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Tourism with a twist: More young adults turn to community-based travel to make friends

New travel companies are catering to the needs of Gen Zs and millennials who want to make connections even as they explore the world

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Renald Yeo

Renald Yeo

Published Fri, Mar 28, 2025 · 03:00 PM
    • More young tourists are seeking genuine social connections through carefully curated travel experiences.
    • More young tourists are seeking genuine social connections through carefully curated travel experiences. PHOTO: THE TRAVEL INTERN

    [SINGAPORE] Some people nurse setbacks with indulgent meals and stiff drinks. Others distract themselves by plunging head first into new hobbies – pottery, perhaps?

    But youth worker Lim Liyin, 30, chose an entirely different remedy to deal with a personal struggle in late 2023: a four-day motorcycle tour along the winding, picturesque mountain roads of north-eastern Vietnam’s famed Ha Giang loop.

    The twist? She deliberately chose a tour designed for strangers to meet – a form of tourism called community-based travel.

    BrunchTravelMillennialsGen Z

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