Have you ever wanted to travel in a more meaningful way and together as a family?  For me, I personally find the trips in which I’m traveling sustainably and giving back to the local communities I visit, to be the most rewarding trips of my life. From that first trip to Nepal in 2010 where I raised money to build a rural reading center to my climb to the summit of Kilimanjaro to raise funds for Solar Sister and bring solar electricity to Sub-Saharan Africa, I have always believed in the power of travel to make a difference.  So what if you could combine this kind of transformational, meaningful travel with a family trip and bring your kids? That is the very concept behind Global Family Travels, a travel company that offers enriching cultural immersion experiences for families to “Learn, Serve, and Immerse”.

I was delighted to have the opportunity to interview Jennifer Spatz, founder of Global Family Travels, and here is what she had to say.

When were you founded?

Much more than a traditional tour operator, Global Family Travels (GFT) was founded by Jennifer Spatz in 2010.

What inspired you to found Global Family Travels? 

There were two things that inspired me to start Global Family Travels: An inspirational quote and her own family travels.

The inspirational quote was by Jeffrey Sachs and I found it on of a Starbucks Coffee Mug, “The Way I See It #262”:

“We are the First Generation in history that can end extreme poverty. That is our good fortune, our challenge, and our responsibility.”

Jennifer Spatz, Founder of Global Family Travels visiting School in Zimbabwe

From the age of 6 months old, when I was transported to Europe on the S.S. Independence I was given the gift of traveling abroad with my own family. Those special bonding experiences as a family sharing enriching and cultural learning experiences are etched in my heart. (examples – Riding through the rice paddies of Taiwan with my mother in a small Datsun to celebrate the harvest moon festivities with our friends; or hauling a small Christmas tree in a small village in Austria and decorating it with candles and traditional wooden ornaments) These experiences also instilled values of compassion and understanding for different cultures and something I wanted to recreate for our travelers.

Global Family Travel trips offer the opportunity to strengthen your own family bonds and experience the joy and fulfillment of meeting new people, discovering other cultures while reaffirming what matters most…our shared values and connectedness.