Slow down, see more: best destinations for slow travel

Welcome to the world of slow travel, where over-scheduled itineraries and jetting from place to place in the blink of an eye are off the cards. Slow travel is a mindful way of exploring the world, focusing on connection and deeper cultural immersion. It’s a more environmentally friendly way of checking off your travel bucket list, using local public transportation that won’t just have the world pass you by.

What is slow travel?

Slow travel invites you to sit back, relax, and immerse yourself in local culture instead of racing through cities and countries just to tick them off your list.

Why travel slowly?

In a world where travellers race to rack up the number of countries they've visited, slow travel allows you to dive deep into the heart of a place or culture by spending more time in fewer places: quality over quantity.

The environment

Slow travel is, in general, more eco-friendly, sustainable, and ethical. When you give yourself more time to travel and to explore a smaller area, you’re more likely to choose sustainable forms of transport, such as trains, buses, bicycles, boats, or even walking. Not only does this let you watch the world go by, but it’s also better for the environment, particularly over short-haul flights that use more fuel per mile than long-haul flights do.

Cultural immersion

Travelling slowly gives you more time in each place, letting you immerse yourself in a culture without just breezing through. You’re more likely to make meaningful connections with locals, see how life is truly lived in each place, and gain a better understanding of the country’s past, present and future.

For yourself

With more authentic time spent exploring a place, you make deeper, more meaningful memories. Plus, it lets you slow down, and let’s face it, travel can be exhausting, especially long-term. If you find yourself facing travel burnout, perhaps slowing down and easing into a more relaxed pace of life is just what you need.

How G Adventures embraces slow travel

G Adventures tours often feature:

Local guides: Help you get to the heart of a place with purpose and employ their unique insights to show you things travellers often miss.

Community-based tourism: Many G Adventures tours feature moments designed to immerse you in local culture and help contribute to nonprofit projects around the world.

Unique transportation: Japan by rail, Vietnam by bicycle and kayak, or sailing the Canary Islands: whatever your preferred slow-travel mode of transportation, we’ve got you covered.

Homestays and local accommodations: If you want to experience local life, there are few better ways than staying with a member of the local community.

Slow travel tours for your bucket list

Ready to dive into a slow travel destination? Here are G Adventures' best tours for taking it slow.

Back Roads of Japan

Go beyond Japan's big cities on a journey from Tokyo to Kyoto through the countryside and communities you wouldn’t experience by flitting from city to city. This 11-day adventure might feature high-speed rail, but the pace of life is anything but. Kick it off in Tokyo with a wander around its most lively districts — Shinjuku, Shibuya, and Harajuku — and opt to find an antidote to the hubbub at a shrine dedicated to Emperor Menji and his wife, Empress Shōken, which is nestled in 70 hectares (173 acres) of forest.

Afterward, it's into the countryside you go, leaving the hubbub of the capital far behind in the Japanese Alps’ city of Nanago. While away the afternoon watching snow monkeys bathing in natural hot springs — you might even make some curious friends! You also have the opportunity to wander around a picturesque lake in Ōtsu, take in the tranquil silence of Buddhist monasteries, and immerse yourself in Japanese countryside living with a local family in the charming heritage fishing village of Hagi. Here you can explore samurai architecture by bike and watch small-town life go by.

– Slow travel feature: Exploring beyond the big cities with local transport
– Cultural highlight: Staying with a local family in the quaint town of Hagi

Experience it for yourself on: Back Roads of Japan

Epic Vietnam: Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City by Rail

Foodies, unite! This exploration of Vietnam’s cities and countryside will have your taste buds in overdrive as you delve into Vietnamese street food culture from top to bottom. Journey from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City by rail, the perfect way to see many sides of this incredible country. No matter whether you choose to cycle around UNESCO-listed neighbourhoods or sit with a Vietnamese coffee watching the world go by, you’ll delve deeper into life here than you would flying from city to city.

You’ll also visit places not on most Vietnam itineraries and get there via overnight and daytime train journeys, offering a glimpse into life on the other side of the tracks. In Dong Hoi, explore the fish market to get an insight into the local life and visit the Thap Doi Tower Ruins, ancient sandstone structures similar to the Angkor Complex in Cambodia. Sample bánh mì for breakfast, bánh xèo for lunch, and bún bò huế for dinner. There’s no better way to understand a country or its people than by food, and in Vietnam, sitting on a plastic stool on the side of the road as scooters whizz by is the ultimate cultural communion for locals and visitors alike.

– Slow travel feature: Charming regional stops and overnight train journeys
– Cultural highlight: Learning how to make noodles with former street youth

Experience it for yourself on: Epic Vietnam: Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City & Handmade Noodles

Uncover India: High Deserts & Markets

Encounter India in the way you like with an immersive 15-day adventure using India’s most popular form of transport: train. As bustling as this country may be, it’s also one of the best suited to slow travel. In India, the journey — in this case, four trains and a few buses — is certainly as important as the destination. Of course, you’ll see all the best places in India, including the Taj Mahal, the Amber Fort, and the Palace of the Winds. But you’ll also venture into the quieter, lesser-visited sides of India, such as Tordi Sagar, where local potters and henna artists abound, and Ahmedabad, home of the famous Gandhi Ashram.

Travelling by train in India is an experience and a rite of passage for any visitor. You’ll make friends with locals, see the incredible diversity of the Indian countryside, and have an experience that you’ll remember for a lifetime. Trains often stop at stations where Indian street food is available (likely sold through the windows), or vendors board the train with steaming chai, chips, and sweet treats.

– Slow travel feature: Cruising through the Indian countryside by sleeper train
– Cultural highlight: Getting absorbed in India’s spiritual and historical heritage

Experience it for yourself on: Uncover India: High Deserts & Markets

In the Wake of the Vikings: Orkney, Shetland & the Faroe Islands

Ever dreamed of living out your Viking fantasy? Slow travel the Viking way (though we can’t promise a 1,000-year-old warship!) on the high seas from Edinburgh, Scotland, to Tromsø, Norway. Dive into history with visits to Neolithic settlements that are more than 5,000 years old in Orkney and Viking villages in the Shetland Islands. Lay eyes upon dramatic, puffin-covered cliffs and cascading waterfalls as you journey through the Faroe Islands, where traditional grass-roofed homes will have you feeling like you’re in a movie. Learn about the area’s rich history and legends of giants, water spirits, and witches.

On the southern coast of Norway, take in the landscape of forests and mountain lakes. Cruise to the Lofoten Islands, a wonderland of deep fjords and towering mountains with picturesque fishing villages tucked in between. On this adventure, you will not only learn about cultures past, but you’ll also see these islands and coastlines in a way only a select few get to experience.

– Slow travel feature: Sailing along dramatic coastlines like the Vikings of old
– Cultural highlight: Visiting a remote community in the northwestern Faroe Islands

Experience it for yourself on: In the Wake of the Vikings: Orkney, Shetland & the Faroe Islands

Biking Cuba

The cities and towns of Cuba are vibrant and retain their old-world charm, and the surrounding natural beauty will have you flitting from cascading falls to golden beaches. On this G Adventures tour, you’ll see all this and more from two wheels, the perfect way to explore in depth and experience Cuba authentically. Take in tobacco country from the saddle and explore the caves from which Che Guevara commanded the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces during the Missile Crisis in 1962. Cool off with swims in crystal-clear waters, spot local wildlife, and learn about this country in the best way possible: by speaking to locals in small towns along the way.

Each night, you’ll bed down in a casa particular, the Cuban version of a bed and breakfast. Staying with a Cuban family gives you a true insight into life here, and combined with slow, scenic cycles through the countryside, this trip offers the opportunity to see the real Cuba.

– Slow travel feature: Exploring Cuba’s small towns by bicycle
– Cultural highlight: Learning how to salsa dance with locals

Experience it for yourself on: Biking Cuba

Cape Town to Victoria Falls Overland Safari & Participation Camping

Travel doesn’t get much slower than cruising overland in a purpose-built Lando across the African desert and camping under the stars each night. While 21 days in four countries has you only scratching the surface, this trip is an experience of a lifetime, one that invites you to slow down and take it all in as you bounce along from town to town. You travel in a purpose-built overland adventure vehicle with local guides, starting with scenic campsites and cultural insights in South Africa. Crossing into Namibia, the landscape changes, and you become absorbed in both the natural wonders around you and in the experience.

From sunrises atop sand dunes to sunsets by watering holes, travelling by land really lets you take it all in. In Botswana, you get up close and personal with birds from a traditional dugout canoe before setting up camp under a sky full of stars. Sleeping in a tent for 21 days might not be for everyone, but it gives you the opportunity to meet locals (both of the human and animal variety), and become fully absorbed in the beauty of these countries.

– Slow travel feature: Cruising by Lando across the epic landscapes of four countries
– Cultural highlight: Stay at Botswana’s Dqae Qare San Lodge, the only land-owned freehold by an Indigenous community in southern Africa

Experience it on: Cape Town to Victoria Falls Overland Safari & Participation Camping