The world according to… Lonely Planet’s Tony Wheeler – 15 Feb 2007

Tony Wheeler, co-founder, Lonely Planet

How many holidays do you take a year?

What’s a holiday? I have real trouble separating holidays and work. Some trips are really holidays but they’re still work; I enjoy some work trips even more than I’ve enjoyed some holidays. Some trips are a real tangle of the two.

Usually I spend about half the year away from home. That’s a mix of long intercontinental trips and shorter trips closer to home.

Do you book your holiday online or with a travel agent?

There are no hard and fast rules. I use a travel agent for a lot of things because I so often need to change things at the last minute, which is easier with a travel agent. Plus agents can often find things you simply can’t get online. But I do experiment a lot with the Internet – and some things work better that way.

What was your best holiday?

I’ve had some great times on the Australian Great Barrier Reef islands.

Where do you still most want to go?

Yemen, Karakoram Highway, the Trans-Siberian Express, Central Asian ex-USSR republics and the Aranui cruise to the Marquesas from Tahiti.

Typical day on a holiday?

There’s no such thing. The whole point about travel is not to have anything typical. When things become ordinary they’ve obviously gone seriously wrong.

Best holiday companion?

My wife Maureen. Or just myself. Or a bunch of friends. I guess if I was going to have to limit it to just one I would choose my wife.

Worst holiday experience?

A bad holiday? What’s that?

How many holidays do you take a year?

We’ve been pretty busy recently so I’ve only had time to take two a year.

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