When Rebecca Gade-Sawicki entered pandemic lockdown, she started to reevaluate her career path and was motivated to find a job that aligned with her passion for living a healthy lifestyle.
“I’m vegan, and so I started looking for a job with a vegan company or an environmental company, but I couldn’t find anything that aligned with my background. So I thought, ‘I’ve got to get creative with this and figure out a new way reinvent myself,’” she says.
Sawicki’s reinvention came in the form of creating Veggies Abroad — a vegan travel blog featuring vegan-friendly travel guides and eateries from around the world.
“[Veggies Abroad] does focus mainly on all things vegan and not justfood,”Sawickisays.“So,[in] some of the travel guides, I will pick out certain activities that would be considered vegan-friendly, like wine tasting, visiting an animal sanctuary, or if I found vegan shoe shops or other vegan shops to have a shopping adventure. Or if there’s a food tour that’s specifically focused on finding vegan or plant-based options.”
Veggies Abroad also highlights destinations where travelers can go to find strictly vegan or vegan-friendly lodging.
“Someone could really try and make their adventure as vegan-friendly as they want or more sustainable as they want as well, too. So, I will focus on if hotels have sustainability initiatives or are doing things that are more eco-friendly,” she says.
In addition to promoting vegan businesses and travel tips, Sawicki also launched a travel agency in February.
“I can handle as much or as little for the traveler. So, if they just want to find some cool hotels that are vegan-friendly or maybe they have some cool sustainability initiatives, I can do that. Or if they want to talk about going on a carbon-neutral safari in Kenya, I can do all of that as well.”
One particularly rewarding aspect of her new venture is having a positive impact on smaller businesses that operate on lower budgets than major hotel chains. She also finds it rewarding to hear from travelers who have taken her suggestions and had a great trip as a result.
“It’s really great to be able to help people explore but then also to be able to help people explore and support places that are doing really good things,” she says.
To learn more, go to veggiesabroad.com or @veggiesabroad on Instagram. Plus, find even more vegan tips including vegan and cruelty-free makeup products and local spots for vegan soul food at HourDetroit.com.
This story is part of the May 2023 issue of Hour Detroit. Read more in our Digital Edition.
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