If anyone understands the joy of connecting with the communities that shape a place, it’s Alesha. She learnt this early on while growing up in New Zealand and Australia, where she developed a curiosity for cultural anthropology and a deep respect for the contrasts between Western and Indigenous communities.
That human interest continues to drive Alesha’s approach to travel today, making her a natural fit for Experience Travel Group’s community-based holidays.
With over a decade in the industry, she brings insight and experience to every trip she designs.
At ETG, Alesha crafts thoughtful holidays to Sri Lanka (sometimes combined with the Maldives) and Oman.
She lights up when talking about her favourite moments in Sri Lanka: drifting across a still lake near Sigiriya as fishermen cast their nets beneath the looming rock fortress, or weaving through Colombo in a Landy, swapping stories with young people about how life is changing from one generation to the next.
And when it comes to Oman, she’s always happy to talk about how Bedouin guides navigate the Empty Quarter’s shifting sands using generations of inherited knowledge, or recommend the best spots to see playful dolphins come to the shore (psst, Alila Hinu Bay is her top pick).
Alesha also has a good sense of humour about travel’s less polished moments (ask her about her ‘scary’ shark encounter in the Maldives or the oversharing Vietnamese guide).
Her top ETG hotel? Gal Oya Lodge in Sri Lanka, for its elephants and – naturally – the chance to interact with the Veddah community.
All in all, Alesha knows her stuff. But more than that, she genuinely cares about helping curious travellers experience destinations in an enriching, eye-opening way.
“Every person that you meet knows something you don’t; learn from them.” – H. Jackson Brown Jr.
