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Glyn Evans has taken 30 trips with the same travel company, but can still point to the moment that stands out as her favorite.
During a trip to Las Vegas, he served as best man to a couple on the same tour who got married on a whim.
However, unlike most weddings, the bride and groom had vision problems, said Evans, who resides in Lincolnshire, United Kingdom.
For 25 years, Evans has traveled with a tour company called Traveleyes, which organizes trips for blind and visually impaired people. Tours also include an equal number of viewable travelers. In exchange for discounts (sometimes up to 40%), travelers like Evans help their companions by describing the details of the trip, from planned activities to helping them order food.
“We rented a chapel and I helped the bride choose a wedding dress. It was just the best experience,” Evans said.
From volunteering to traveling
trips in travel eyes They look like those on any other travel website. Travelers can go rafting in Costa Rica, go on safari in Eswatini, and climb a volcano in Spain. Some trips include activities like bungee jumping, skydiving, skiing, snorkeling, and pizza making.
For Evans, who has long volunteered with blind people, traveling with them was a natural next step. He met the company’s founder, Amar Latif, through his work in the blind community, and felt it was an obvious decision to join TravelEyes’ first tour as a sighted guest, he said. CNBC Travel.
Latif became blind at the age of 18 as a result of a hereditary condition and founded Traveleyes in 2004, he said, when he was 36 years old.
Evans and his partner, Caroline, now regularly join Traveleyes tours and have been to Canada, Sri Lanka and South Africa with the company, he said.
Latif and Evan, in San Francisco.
Source: Glyn Evans
Sometimes travel involves sensory experiences that other travelers typically don’t have. Evans said he and his Traveleyes travel companions were allowed to feed the lions on safari, an experience he said he will never forget.
Visually impaired travelers, or “VIPS” as they are known at TravelEyes, can also touch relics, from Incan artifacts in Peru to terracotta warriors near Xi’an, China.
But Evans said his favorite part of a Traveleyes trip isn’t the activities or the discount, but the friendships made.
“The best thing is at night, when we sit down to have a drink and chat. You meet people you would never have the opportunity to meet in your daily life. It makes me very happy,” he says. saying.
Different levels of detail
Evans said he and Caroline keep in touch with many fellow travelers. They once hosted a seven-course dinner for 12 of their Traveleyes friends who traveled from all over the UK. Evans and Caroline picked them up at the train station and stayed overnight, he said.
Evans now has plenty of experience in what it takes to guide blind travelers on vacation, whether it’s a hike through nature reserves or a day of sightseeing in the big city. He has learned that people want different things on their trips.
Skiers with visual impairments often ski with a guide or helper and wear vests to alert other skiers of their condition.
Mikki Ansin | Stock Photos | fake images
“Some people want to know every detail about where we are, and other people just don’t care about any details,” he said.
Some prefer to chat about the latest football game, Evans said.
“If we go to a church, I say to the person: ‘Do you want more or less information, or do you just want to talk about Arsenal?'”
An equal relationship
Traveleyes founder Latif said he founded the company after being rejected by mainstream tour operators. She was told she could only accompany him with a carer, and even then she would not be able to take part in activities such as cycling, skiing or walking, despite being fit and independent, she said.
He said the relationship between his company’s travelers (those who can see and those who can’t) is based on equality.
“We are all on equal terms. We are all having a great vacation,” he said. “Sighted people should not be caretakers. Yes, they will guide and be the eyes and describe things, and in return they will receive a discount, but they will also be on vacation. It is very important that our sighted travelers enjoy them, Because, ultimately, If they are not there, we will not be able to offer holidays to blind travelers.
Evans helps a visually impaired traveler paraglide on a trip to Tunisia organized by TravelEyes.
Source: Glyn Evans
Traveleyes guests do not need any prior experience with blind people, Latif said.
“There is a video on YouTube I’ve done on how to guide, and our tour managers also provide guide training,” he said. “But every VIP likes to be guided in a different way. It’s about communication. “At first it can be a little stressful, but after half an hour you forget about the blindness.”
Sighted travelers are expected to describe what they see, but they do not function as caretakers, Latif said. “Travelers who book trips can be independent: they have packed their bags, they can get dressed, and they can be responsible for themselves.”
Traveling with blind people also allows others to see the world differently, Latif said.
Latif and Evans take a mud bath during a trip to Türkiye.
Source: Amar Latif
“We live in a world where people are always taking pictures and moving on. But when you’re in front of something incredible, you have to engage with it, bringing your VIP to life, so you actually end up with more meaningful and vivid memories of their experiences. on vacation,” he said.
The experience can also inspire people in their own lives and future journeys, he said.
“Our sighted travelers are also really inspired because they see that VIPs can’t see, but they are on the other side of the world without their friends and family, and it makes them see their life in a different way.”
