As far as expert tour leaders go, Jonathan Hodgson is at the top of his game. Those who have travelled with him before, or regularly as some of our clients do, comment about the endless kindness he exudes and wealth of knowledge he extends. 

We couldn't be more proud to have Jonathan in our Adventures Abroad family but wanted to share some insights into the man, the myth, and the legend that is Jonathan.

Here are 10 questions and answers to get to know him better:

1. How many countries visited:

JH: Official UN? Somewhere in the neighbourhood of 120. How many borders have I crossed? A question that will likely never be known.

2. How many countries tours led in:

JH: I started keeping an excel spreadsheet of the tours I have done so it doesn’t get lost to time. Good excuse to go back and check. The result?
100. Egad.

3. Most random job before tour leading:

JH: Cleaning port-a-potties and running change of garbage detail at a mountain-top open-air concert above Murren, Switzerland (circa 1995).

4. How many years as a tour leader:

JH: I suppose it’s running into 13 years now. Hope that’s lucky.

5. Why did you want to become a tour leader:

JH: I started traveling when I was 23 and after taking a bit of “downtime” to do my graduate degree 10 years later, I found that the sort of jobs I was interviewing for after my MBA were not for me. Randomly, at the perfect time, I encountered an advertisement from Adventures Abroad looking for people with a lust for travel and that was it!

6. Craziest moment as a tour leader:

JH: Too numerous to mention? Participating in a camel race in Pushkar, India? Kicking down a bathroom door to rescue a locked-in client in the Philippines? Getting cross with the local guide who was late for my tour in Tashkent and eventually marrying her? And many more.

7. Most peaceful place on earth:

JH: On the edges of civilization where nature is everything. And back at home to enjoy family time.

8. Where did you grow up:

JH: I don’t think I’ve grown up yet. But New Brunswick, Ontario, Quebec, Scotland, Australia, and British Columbia all contributed to the earlier years of development.

9. Name a place that feels more like home now:

JH: Uzbekistan is a home away from home.

10. Favourite quote:

JH: “I’d rather have a wealth of experiences than a wealth of riches”

Follow Jonathan’s adventures abroad on Instagram.