Curious Traveller

Curious Traveller is a specialist travel company dedicated to scientific tourism and a love of the world’s recognised natural history hotspots. Founding partners Gail MacCallum and Ian Connellan were spurred by the idea of “burning the library" – that is, of parts of the world’s natural treasures disappearing before we even know they exist. They wanted to help scientists catalogue as much of the natural world as possible. “People talk about the ‘undiscovered frontiers of space’,” says Gail, “but there are places on Earth we know less about.” In Australia, Curious Traveller runs expeditions in which volunteers help scientists with valuable field research, such as conducting fauna counts and flora surveys, and assisting with animal trapping and data collection. These trips explore parts of the country to learn about what’s there and contribute to how it might be better conserved. Overseas, we host small groups on journeys to remarkable places that have already been identified as extraordinary for their plants, animals and natural processes.