The mission statement for FarewellTravels.com includes something we certainly value. It says:
“At the root of all of our recommendations is an unflagging commitment to responsible tourism and a determination to help people learn more about the world by traveling."

This site was founded about two years ago and is overseen by Susan Farewell, who has been a member of the travel media for many years. She started out by “putting in her time on staff” at Conde Nast. After ten years, she left there and has since contributed to countless print, broadcast, and digital outlets, in addition to writing several books. Among her many credits are Conde Nast Traveler, Travel and Leisure, and The New York Times.

FarewellTravels.com is a travel site where visitors find ideas for select travel along with links to book said travel - and often save money. They pride themselves on their hand-selected escapes that are geared for “travelers with good taste.”  The site provides very high-quality content researched and written by its staff and over a dozen contributors, along with beautiful photographs, artwork, animations and videos. 

We had an opportunity to learn more by speaking with Susan Farewell, about FarewellTravels, the education of travel, traveling with kids, and more.

Susan Farewell, FarewellTravels.com

WE: Many travel sites and blogs specialize in regions or specific types of travel, but you seem to write about destinations around the world—some luxurious, some quite simple, some very adventurous, others quite relaxed. Who are your readers?

SF:  Our stories are geared to very sophisticated travelers who in general are adventurous, but like to be comfortable when traveling.  They very likely grew up traveling, studied abroad in college. If they’ve got kids, the kids are studying abroad in high school or during summer programs for teens. 
Many of our readers are families with tweens, teens or older. They have a certain level of affluence that enables them to travel quite a bit. In a 12-month period, they’re likely to take one major family summer vacation, two or three school break vacations, several ski weekends and one “second” honeymoon or romantic weekend away without the kids.  So what we do is provide ideas for those travel needs.

WE:It seems you’ve written a great deal about the education of travel. Where is that coming from?

SF:  I grew up on edu-vacations.  We traveled to learn as a family…it was as simple as that.  I think if more people could view travel as a fixed education expense in a family budget, it would be less likely to be cut.  For most people, travel has always been a luxury, among the first things to go when times get tough.

I feel very strongly that now more than ever, travel provides a global education and to survive well in this world moving forward, that’s important to have. Our kids are no longer just competing with one another, they are competing with students all over the world—in Europe, South Africa, Asia. The more you know about how the world operates and the more comfortable you feel moving freely about in the world, the better chance you have at working well in it.

WE: So what does this mean—one should only think about travel with children?

SF:  Not at all. Travel provides an education for all ages, at all stages of life. That said, however, there has been a tremendous, seismic shift in when people are traveling the most. When I grew up, you always heard that people would start traveling when they retired. The cliché cruise, right? 
Now, I am seeing the bulk of travelers (at least North American travelers) are students, young people in their 20s or 30s and those who are parents with tweens and teens.  I remember talking to a mother who said to me, “I never traveled much at all until my kids hit their teens. Now I feel I have to in order to keep up with the Joneses!”

WE: Interesting.  Sort of a competitive sport!

SF:  Sad but true. BUT, children in general are HUGE influencers as to how much the family travels and where they go. Most parents, in fact, wind up going to Disney just so they’re not the only family in the school that doesn’t!  My own daughter, Justine who is 14 (and actually a teen columnist and photographer) has tremendous impact on my choices of where to write about. 

WE: So where do you recommend traveling with a child your daughter’s age?

SF: Get out the globe, spin it, and wherever the finger rests when it stops—go there!  No seriously, I find all children are different and have different interests and needs.  I just wrote a piece on going to Austria with a teen. This is a country that combines culture with off-the-charts outdoor adventures.   It really opens a child’s mind to modern European history which is likely going to figure very prominently in what they’re studying in school. BUT…an expensive overseas trip is not always in the budget.  Visiting a big city close to home or a national park can be tremendously exciting and educational as well. 

The main thing is to get the travel conversation going in your household. Even talking about travel makes you smarter!

WE: Thanks so very much, Susan! I love your site - truly an excellent resource for learning from experts about exploring the world.

For more information, please see:

http://farewelltravels.com/