Blazing New Trails: Henley Vazquez of Fora
Image courtesy of Henley Vazquez / Fora
Co-founder and travel agent # 1 at Fora — named one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies of 2023 — Henley Vazquez channeled her passion for travel into creating a modern, barrier-breaking agency focused on empowering anyone with a passion for travel to build a business they love.
How did Fora come to exist? I basically spent my whole career as a travel agent. Traditionally, the travel agency world is limited to those who want to do it full time. Over the years, lots of people — in particular, women who knew tons about travel — would come to me and say, “I'd love to do your job, but I also do this other freelance job or I'm with my kids in the afternoon — how could I do this but not do it full-time?” And the answer was always, “you can't, that's not the way the industry is set up.” It felt wrong every time I said it, but it kind of was the way it was.
During the pandemic, I had moved to Costa Rica with my kids and, as the world was reopening, I reconnected with a friend of mind, Evan Frank, one of Fora’s co-founders who had also co-founded One Fine Stay. Evan’s wife had all these friends who were done with being stuck at home after all the Zoom-schooling and they knew a lot about travel, and he suggested I connect with some of them about the travel industry. When I told him the same thing I had always said, he was like, “There’s got to be something we can do about that.” I told him all the reasons why it wouldn’t work, but he came from a background of building and scaling big companies and fundraising, and brought different ideas, so we just started talking about it. Our third co-founder, Jay Peters, was a CTO and came from a fintech background as well as a travel background.
So we all sat down and thought about it: this industry is super cool, it's an interesting job, but we are really keeping a lot of people out, because when you say somebody can only do this full-time, then it's a very non-inclusive community. We started thinking of ways to do it, we raised money, we built a company — and, really, the company was founded on the principle that anybody who loves travel should be able to do this as a job and we should meet them where they're at, whether it's a side hustle, a second career, or a new job for them. We're going to build systems around them that let them focus on the job of travel planning, and let us do all the other stuff that can make it difficult to do this part-time. That was August 2021, and here we are now, with more than 600 advisors and growing.
Fora released a data-driven Hot List this year — what destinations have been most popular with families coming out of the pandemic? When we looked at this, the destinations that are most popular overall tend to also be the destinations that are most popular for families, with a few caveats. We're seeing a strong continuation of Europe travel, with France, Italy, and Greece being the top European destinations, with Spain and Portugal really starting to come up
What about travel closer to home? Domestic travel is not going away. This is still an incredibly popular choice for families, in particular, because flights are so expensive. People think, “I'd love to go to Italy, but Italy's really expensive, so how about California instead?” National parks, dude ranches, and the California Riviera experience are among the top destinations we’re seeing families book. Many families have also started visiting more off-season places during the summer that make their budgets go farther. For example, going to the Caribbean, Mexico, or Central America in summer because it's not peak season so it's less crowded, it's more affordable, and it's still fun. That’s one of our personal favorites.
How have family travel trends and expectations changed since the pandemic? Parents are bringing their kids more places where before they might have been more cautious, like Morocco, Egypt, and Central America — Costa Rica in particular. We lost years sitting at home, and whereas parents used to think, “I'll take the kids to Morocco later,” now they’re saying, “let's just go.” Safari may not be the first choice of a destination for younger families, but grandparents aged during the pandemic, and families want a chance to do this kind of trip with grandma and grandpa before they can't travel like this anymore. People want to see the world with their kids and want them to have these experiences, so after a few years of sitting at home, they're just doing it. They got used to that togetherness.
You mentioned bringing the grandparents — what trends are you seeing with multi-generational travel? Number one would be dude ranches. We discovered our backyard and now we love playing in it. Once you've been to one part of the American West you want to see all of it, it's so spectacular. There's the ease of travel, it's just it's simpler to travel domestic. It is a destination and a kind of trip that truly appeals to all ages so you can have something for everyone: toddlers just want to run around in the grass for a while, maybe sit on the back of a pony; older kids can engage in the activities like hiking and biking, they can be out there in the wilderness; you've got the really adventurous folks who are doing a cattle roundup; and then you've got grandma and grandpa who maybe just want to sit in a rocking chair and watch everybody and be there for the meals, but they’re not getting on an ATV or going shooting, and that’s okay. What we're seeing is this explosion in popularity of this kind of trip because it checks all of the boxes for all of the people, and it allows for together time, but also some separate time, which can be really appealing. Being in a rented house in Europe sounds wonderful until you realize that you're cooking and you're cleaning and you’re entertaining everybody.
Any favorite dude ranches? On the higher end, Brush Creek Ranch is just an incredible place in Wyoming. It is beyond special. It’s a high price tag, but I would say if you've got the budget, it’s worth it. Then there are places like C Lazy U in Colorado, which is a less fancy dude ranch, but still really fantastic. It’s a repeat place. People tend to go and love it and come back. Another place I discovered that is under the radar and is a total obsession of mine is Vermejo. Vermejo is owned by Ted Turner, it is a 550,000-acre reserve — for comparison Grand Teton National Park is like 300,000 acres — so it's essentially a privately-owned National Park. You stay in an old ranch house that they've turned into hotel rooms. It’s in a part of the world that people don’t really think of for spring break, for example, when kids are off school but it's still mud season up in Wyoming and Montana. If you're outdoorsy, it's a great destination where you can be out in the middle of incredible scenery and do lots of activities at a lower price point than some of the more well-known ranches. Plus, it pairs well with Santa Fe, so you can have a trip with adventure as well as culture and cuisine. I went and think it's so special for families.
You also mentioned families are venturing farther — any trends there? Egypt is one where we are seeing more parents take older kids — like 10 and up — and they're seeing lots of Egypt. They're coming into Cairo, cruising the Nile, and then they're going to Sharm El Sheikh for some beach time at the end, so they're really making a full trip out of it. Same with Morocco and North Africa in general. People used to just do quick trips there, and now they're visiting Marrakesh, the Atlas Mountains, the Sahara — a lot more time in these places that include some tough drives and long days, but they're bringing their children along and just doing it. Costa Rica is another one that might have seen before the pandemic as a place more for couples and, yes, couples are still going, but we book families there constantly now.
Any favorite places for families in these destinations? One of my favorite places in Morocco is Kasbah Tamadot in the Atlas Mountains. This is a place that was not previously known to be super family friendly, but they've built new villas to accommodate families and have more family activities like more outdoor movie nights. In Costa Rica, Nayara Tented Camp can fit a family of four in one tent, they're huge, and kids love the plunge pool. The activities on-site are endless so you don't have to be always out going and doing things. You can be there and there are monkeys in the trees and iguanas crawling by. In Egypt, there is a new cruise ship that’s really great and has private guides, which is great for families because then you're not going at the pace of other people you're going at your own pace. And in Sharm al Sheikh, the Four Seasons there does an incredible job with families.
What places are trending for families that are not over-touristed yet? Puglia and Sardinia. The Amalfi coast has really been a hot destination, but for families it's not a great choice — it's very steep, it has very windy roads, it's really better for couples. On the other hand, Puglia is just a 3-hour drive across from there or quick flight from almost anywhere within Italy, and you've got a much flatter landscape, you've got really wonderful hotels at a variety of price points as well as houses that you can rent, and great little towns to explore. It's more affordable and it's also easier to navigate than the Amalfi coast. I think that a year from now, all the families will be in Puglia and Sardinia, which is not coming up yet strong in the bookings but I believe Sardinia is the next big destination. I love it.
I go on and on about Central America all the time because I love it so much but Costa Rica is busy and it has gotten so much more expensive, so I'm constantly telling people to consider somewhere else for a similar kind of trip. We're seeing an increase in popularity with Nicaragua, just to the north of Costa Rica, with incredible properties that have a lot of the same appeal. Places like Morgans Rock that has the eco-lodge vibe, and Rancho Santana which is more of a community with great surfing, great outdoor activities, and very family oriented. I also think Panama is going to be the next big destination. You can fly a short flight from the US and be in some incredible nature that just isn't on the radar. And if you want to take your kids somewhere that's going to blow their mind, visit the Panama Canal.
What tips do you have for parents traveling with kids? Get your friends to befriend other kids when you're traveling. It's so easy and it’s the best thing, having them find people to play with. We visited an island off the coast of Panama where there was a pool party and there were like 15 kids playing football with each other, and I could sit down and read my book for a minute. I would also say don't be intimidated. I travel alone with my kids, and things may sound like a lot to bite off at times, but if you just get out there and do it, you'll always be happy that you did. I also think having a sense of humor about some of the rough moments — whether it's a carsick kid, or a delayed flight, or somebody scared of a bug that crawled up the bathtub drain — you're having these experiences together and making memories, good, bad, and otherwise. I just say just get out there and do it. It is always so rewarding.
Image courtesy of Henley Vazquez / Fora
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DISCLOSURE
As a travel advisor, Henley receives special rates from travel properties, including some of those shared in this profile. Her opinions are her own.
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