“This Is Your Invitation”: A Guide to Indigenous-Led Tourism Across North America

Indigenous tourism is growing, but it’s not always easy to tell which tours are owned and led by the communities they showcase. In this episode, Afar senior editor Jen Choi sits down with Kate Nelson, the Tlingit writer behind “Traveling Turtle Island: 14 Epic Indigenous-Led Experiences Across North America,” from Afar’s Fall 2026 Epic Trips issue. The package includes trekking to a Maya city in Chiapas, jet boat cruising through the deepest river gorge in North America, and foraging for a chef-prepared meal. Choi explains why she commissioned the story in the year of America’s 250th anniversary, a milestone that is complicated for many Native communities. Nelson shares how she came to write about Native topics, why she sees her role as a liaison between Native communities and media outlets, and why Indigenous tourism stories need to be told through a Native lens. The conversation digs into how the team chose the experiences. They focused on Native-owned outfitters rather than Native-inspired ones, and Nelson shares her tips for vetting operators, including a practice she calls “brownwashing.” They also discuss the challenges of reporting in Mexico, where many Indigenous-run experiences book through WhatsApp or Facebook, and why experiences in places like Oklahoma and the Southwest deserve a closer look. THIS WEEK’S GUEST Kate Nelson is an Alaska Native Tlingit tribal member based in Minneapolis. She wrote “Traveling Turtle Island” for Afar and is co-author, with Chef Sean Sherman, of the cookbook Turtle Island: Foods and Traditions of the Indigenous Peoples of North America. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, National Geographic, Vanity Fair, and other publications. CHAPTERS 00:00:00 Introduction 00:04:30 Who Tells Native Stories 00:09:30 Spotting "Brownwashing" 00:14:40 Beyond the Southwest 00:20:40 Open Mind, Open Heart 00:25:00 Rethinking America 250 LINKS & RESOURCES Follow Kate Nelson's work Read Turtle Island: Foods and Traditions of the Indigenous Peoples of North America American Indigenous Tourism Association (formerly AIANTA)—a guide to Native-owned tours that Kate recommends for vetting operators Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices