Zero To Travel Podcast

What happens when you plan a trip with one goal: to disappear from your phone, your inbox, and the news for as long as you can stand it?

Tony Fletcher is a British music journalist and the author of seven books, including the bestselling Keith Moon biography Moon and the definitive R.E.M. biography Remarks Remade. He started the fanzine Jamming! as a teenager in London and has spent decades interviewing artists across the music world. He now lives in New York's Catskill Mountains, where he writes about music, travel, and running.

Tony just got back from a solo month in Nepal, where a big part of the trip was a deliberate digital detox: two weeks completely offline, no email, no social media, no news. He joins me to talk through how he planned it, what it actually felt like to disconnect, and the unconventional route he took into the mountains.

This is a conversation about what happens when you actually let go, not just of your phone, but of the need to always know what's going on. Tony went in with real doubts about whether he could pull it off, and those doubts followed him further into the trip than he expected. What came back out the other side surprised even him, touching habits and instincts he wasn't trying to change. There's also a quieter thread running through it about choosing the harder, lonelier path on purpose, and what that choice does to how you experience a place.

Have you ever taken a real break from your phone or the news while traveling, and what did you notice about yourself in the quiet? I'd love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you'll share by sending me an audio message.

Tune In To Learn:

How he prepared mentally in the week beforehand, and how many times he nearly talked himself out of it

Advice for planning a trek that starts right from your hotel room instead of taking transport to the trailhead

Why he chose a quieter route over the two most popular options

How trekking solo and unsupported changed the pace of each day

What quitting coffee and alcohol on the trail taught him about resetting his habits

How stepping away from his phone opened up more conversations with strangers

Why he gave himself an extra week away from the news even after getting back online

Advice on budgeting, accommodation, and food costs on a multi-week trek

The story of nearly losing his phone for good, and what it says about staying present

And so much more

Resources:

Sign up for our FREE newsletter

Tony's Substack

Nepal Trekking and the Great Himalaya Trail by Robin Boustead

CalTopo

Trekking Nepal: Your Adventure Guide podcast by Zero To Travel

Want More?

Life-Changing Trips, Interviewing Music Legends, Backpacking the World, and Fostering Transformative Connections with Tony Fletcher

Immersion Travel: Becoming a Porter in Nepal with Nate Menninger

Walking the World with Alexander Campbell and Tom Turcich

Thanks To Our Sponsors

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Experience intelligent trip planning for calmer travel with the TripWaffle app

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Want to hear a podcast about one my favorite parts of the US? The Via Podcast by AAA paints a picture of the Western United States. If you love American history, road trips, wildlife, and Western folklore you’ve got to check out the Via Podcast. Hope you enjoy it as much as I have!

Why does a tiny Nordic nation with just 5.5 million people feel impossible to summarize in a single sentence? 

Lorelou Desjardins has been writing about Norwegian culture since 2013 at her blog and publishing house, A Frog in the Fjord. She has published six books in Norway and internationally, along with 250 articles in mainstream media including Norway's largest newspaper. Her latest book, How to Be Norwegian, offers a crash course into 55 essential Norwegian cultural quirks. She lives in Oslo and is now a Norwegian citizen. 

In this episode, Lorelou and I dig into Norwegian culture and what makes this country so unique, covering the surprising scale of Norway's geography, the country's cabin culture, social dynamics among Norwegians, food and drink customs, the quirks of Norwegian English, and a Norwegian concept worth stealing for your own life. 

Norway can feel like a country of contradictions: vast and remote in parts, intensely social in others, shaped by long winters and short summers that flip the whole rhythm of daily life. This conversation moves between practical travel insight and a more personal look at what it is actually like to live here long-term, even after becoming a citizen. Whether you are planning a trip, exploring your own Norwegian roots, or just drawn to borrowing a little wisdom from another culture, there is something here for you. 

What is one custom or tradition from somewhere else in the world that you have brought into your own life? I'd love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you'll share by sending me an audio message. 

Tune In To Learn: 


How long Norway actually is, and which European capital it would touch if you spun it on its southern tip 


Why a growing wave of travelers are choosing Norway over traditionally hot summer destinations 


What Norway's "freedom to roam" law actually allows you to do 


How cabin culture works, and how travelers can access cabins most visitors never think to look for 


Why Norwegians have a reputation for being emotionally cold, and the bus ride that put that reputation to the test for me 


Why Norwegians are so eager to talk about their own cultural identity with outsiders 


The surprising history behind Norway's strict modern alcohol laws 


Why frozen pizza and Friday tacos became beloved national traditions 


The Norwegian concept that's similar to hygge, but with its own colder, deeper edge 


And so much more 

Resources: 


Sign up for our FREE newsletter 


A Frog in the Fjord 


Lorelou's website 


How to Be Norwegian 


The Norwegian Trekking Association (DNT) 

Want More? 


Cracking the Cultural Code, Ethical Travel To Indigenous Areas, & Life in Norway With Lorelou Desjardins 


Hidden Norway: 7 Off The Beaten Path Gems You'll Love, Popular Norwegian Concepts Worth Stealing, Trekking In Bhutan, & Living At The Crossroads of Magic & Science w/ Torunn Tronsvang from Up Norway 


Top 7 Hidden Gems in Oslo, Norway with Curtis Rojak of Viking Biking 

Thanks To Our Sponsors  


Become a Fora Advisor today at foratravel.com/zerototravel  


Experience intelligent trip planning for calmer travel with the TripWaffle app  


Earn points on rent and mortgage payments. Apply at joinbilt.com/zerototravel 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Want to hear a podcast about one my favorite parts of the US? The Via Podcast by AAA paints a picture of the Western United States. If you love American history, road trips, wildlife, and Western folklore you’ve got to check out the Via Podcast. Hope you enjoy it as much as I have!

Want to hear a podcast about one my favorite parts of the US? The Via Podcast by AAA paints a picture of the Western United States. If you love American history, road trips, wildlife, and Western folklore you’ve got to check out the Via Podcast. Hope you enjoy it as much as I have!