikes to take clients on including Blue Point beginner-level walks in a "geologist's dream land", plus visiting Lot's Wife's Ponds with endemic fish, and the highest point on the walk at 210m above sea level with wonderful views of the Gorilla's Head and Asses Ears rock formations. He shares examples of typical weekends on the island for his family, such as visiting Lemon Valley and diving with whale sharks around ship wrecks made into artificial reefs, and suggests some essential experiences for visitors including 4x4 tours and meeting the famous tortoise Jonathan.In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.

Dickie Ashcroft is the Tanzania, Kenya, Botswana, Uganda & Rwanda Senior Specialist at Audley Travel. Inspired from a young age by the classic stories of the African exploration, after schooling in Shropshire and graduating from university, he packed his bags and headed to the Caprivi Region of northern Namibia to train as a guide.Apprenticing with a safari company operating throughout Namibia and latterly Botswana, he then moved to Tanzania in order to manage a lodge in one of the country's remotest national parks, Katavi. He's one of the first people to successfully kayak the length of Lake Tanganyika, the world's longest lake, completely unsupported -- all in aid of Dolam Children's Home Namibia.Dickie shares some of those early memories of inspirational adventurers and his family's influence, and what it was specifically about Africa that captured his attention. He relives those early days of arriving in Africa for the first time and enormous culture shift between Shropshire and Namibia. He tells host Si Willmore about Caprivi and Katavi national park, including the staggering landscapes and the wildlife we can expect to see if we visited - including "a pile of sleeping crocs" which hibernate in caves. Dickie also recalls kayaking the length of Lake Tanganyika, the world's longest lake, unsupported – including a day where he and his partner were in the boat for the entire day, travelling from sunrise to sunset and not leaving the boat once -- even for a bathroom break! To conclude, Dickie shares some recommended destinations and itineraries in Tanzania, Kenya, Botswana, Uganda and Rwanda including the inimitable gorillas and chimpanzees in and around Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Uganda. In the JRNY Podcast, Si Willmore talks with pioneers, trailblazers and thought leaders, who are pushing the envelope in the travel industry.