A welcomed return for Traveleyes – group holidays with a difference!
As we step into 2025, the team at Traveleyes are filled with gratitude and excitement. Last year marked a significant milestone for us: our first full year since relaunch! With 30 trips released to destinations across the world, and our first trip to Andalucia marking 20 years since the company was first formed, we’re incredibly proud to have brought life-changing travel experiences to vision impaired and fully sighted travellers from all over the globe. From Eswatini, India, Laos & Cambodia and the Southern States, to Austria, Belgium, Spain and the Canary Islands, we opened up the world to many new Traveleyes adventurers as well as returning travellers alike, offering a mix of discovery tours, to activity holidays, to city breaks. And our group holidays are not just about seeing new places, but embracing the world with all the senses, breaking barriers and forging beautiful connections.
The Traveleyes group celebrate at the end of the Camino de Santiago pilgrim walk.
This success would not have been possible without our incredible travellers! Their enthusiasm, trust and love for exploration has been the driving force behind our flourishing return. We also owe a special thanks to HF Holidays who welcomed us with open arms, championing the spirit of inclusive travel.
We’ve had some fantastic coverage over this last year with Caroline Butterwick covering our Austria trip in leading UK publication, The Guardian, as well as founder, Amar Latif OBE, featuring on BBC Radio 4’s Ramblings with Claire Balding, In Touch with Peter White, and Saturday Live with Nikki Bedi and Jon Kay.
Looking ahead, the future is very exciting indeed! Traveleyes is rapidly expanding to meet demand, meaning this year we’ll be offering more destinations and more opportunities to explore the world!
Experience a group holiday with a difference on a Traveleyes trip
For those of you looking for a more meaningful travel experience in this new year, or perhaps you’re a solo traveller wanting to try a new kind of adventure, we invite you to join a Traveleyes group holiday. Or for those of you who might already know about us and are teetering on the edge of trying out your first Traveleyes trip but have a few questions before you commit, this is a perfect time to share a bit about who we are and what we do, starting with our origins and the visionary behind Traveleyes, Amar Latif OBE. Amar’s story is a testament to the power of determination, innovation, and the belief that travel should be for everyone.
So, grab a cup of coffee (or a good ol’ Yorkshire brew!), settle in, and get ready to discover how to experience an unforgettable group holiday with a difference.
Who are Traveleyes?
At Traveleyes we create incredible group holidays to destinations around the world… with a twist! Half our travellers are vision impaired (VI) and the other half are fully sighted. Most people have never met before, and sighted travellers guide and describe the world to our VI travellers, receiving a considerable discount on their trip in return.
Traveleyes is the brainchild of blind adventurer, Amar Latif, who lost 95% of his vision at 18 years old. Amar knew he wanted to explore the world and refused to let the limitations set on him by others prevent him from doing so. From studying abroad at a university in Canada, to taking part in BBC documentary Beyond Boundaries where he trekked across Nicaragua, Amar was well and truly bitten by the travel bug. Ready for more, he set out to explore as much of the world as possible, but soon discovered that many UK travel companies wouldn’t allow him to join group holidays as an independent solo traveller, demanding he brought a companion.
Amar Latif OBE, founder of Traveleyes.
After facing rejection after rejection from tour operators, Amar set out to create his own travel company that would enable vision impaired people to travel independently, without limitations, and in 2004, Traveleyes was born. Twenty years later, we’re proud to say we are the UK’s leading international commercial group tour operator for vision impaired and sighted travel, opening up the world to many blind and vision impaired travellers for the first-time!
How do Traveleyes group holidays work?
Sighted travellers guiding and describing in Egypt.
Traveleyes offers a group holiday with a difference – half of the group are vision impaired (VI) and the other half are fully sighted. Each day, we pair a different VI traveller with a sighted traveller who will share their vision in the form of describing the sights, as well as guiding their new travel buddy, making these perfect trips for solo travellers, couples and friends.
Our tours are designed to go beyond the travel hotspots, using immersive and sensory activities to help travellers get to the heart of a destination. All too often, travel becomes about getting that picture-perfect shot for Instagram without really exploring the unique magic of a place. Our mission at Traveleyes is to encourage travellers to look past the lens and connect with destinations more deeply by creating a unique, multi-sensory travel experience.
All our trips include:
- A specialist Traveleyes tour manager
- Sighted guide training packs and demonstrations
- Exemplary local guides
- Predominantly 4-star accommodation (minimum 3-stars, excluding remote tours where adjustments may be required)
- Specified excursions
- Breakfasts (and often some lunches and dinners)
- Return flights/transportation (also land-only options)
How does it work for sighted travellers?
VI and sighted travellers at the Giant’s Causeway.
For a sighted traveller, a Traveleyes trip offers you an opportunity to travel with a purpose and to meet like-minded adventurers as you swap travel partners daily. People join our trips from across the globe, as solo travellers, in couples or with friends, making it a very sociable holiday experience. The only requirements we have are that you’re proficient in English and open to meeting and guiding our vision-impaired travellers!
Our sighted travellers don’t need any prior experience of guiding and, in fact, most of our first-time sighted adventurers have never met a blind person before. But don’t worry, we’re here to support you every step of the way as you get used to your new role. Before you jet off on an exciting holiday, you’ll receive a sighted guide information pack full of useful tips on how to guide a blind person, and you can also watch this handy video with blind founder, Amar Latif, demonstrating them in action.
Once you’re on the trip, a specialist Traveleyes tour manager will be on hand to answer any of your questions. But, if in doubt, communication is key – just ask your vision impaired partner how they like to be guided – it’s that easy!
How does it work for vision impaired travellers?
If you’re a VI or blind traveller looking to head out and experience the wonders of the world but haven’t found a group holiday company that ticks all your boxes, look no further. We are experts in what we do and are driven by our founder’s own experiences, who is himself blind.
Travelling with us is easy – simply pick a holiday via our accessible website, or by contacting our team, and book! The beauty of our trips is you don’t need to bring a family member, friend, or travel companion with you – our sighted travellers will provide you with guidance from the get-go. Once you arrive at the airport, your Traveleyes tour manager will be ready and waiting to greet you with your follow travellers. And our team can support you with how to get to the airport initially to ensure a smooth journey.
Our holidays are a great way for vision impaired folk, who maybe haven’t had the opportunity to travel independently, to discover just how accessible the world can be. So, if you’re tired of relying on family and friends and are keen to gain some confidence and meet like-minded travellers, a Traveleyes trip might just be the perfect thing for you.
Understanding the day-to-day workings of our holidays
No two days on a Traveleyes group holiday are the same. Getting to know everyone in the group is a core part of our values, so we swap partners daily. Meeting new people and creating long-lasting relationships is something we encourage and switching pairings is one surefire way to ensure everyone in the group gets the chance to connect! It makes for a much more sociable group travel holiday and also helps to build a more rounded experience for our VI travellers, as everyone guides and describes slightly differently, so changing partners allows them to hear unique and varying descriptions.
Are you ready to share the adventure?
The Traveleyes group in Tenerife join Amar Latif in celebrating one year since relaunch.
If you’re looking for a holiday that you’ll never forget and to travel in a more meaningful way, or if you’re a solo traveller looking to connect with like-minded adventurers, look no further! Our epic adventures have been created to help you get to the heart of a destination, delivering exceptional memories no matter whether you’re fully sighted or vision impaired. Alongside unique activities and sensory experiences, we guarantee you’ll leave our trips with friends for life… or possibly even a Traveleyes romance!
Be sure to sign up to our newsletter to hear first about our exciting new releases, news or Traveleyes updates, or head straight to browse our holidays and book your next adventure!
Here’s to exploring new horizons in 2025!
Your Traveleyes Team x