Our Story
Our Story
The journey of Trips Unusual
Travel, to us, is more than a journey from one place to another. It is an opportunity to learn, to question, to connect and to grow.
At Trips Unusual, we create thoughtful journeys for curious explorers who want to experience the world beyond the ordinary. Our approach combines a passion for unusual and immersive travel with the practical expertise needed to make every journey seamless and meaningful.
We believe the most memorable journeys are those that leave you with more than photographs. They give you new perspectives, a deeper understanding of the places you visit and people you interact with, and experiences that stay with you long after you return home.
From carefully considered itineraries to authentic experiences and responsible travel practices, we bring together the details that turn a trip into a meaningful journey.
Because we believe that when you travel with curiosity, you return with more than memories – you return with a little more understanding of the world, and perhaps of yourself.
Travel as a meaningful part of personal growth and discovery
We believe that travel has the power to broaden perspectives, deepen understanding and inspire people to see themselves and the world differently. Trips Unusual exists to create journeys that go beyond sightseeing – instead encouraging curiosity, learning and creating genuine connections along the way.
Crafting thoughtful and immersive journeys that inspire people to learn, explore and grow through travel
We combine our experience, local knowledge and passion for meaningful exploration to design journeys that are enriching, well considered and authentic, giving our explorers the opportunity to connect with places, people, cultures and themselves.
Inspiring a world of more curious, conscious and open-minded travellers
We envision travel becoming more than a break from everyday life, and as a powerful way to understand the world, challenge perspectives, embrace different cultures and continually grow as individuals.
What Makes a Journey Rare?
It isn’t simply where you go.
A rare journey is one that changes the way you see a place, and perhaps, in some small way, yourself. It takes you beyond the familiar, brings you closer to the people, cultures and stories that shape a destination, and creates experiences that cannot be fully captured in an itinerary.
We thoughtfully design each journey with a sense of purpose, but we believe the experience ultimately belongs to the traveller. The same place, encounter or experience can inspire different thoughts, emotions and discoveries in different people. What you observe, what you learn and what you take away is uniquely your own.
Our role is to create the setting for that discovery by opening doors, sparking curiosity and offering opportunities to engage with a destination in meaningful ways. Because a truly rare journey isn’t simply one we create for you, it is one you make your own.
Travel That Inspires and Empowers
We believe travel can be a powerful tool for learning, personal growth and self-discovery. Our journeys encourage curiosity, open new perspectives and invite our explorers to engage more deeply with the world around them.
A Team That Travels With Purpose
Our experienced and passionate team brings together destination knowledge, practical expertise and a genuine curiosity for the world. This allows us to create journeys that are unusual, meaningful and thoughtfully put together.
Thoughtful Journeys, Seamlessly Delivered
From the experiences we choose to the practical details behind them, we carefully consider every element of a journey. Our aim is to make travel distinctive and enriching, while ensuring that it remains seamless and well organised.
Our Team
Taashi
Travel has been part of Taashi’s life from an early age. Curious about different countries, cultures and the people who make each place unique, she was drawn to adventure too, from scuba diving, skiing and trekking to cycling and countless journeys, both planned and spontaneous.
She began travelling solo shortly before college and continued extensively through her university years. Naturally shy and introverted, travel encouraged her to step beyond her comfort zone, and, in doing so, discover more about her own capabilities and the world around her.
Her travels have taken her scuba diving among sharks and sea lions in the Galápagos, puenting off bridges in Ecuador, trekking to remote monasteries in Ladakh, learning about Nicobar culture through the extraordinary warmth of a local family, hiking to alpine lakes in Switzerland, surfing in Portugal, and discovering unexpected favourites in Japan.
But perhaps the most lasting lesson has been a change in perspective. Meeting people from diverse backgrounds and seeing how differently the world can be lived has made her more curious, open-minded and empathetic. It has also shaped the way she thinks about travel, not simply as a way of seeing new places, but as an opportunity to understand them, and perhaps see ourselves a little differently in the process.
“The more I travel, the more I realise how little of the world I have truly seen, and how much there is still to discover.”
That curiosity remains at the heart of what she brings to Trips Unusual: a desire to keep looking beyond the obvious, keep learning, and create journeys that leave room for travellers to discover something of the world, and perhaps something of themselves along the way.
Madhukar
With over two decades in the travel industry, curating operations between India, United Kingdom and Russia, Madhukar brings a wealth of experience, a lifelong passion for adventure, and an innate curiosity about the places he encounters. His own adventures have taken him across mountains, oceans and some of the world’s more remote corners, from mountaineering expeditions in the Himalayas and scuba diving in Indonesia to dog sledding and staying with reindeer herders in Mongolia, and exploring the waterfalls of Brazil.
A lifelong adventurer, M was the first person to cycle to Khardung La on a single-speed bicycle, which at the time was recognised as the world’s highest motorable road (an achievement recorded in the Limca Book of Records). His adventures, however, have always been about more than simply reaching a destination. He is fascinated by the stories that lie behind a place, and wherever he travels, he loves to delve into its history, understand how its people and cultures have evolved, and discover the layers that may not be immediately visible to a visitor.
This curiosity has also shaped his professional journey. For years, Madhukar had been involved in creating experiential learning through adventure, particularly for children and young minds, using the outdoors and unfamiliar environments as a way to encourage curiosity, resilience, independence and a broader understanding of the world.
Today, Madhukar continues to combine his love for adventure, history and people, while running a beach retreat on the coast of Karnataka. His experience and curiosity help Trips Unusual look beyond the well-trodden path, seeking out journeys that are immersive, thoughtful and rich with stories, while leaving space for every traveller to interpret and experience them in their own way.
Our Team
Taashi
Travel has been part of Taashi’s life from an early age. Curious about different countries, cultures and the people who make each place unique, she was drawn to adventure too, from scuba diving, skiing and trekking to cycling and countless journeys, both planned and spontaneous.
She began travelling solo shortly before college and continued extensively through her university years. Naturally shy and introverted, travel encouraged her to step beyond her comfort zone, and, in doing so, discover more about her own capabilities and the world around her.
Her travels have taken her scuba diving among sharks and sea lions in the Galápagos, puenting off bridges in Ecuador, trekking to remote monasteries in Ladakh, learning about Nicobar culture through the extraordinary warmth of a local family, hiking to alpine lakes in Switzerland, surfing in Portugal, and discovering unexpected favourites in Japan.
But perhaps the most lasting lesson has been a change in perspective. Meeting people from diverse backgrounds and seeing how differently the world can be lived has made her more curious, open-minded and empathetic. It has also shaped the way she thinks about travel, not simply as a way of seeing new places, but as an opportunity to understand them, and perhaps see ourselves a little differently in the process.
“The more I travel, the more I realise how little of the world I have truly seen, and how much there is still to discover.”
That curiosity remains at the heart of what she brings to Trips Unusual: a desire to keep looking beyond the obvious, keep learning, and create journeys that leave room for travellers to discover something of the world, and perhaps something of themselves along the way.
Madhukar
With over two decades in the travel industry, curating operations between India, United Kingdom and Russia, Madhukar brings a wealth of experience, a lifelong passion for adventure, and an innate curiosity about the places he encounters. His own adventures have taken him across mountains, oceans and some of the world’s more remote corners, from mountaineering expeditions in the Himalayas and scuba diving in Indonesia to dog sledding and staying with reindeer herders in Mongolia, and exploring the waterfalls of Brazil.
A lifelong adventurer, M was the first person to cycle to Khardung La on a single-speed bicycle, which at the time was recognised as the world’s highest motorable road (an achievement recorded in the Limca Book of Records). His adventures, however, have always been about more than simply reaching a destination. He is fascinated by the stories that lie behind a place, and wherever he travels, he loves to delve into its history, understand how its people and cultures have evolved, and discover the layers that may not be immediately visible to a visitor.
This curiosity has also shaped his professional journey. For years, Madhukar had been involved in creating experiential learning through adventure, particularly for children and young minds, using the outdoors and unfamiliar environments as a way to encourage curiosity, resilience, independence and a broader understanding of the world.
Today, Madhukar continues to combine his love for adventure, history and people, while running a beach retreat on the coast of Karnataka. His experience and curiosity help Trips Unusual look beyond the well-trodden path, seeking out journeys that are immersive, thoughtful and rich with stories, while leaving space for every traveller to interpret and experience them in their own way.
