What started this adventure
Our Story
We've always been travelers and experiencing Vietnam, in particular, had always intrigued us. We loved the food and people, but finding our dream trip wouldn't be simple. We had worked for tourism operations before and knew our desired trip would be found far from the beaten path. After hours online, it became apparent that an intimate Vietnam experience was impossible to find, let alone book. Either the locally-owned tours weren't online, or couldn't be seen amongst the big players.
We never took our dream trip to Vietnam. We did, however, experience breathtaking Venezuela exactly the way we wanted to. There was nothing generic about our time in Maracaibo - the 'local experience' we had was rich and authentic and it changed our lives. We came home with stories and friendships, leaving part of ourselves in the streets and on the beaches of Venezuela.
And this is what we want for you
The difference between generic tours and FarCloser experiences is like the difference between a pamphlet and a five-hundred-page novel. There are details and a richness that only a local operator can offer. There is a certain integrity that comes with operators that are running family tours businesses in their hometowns. Their pride comes through as the desire to share the hidden treasures that they themselves love. Travel should be about so much more than business. We believe it should be about true, authentic connections. The kind that steals a part of you and changes you forever.
That's why we started FarCloser Travel, for the connections. Our platform levels the playing field and provides fairness for the niche operators that we partner with. FarCloser's integrity is built on the absolute rejection of incentivization. Our website is an honest look at what the world had to offer. Finally, an off-track adventure in Vietnam is a click away.
One-Size Doesn’t Fit All
Why We Exist
Travel, like so many other industries, has its share of big players and small fish all offering unique experiences for their guests. Unfortunately, like many industries, it tends to be the big guys that get all the attention. This works for travellers who are happy sticking to the big brands but what about those seeking experiences with smaller travel operators? It often requires days of sifting through Google search results, navigating websites of various quality and more than one bottle of wine. While the wine can stay, we want to make the experience of discovering the next trip of a life-time easier for everyone.
Trips as Unique as You
Who We Serve
This site and everything we do is designed to inspire you, our user, to discover and explore the incredible travel opportunities on offer from the tour operators you likely won’t find at your local travel agency. With first-hand experience of the life-changing qualities of travel, we know there is a perfect trip for everyone no matter what stage of life. Whether it’s your first trip overseas after graduation, your honeymoon, an annual girls trip, a family trip with the kiddos, a solo trip to invest in yourself, a 50th wedding anniversary trip or anything in between, we want to help you find it.
That's Lovely but...
What Make Us Different
We rely heavily on our community's input for which operators we show on the platform. Unlike a traditional travel agency (in real life or online), we don't operate on a sliding scale commission business model which by nature, introduces bias into the sales model. We love a good travel agent and they can be indispensable in certain situations but we firmly believe that a platform like our's should be impartial so the traveller can truly understand their options and find what's best for them.
Sounds good...
How Does It Work?
We try to provide as many opportunities for you to refine your search criteria so that you can find the trip that suits you and your needs best, without our needs getting in the way. Once you find something that grabs your interest, we connect you directly with the operator themselves to help you navigate any fine print and answer any specific questions you may have. If the trip fits, we provide a secure payment platform so you can book with confidence and peace of mind.
A quick recap
In case you missed it
Have Your Say
Tell Us Your Favourite Operator
Did you have an exceptionally good experience travelling with a particular tour or cruise operator? Would you like to share your experience and help other travellers discover their trips? We’d love to hear from you so we can connect other like-minded travellers with them. Let’s share the love!