Zero To Travel Podcast

Matt Gray is the founder and CEO of Pangea, a free social travel app built to help people coordinate travel plans, share recommendations, and connect with their network around the world. After a decade in product development and corporate M&A at a global fintech company, he left the corporate world in 2023 to become a full-time digital nomad and build Pangea full-time. He is on a personal mission to visit every country in the world. In this episode, we get into seven travel tech trends shaping how people plan, book, and experience travel, including why most travel apps fail, the rise of social travel, and what AI can and can't do for travelers right now. We also dig into destination recommendations, advice for running a remote business on the road, and what it means to bridge the nomad bubble. These are genuinely fascinating times to be a traveler and a builder in the travel space, and Matt sits at the center of both worlds. He's thinking seriously about why travel tech has such a high failure rate, and what it would actually take to crack the code, and he brings a perspective that is grounded in years of on-the-ground experience across dozens of countries and travel styles. There is a real conversation here about the gap between wanting to travel and actually doing it, and I think it will stick with you. The travel tech trends for digital nomads piece is insightful, but the human thread running through it all is what makes this one worth your time. Have you ever had a piece of technology genuinely change how you travel or connect with people on the road? I'd love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you'll share by sending me an audio message. Tune In To Learn: Why so many travel apps are built to solve a single problem, and why that almost always leads to failure How being a "multifaceted traveler" is reshaping what a useful travel platform actually needs to do Why AI wrappers on ChatGPT are not the same as AI-powered travel tools, and how to tell the difference How social travel is changing the reason people book trips in the first place Why off-the-beaten-path destinations benefit most from the rise of connected travel communities How to break out of the nomad bubble and go deeper in the places you visit Why the people you travel with may matter more than the places you go Destination recommendations for regions quietly gaining traction in the nomad world Advice for running a remote team while living a location-independent life What it looks like to bring urgency to travel, not just talk about it And so much more Resources: Sign up for our FREE newsletter Download the Pangea app Pangea on Instagram Couchsurfing Workaway Want More? From Expat to Digital Nomad: Finding Your Travel Rhythm, Balancing Burnout, and the Digital Nomad Lifestyle with Kristin Wilson The World's Most Traveled Person on the Ethics of Gamifying Travel, Best Regions in the World, and Why To Keep Traveling With Harry Mitsidis of NomadMania Top 5 Reasons For "Slomading" + The Benefits Of Boredom With Tim Marting From Citizen Remote Thanks To Our Sponsors Become a Fora Advisor today at foratravel.com/zerototravel Check out Morning Brew Daily for business news that's actually fun. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How would your life change if you decided to take a mini-retirement to travel the world, instead of waiting? After saving for two years, Helen Lin and her former husband, Tim, put their life into storage, rented out their home, and quit their 9–5 jobs to take off on a mini-retirement traveling around the world. They documented their 25+ month adventure across 26 countries on their YouTube channel, Helen and Tim Travel. Along the way, their relationship was reshaped by the experience, and they ultimately returned home divorced, still grateful for the journey they shared. In this episode, Helen shares what it actually looked like to plan and take an extended trip as a mini retirement, including the practical runway, the emotional realities, and the unexpected ways long-term travel can impact your relationships. If you’ve ever dreamed of taking months off to travel, this conversation gives you a grounded look at what it takes to make it happen and what you might learn about yourself along the way. Helen talks about building a financial runway, using local guides to lower the friction of adventure travel, and why campervan trips can be their own logistical puzzle. We also get honest about the parts people rarely post, stress, mental health, and the way constant proximity can intensify relationship dynamics. Plus, Helen shares destination recommendations and the practical systems that helped them stay on the road, including earning 1.5 million credit card points over five years to offset major travel costs. If you took a mini retirement, what would you want it to help you rethink about your life right now? I’d love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you’ll share by sending me an audio message. Tune In To Learn: Why Helen thinks “mini retirement” beats waiting for traditional retirement How increasing your savings rate can create a real travel runway Advice for choosing destinations around seasonality and the adventures you want most How guided trips can reduce risk and planning overwhelm for big hikes and outdoor goals What Helen learned from campervanning in Norway and New Zealand, and what she’d plan differently How long-term travel can amplify relationship patterns, for better or for worse Why “wherever you go, there you are” applies to mental health on the road How to think about boundaries and personal space when traveling with a partner How Helen and Tim earned about 1.5M points and miles over time to support their travels What it looks like to come home and build a new chapter after a life-shifting trip And so much more Resources: Sign up for our FREE newsletter Instagram Helen and Tim Travel Waves of Color Want More? How to Win at Travel with “The Points Guy” Brian Kelly Travel Is Your Birthright: Breaking Free from “Too Broke to Travel”, Travel Hacking (Without Credit Cards), and Solo Travel in 90+ Countries with Shakeemah Smith How to Plan Your Camino + Going Beyond the Camino Frances (Secret Routes, Donkey Highways, and Spain’s Hidden Village Network) with Shawn and Lainey Thanks To Our Sponsors Listen to the Planet Visionaries podcast on Apple and Spotify Go to https://surfshark.com/zerototravel or use code ZEROTOTRAVEL at checkout to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN! Earn Cash Back and rewards on nearly every purchase with Rakuten. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do you experience the Louvre Museum in a way that actually feels enjoyable, not stressful? And what makes this museum so much more than the Mona Lisa? Elaine Sciolino is a veteran journalist and author, former Paris bureau chief for The New York Times, and the writer of several books about France, including The Seine, The Only Street in Paris, and Adventures in the Louvre. She has lived in Paris for over two decades and brings history, culture, and personal insight into every story. Elaine joins co-host Paige McClanahan to explore Adventures in the Louvre: How to Fall in Love with the World’s Greatest Museum, diving into the history, hidden artworks, and practical strategies for making the most of your visit. You’ll hear why the Louvre is more than just a building with the Mona Lisa and how its role in French history makes it extraordinary. Elaine demystifies visiting the museum, from understanding crowds and lines to discovering lesser-known works like Titian’s Man With a Glove and what she calls the “undiscovered Mona Lisa.” She shares crowd-beating strategies, best days and times to visit, and surprising places within and around the Louvre where peace and beauty await. You’ll get insider stories on heists, hidden collections, and how even children can be captivated by Egyptology and Islamic art sections that most tourists miss out on. When you visit a major museum like the Louvre, do you tend to focus on the most famous works, or do you prefer to explore what’s less obvious? I’d love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you’ll share by sending me an audio message. Co-host Paige McClanahan is a writer, editor, and former journalist based in Paris, France. As the author of “The New Tourist: Waking up to the Power and Perils of Travel”, Paige is passionate about making sure our travels have a positive impact on the world. Learn more about her work here. Tune In To Learn: How the Mona Lisa came to dominate the Louvre’s identity, and why that fame is both a blessing and a burden How the 1911 theft of the Mona Lisa helped turn her into a worldwide obsession The surprising historical roots of the Louvre as a royal palace and revolutionary museum Lesser-known treasures, “undiscovered” masterpieces, and quieter sections of the Louvre worth seeking out The unexpected history of France’s crown jewels, including how many were sold off and ended up in the United States The story behind the recent crown jewels heist and what it reveals about museum security How the right membership, 1:1 consultation rooms, and alternative museums can transform your experience of Parisian culture Future plans for the Louvre’s expansion and what that could mean And so much more Resources: Sign up for our FREE newsletter Elaine’s website and books Louvre Museum Want More? 5 Unexpected Things to Do in Paris and 3 Hidden Gems in France with Paige McClanahan How To Explore Paris Like a Local, Working on Hospital Ships, and Becoming an Expat on a Mystery Visa With Jay Swanson 9 Best United States Museums and Advice for Fostering Your Creativity with Bob Eckstein Thanks To Our Sponsors Listen to the Planet Visionaries podcast on Apple and Spotify Experience an audio guide to the world's strange, incredible, and wondrous places on the Atlas Obscura Podcast Go to https://surfshark.com/zerototravel or use code ZEROTOTRAVEL at checkout to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices