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Bloomberg

Jim Kitchen knows travel.
The 57-year-old entrepreneur and investor says he’s the only person on Earth to have visited all 193 UN-recognised countries as well as space – he was part of the civilian crew on Blue Origin’s rocket, the same trip on which comedian Pete Davidson was originally expected to fly in March.
In addition to that 62-mile (100km) milestone, Kitchen estimates he’s logged from 7 million to 10 million miles in the air.
Having worked in various ways in the travel industry for most of his career, including founding (and selling) group tour company SBT, he now acts as an angel investor and serves as a professor focusing on entrepreneurship at the US-based University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he lives with his wife, Susan. Here are some of the globetrotter’s top travel tips.
When packing, bring a cheap shirt, but leave your wedding ring at home
“I had taken a bike tour and we had played the uniquely Colombian game of tejo: you throw a 3-pound [1.4kg] weight – and there’s a circle – and if you hit in the centre of the circle, the whole thing explodes.
33 travel hacks to reduce holiday stress and avoid a crisis
“My guide asked me when we were playing, ‘So where’s next?’ And I said, ‘Oh, tomorrow I’m flying to Venezuela.’ And he’s like, ‘In those shoes?’ I had a pair of running shoes on, nothing fancy. He said that thieves will often size up foreigners by their shoes and jewellery.
“So off we went to the local flea market and purchased an old pair of leather shoes. I proceed to wear them, with this kind of scratchy, polyester shirt, looking like some Chevy Chase character walking through the airport. If you have means, travelling through the developing world is not the time to express that. It’s the time to fit in and lay low.
“I don’t wear my wedding ring, either, because I don’t want people to know that I’m married, because they could kidnap me and call my wife and say, ‘Hey, we’ve got your husband,’ and she would probably pay the ransom.”

Don’t eat at restaurants offering great views
“In my 30-plus years of travelling, I’ve experienced that restaurants offering spectacular views of the city or sunsets often have terrible food.
“I have found this notoriously true in the Caribbean: Pier One in the Bahamas, for example. There’s this gorgeous, long pier with a restaurant [Pier One] built on top of the pier, and the views were spectacular, a million dollars, and the food was just awful. You were happy to feed it to the sharks – it was that bad.”
Why you should keep – and customise – a spare credit card
“I always put one credit card in the bottom of a pair of tennis shoes, so that if all hell breaks loose – like I’m robbed and everything’s taken – if they don’t take my shoes, I’m probably OK, because at least I’ll have a credit card to buy a ticket or to get something.
“It’s also a Visa card that you can customise with a photograph. I have a picture of me and my family on it, so it’ll be some sort of visual ID, too.”

There’s much more to tourism in Africa than simply going on safari
“One of the craziest experiences that I’ve ever had was in Gabon [a country on the west coast of Central Africa], meeting a guy named Tatayo, who looked like musician Keith Richards and practices this religion known as Bwiti. They eat the iboga root and go into a trance for like three or four days. And it messes you up, but it cleanses your mind. I did not participate, but it was fascinating.
“I would argue, having been to the 54 countries in Africa and being a beach snob, that Gabon has the best beaches there, especially the peninsula part of the country that juts out into the Gulf of Guinea.
“I love Pongara: it’s a white-beige sand beach that you walk up to the water – crystal blue water – and see fish teeming in it. I stayed at Pongara Lodge right there. Animals like elephants live adjacent to this beach, and I mean, they would frolic on the beach. It was a lot like if you had to imagine what Eden would look like.”

When you’re planning a trip to space, this is what astronauts tell you to wear
“I hate to say this, but I was actually encouraged by a guy that was one of the astronauts that flew on a Hubble mission, Mike Good, to wear a male adult wetness protector – I don’t want to call it a ‘diaper’.
“We had a 45-minute delay [at take-off], because there was a telemetry issue. So you load into the capsule, you’re there, it’s nerve-racking, you’re waiting. You don’t know whether you’re going to launch or not. And my concern was, ‘Gosh, what if you have to go?’ The last thing you want to do is be concerned about is the bathroom; it’s a short enough flight, and you want to enjoy every second of it, right?
“Mike said: ‘Hey, just do the full astronaut experience, man. Just don’t worry about that.’ And so I kind of embraced it. The reality is I didn’t have to use it, but I just wanted to take that risk off the table.”

The family-friendly five-star resort he returns to again and again
“Four Seasons Peninsula Papagayo is a true luxury hotel and one of the nicest in Costa Rica. It sits on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean, but the gorgeous tropical view is just one thing that stands out.
“I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time there with my family – surfing lessons, zip-lining, or you go visit the volcanoes, river rafting, hiking. We volunteered on the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border, with some local communities there. To me, that area feels like Hawaii was before Hawaii got really built up.
“I’m not like an avid golfer, I might play five or six times a year, but if you’re staying on the property, you can play one of the best golf courses in Latin America: the Ocean Course at Peninsula Papagayo. Most of the holes have drop-dead-gorgeous views of the ocean or bay, and can easily distract players intent on carding a low score.”

Kitchen is no fan of street food on his travels – and here’s why
“I want to de-risk anything as much as I can. My biggest fear while travelling is getting sick, and so I avoid eating most foods that are for sale on the street. Yes, I’ve made exceptions to this rule, but I generally choose not to seek out street food, no matter how tempted I am to eat it.
“There are those who advise the opposite. For them, trying new foods, especially street foods, is all a part of the adventure. I’m going to assume that, unlike me, they’ve never suffered the consequences of eating curried goat from a street vendor in Jamaica. You spent months getting visas for these places, and you did something stupid like eat curried goat, and I was sick for a week. I almost died.
“My thing is I’m trying to see the world and experience the world and talk to people. I don’t necessarily need to eat the food like chef Anthony Bourdain did and make food the centre. My centre is talking to people and getting to know people, learning about the country through the most ordinary of people in marketplaces around the world. That’s kind of my thing.”


Fine dining, cocktails and barbecue at St Regis Bali Resort, part of Marriott luxury tour

6 winter wonderlands to visit this Christmas, from Budapest to – yes – even Singapore

How to add nostalgic charm to your home with a leather trunk: buy modern with a Louis Vuitton and Tyler the Creator collab, or shop for a vintage model

At The Peninsula London, luxurious British details combine with subtle Asian accents to create an experience recalling all that the celebrated Hong Kong hotel has to offer

Luxury travel

Travel tips and hacks from an expert who has been to every country and to space, from restaurants to steer clear of to what to pack

Jim Kitchen offers his top travel tips and hacks, from how to avoid being kidnapped to what restaurants to avoid. Photo: Maris Ava Cruz

Restaurants offering spectacular views of the city or sunsets, like Pier One in the Bahamas, often have terrible food, says Kitchen. 

A beach in Pongara National Park in Gabon. Kitchen says “Gabon has the best beaches”. Photo: Getty Images

Astronaut Mike Good encouraged Kitchen to wear a male adult wetness protector for his trip to space. 

The Four Seasons Peninsula Papagayo is “a true luxury hotel” according to Kitchen. 

A scene from the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market near Bangkok in Thailand. Kitchen says he avoids eating most street foods. Photo: Getty Images

Iguanas have high blood sugar from tourists feeding them grapes – the Bahamas reptiles have developed a sweet tooth

Tourists feeding grapes to rock iguanas on remote islands in the Bahamas have given them a sweet tooth and high blood sugar problems, researchers say. Photo: AFP/Erin Lewis/The Company of Biologists  

Tourists have been feeding grapes to wild iguanas in the Bahamas. This is having an unknown effect on the health of the vulnerable reptiles. Photo: Erin Lewis/The Company of Biologists/AFP

Iguanas that become too familiar with humans are at risk from animal smugglers. Photo: Getty Images

The grape feeding could do all kinds of damage to the small population of iguanas. Photo: Getty Images

Iguanas from islands visited by tourists had higher blood-sugar levels and took longer to stabilise after a glucose test. Photo: Erin Lewis/The Company of Biologists/AFP

5 wellness retreats that spring clean your mind and teach you how to make lifestyle changes

Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru.

An Ocean Panorama Pool Villa at Six Senses Yao No, in Thailand, one of five wellness retreats featured on our list that teach you how to make lifestyle changes. 

Sangha Retreat in Suzhou is considered China’s first proper wellness resort.

Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru is on the Baa Atoll, in a Unesco biosphere reserve.

Rosewood Mayakoba on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. 

Six Senses Yao No was designed as a Thai longhouse-style stilted village. 

BodyHoliday, St Lucia in the Caribbean opened back in 1988.

It’s not all full moon parties on Thailand’s Koh Phangan – Muay Thai gyms, lush nature and music have visitors staying long-term on the island

KOH PHAGHAN THAILAND : JANUARY 22,2022; Chalok Lam Beach on the north side of Koh Phangan, white sand and clear water, a very natural picturesque location

Haad Rin Nok on Koh Phangan plays host to the island’s full moon parties. In between the monthly debauchery, the Thai island offers vaccinated travellers a quiet corner of paradise. Photo: Thomas Bird

Haad Rin Nai is also known as Sunset Beach. Photo: Thomas Bird

Chaloklum Beach is on the north side of Koh Phangan. Photo: Shutterstock

Sergio Vidas is the Portuguese owner of vegetarian-friendly Fat Cat Coffee & More. Photo: Thomas Bird

The island roads are largely empty of traffic and bordered by coconut plantations and jungle. Photo: Thomas Bird

Bert Budel is the owner of Flipflop Pharmacy Bar on Thong Nai Pan Yai Beach. Photo: Thomas Bird

Local kids playing football outside a wat, or temple. Photo: Thomas Bird

Singer Pui Wichitra and Drifting Island. Pui says she “simply fell in love” with Koh Phangan. Photo: Thomas Bird

A Chinese temple complex dedicated to Guanyin on Phangan island. Photo: Thomas Bird

Little India in Medan, Indonesia, hides its cultural roots well, so assimilated are the people – but look hard enough in Kampung Madras and you’ll find them

The Indian-Indonesians of Medan look like South Indians but are Indonesian to the core. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

The small statue of the Hindu goddess Kali atop this temple in Medan, Indonesia, is the only thing that distinguishes it from its surroundings. But look hard enough in the city’s Little India and its cultural roots emerge. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

Pasar Petisah Medan indoor market in Kampung Madras looks like most others in Indonesia. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

A side street in Little India, Medan, Indonesia. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

An Indian tailor in Medan’s Little India. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

The interior of Sri Mariamman temple. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

Sri Mariamman is Kampung Madras’ oldest and busiest Hindu temple. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

The Sri Mariamman temple was built in 1884. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

Pak Sabass at Sabass Indian Food. He speaks Tamil, a language of southern India that was passed down his family line from his great-great-grandfather. Photo: Ian Lloyd Neubauer

Cycling in Singapore has never been easier or more rewarding – and it’s about to get even better

A 500km network of new and improved cycle paths makes it an attractive pursuit for visitors and residents alike, who can take in views like this one of Marina Bay. Photo: Tamara Hinson

Sentosa’s flat coastal trail offers a sedate ride for the casual cyclist. Photo: Tamara Hinson

The Singapore Rail Corridor currently stretches from Tanjong Pagar, in Singapore’s south, to Kranji, in the north. Photo: National Parks Board

The Rail Corridor runs from south to north through Singapore, offering reminders of the past, handy shade for cyclists and habitats for rare wildlife. Graphic: courtesy URA

A section of the Formula One street circuit is, outside race times, open to walkers and cyclists. Photo: Paul Murphy

Fort Siloso on Sentosa Island. Twelve kilometres of bike trails twist across the interior of Sentosa and trace its shoreline. Photo: Tamara Hinson

A house spotted while on a bike ride through Singapore. Photo: Tamara Hinson

Cyclists on the Rail Corridor cross old steel truss bridges erected more than a century ago. Photo: Shutterstock

Cycling on Sentosa. There’s never been a better time to saddle up in Singapore. Just tap one of the two bike-sharing operators for a steed. Photo: Tamara Hinson

Lifestyle

Travel & Leisure

Entrepreneur and investor Jim Kitchen has visited all 193 UN-recognised countries and was part of the civilian crew on a Blue Origin space flight in March
He reveals why he leaves his wedding ring at home, avoids street food and hides an extra credit card in his shoes


Jim Kitchen, who has visited all 193 UN-recognised countries and has been to space, offers his top travel tips and hacks, from restaurants to steer clear of to what to pack.


Travel tips and hacks from an expert who has been to every country and to space, from restaurants to steer clear of to what to pack

Entrepreneur and investor Jim Kitchen has visited all 193 UN-recognised countries and was part of the civilian crew on a Blue Origin space flight in March He reveals why he leaves his wedding ring at home, avoids street food and hides an extra credit card in his shoes

When packing, bring a cheap shirt, but leave your wedding ring at home

Entrepreneur and investor Jim Kitchen has visited all 193 UN-recognised countries and was part of the civilian crew on a Blue Origin space flight in March

He reveals why he leaves his wedding ring at home, avoids street food and hides an extra credit card in his shoes