Tom Hale's Straight Talk

We just got back from Mallorca and Menorca, where, as you can see in these photos shot by Liz, I had a smile on my face for the whole week....

When I first decided more than 40 years ago that I was going to start an active travel company leading bike tours around the country, a lot of people thought I ...

While the world has been transformed in big ways, I can confidently say that when this is all said and done, the essence of a Backroads trip will remain unchang...

There's no doubt about it - these are difficult times. As I write this, I'm at my home in the Bay Area with my wife Liz and the kids. Like everyone else in Cali...

As the founder and owner of Backroads, people often expect me to have some special insight into how our trips run. It's true that I was a Trip Leader in the ear...

I’m not a fan of buzzwords, especially when it comes to travel. “Experiential,” “curated,” “transformational…” Labels like these often dictate what the traveler...

Since very early in the Backroads days, we have run annual staff rides that gather our employees in one place for a multi-day adventure. These trips get everyon...

Expanding Backroads internationally is a tale of necessity, entrepreneurialism, and of course, adventure! My bet is that many of you will relate, as you might b...

Over the decades, we’ve learned a thing or two from our guests, our own excursions and our intrepid leaders. While I could write a book on our evolution, I’ll n...

How do you narrow down days of hiking with your favorite people--amid some of the most beautiful scenery imaginable--into a "top 3" list? It's not easy. But I a...

At the end of a typical Backroads day, I find myself well fed, happily tired and awe-inspired by what I just experienced. I drafted this blog from a hotel balco...

I just returned from a biking trip through Brittany and Normandy and hiking trip in the Alps with extended family and was once again reminded of the ways a vaca...