Unpacked by Afar | Travel Smarter, Mo...
Unpacked by Afar is your weekly guide to where to go, how to travel, and everything worth unpacking in between. Each week, host Aislyn Greene and the Afar team travel the world and dig into the big questions behind every great trip, from the best new hotels and national parks to traveling more responsibly. Some weeks we follow a story through music, food, and culture. Others we tackle a tricky topic, share our favorite destinations, or help you plan where to go next. Because the travel world is complicated. We're here to help you unpack it.
1
Feel-Good Friday: A Joyful Comedy Tour, Short F...
Good travel news to start your weekend — season two is here.
12 min
2
How a Jazz Cellar on Mathew Street Became the H...
From a 1957 jazz cellar to the Beatles and Eric’s: Liverpool’s music history, plus where to hear live music in the city today.
23 min
3
How Cornwall’s Surf Culture Turned Into a Conse...
Writer Bonnie Tsui shares travel stories and travel tips from England’s southwest coast, plus how to surf responsibly in a new place.
19 min
4
Everyone Knows Sigur Rós and Björk. Here’s the ...
Iceland Airwaves director Ísi Þórhallsson on Icelandic music, the Reykjavík festival scene, and how to experience it.
14 min
5
“This Is Your Invitation”: A Guide to Indigenou...
Tlingit writer Kate Nelson on ethical travel, Native-owned outfitters, and the cultural travel experiences worth seeking out in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
32 min
6
Dubai Culture Beyond the Malls, From Heritage C...
A henna artist and a cinema founder bust the myth that Dubai has no culture, with tips on how to explore heritage crafts, independent film, and the neighborhoods where the city’s creative community lives.
39 min
7
Dubai Food Tips From the Chefs Who Know It Best
Where to eat in Dubai, from spice-route chocolate to a Michelin-starred bistro, and how the city’s food and travel scene found its own flavor.
30 min
8
A Marine Biologist, a Kuku Yalanji Guide, and t...
A cultural travel guide to the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest, from the people who guide them.
28 min
9
Dubai Hospitality and the Making of a World-Cla...
A Dubai travel guide to desert resorts, hotel standards, and the old welcome code that still shapes how the city treats guests.
26 min
10
Dubai Travel Tips From a Longtime Resident and ...
A Dubai travel guide from a longtime resident and the Emirati chef who grew up there.
29 min
11
The Australia Spa Road Trip That Won Over a Wel...
Geothermal pools, mineral springs, and a 250-mile road trip through Victoria's historic bathing towns.
26 min
12
How to See Thailand’s Wonders Without Feeling L...
Freelance travel writer Kathryn Romeyn shares where to go beyond Bangkok and Phuket — from Nan Province road trips to secret islands and local guides who know the back roads.
36 min
13
Sana Javeri Kadri's Regenerative Spice Farming ...
How one founder's regenerative spice farming model is reshaping ethical travel and food sourcing across India and Sri Lanka.
36 min
14
For a Crowd-Free African Safari, Head for Tanza...
A guide to Tanzania's Ruaha and Nyerere National Parks, the Nomad camps, and how to travel more responsibly on your first safari.
33 min
15
What We Lose When a Language Dies
Inside "How to Kill a Language" by Sophia Smith Galer: cultural travel, responsible travel, and the race to document dying tongues before they're gone
30 min
16
Five Questions for the Man Who Walked a Fault L...
Two years after a major earthquake lifted Japan's seabed 15 feet into the air, travel writer Ryan Knighton walks the Noto Peninsula on a slow tour — and finds kintsugi, the art of mending broken things with gold, a community metaphor.
21 min
17
Why Women's Travel Writing Matters More Than Ever
The longtime editor of The Best Women's Travel Writing on curation, courage, and why these stories matter more than ever.
33 min
18
This Is One of the Best Architecture Cities in ...
Why Buffalo is secretly one of America's great architecture cities.
22 min
19
Hallowed Ground: The Street at the Heart of Buf...
185 years of Buffalo Black history on one sacred street, and the man fighting to save it.
18 min
20
Asheville Hiking, Waterfalls, and the Oldest Mo...
Into the Pisgah forest, where the oldest mountains on Earth pack climbing, waterfalls, and a natural water slide into one valley.
18 min
21
Asheville Food and the Growth of a Farm-to-Tabl...
A walking food tour of a mountain city where farm-to-table is geography, not a slogan, and a look at who gets to shape its food.
27 min
22
Black Mountain and the Region's Creative Soul |...
A tiny mountain town, a legendary vanished art college, and the nearly lost blues at the root of the region’s sound.
22 min
23
Asheville Wellness and 150 Years of the Mountai...
Inside 150 years of Asheville wellness, from mountain-air cures to modern salt caves.
17 min
24
Asheville History and the Making of a Mountain ...
Tracing Asheville history on foot, from a Cherokee crossroads to the Vanderbilts to the Black community that built the city.
28 min
25
The City of Good Neighbors: A Buffalo Travel St...
Inside the City of Good Neighbors, from Dyngus Day to a refugee's first winter.
22 min