Lauren Haas

I'm Lauren, the founder of Indie Travel Guru. I'm living proof that a life of travel and adventure is available to anyone who wants it. At 40, I was a single mom with no passport, a poverty-level income, and big dreams. At 48, I started traveling the world with everything I own in a backpack. That was in 2013, and I'm still going strong!

Take Charge & Transform Your Life: A Women’s Adventure & Workshop in Peru

Join me in August of 2020 for an epic women-only adventure in Peru.

<img width="930" height="620" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-DSC00447-930x620.jpg" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-DSC00447-930x620.jpg 930w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-DSC00447-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

How I tried to lose weight and learned to love my curves instead

My early summer was fun, chaotic, and action-packed, with two Women’s Adventure groups in Indonesia plus more flights and changes of lodging than I usually have in a year. So I set myself up with an entire month of solitude afterward, and I decided to make that month a fitness retreat for myself, with a strong focus on weight loss.

<img width="930" height="620" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-IMG_20190527_171144-930x620.jpg" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-IMG_20190527_171144-930x620.jpg 930w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-IMG_20190527_171144-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

Photos: 2019 Indonesia trips, with Java, Bali & Borneo

In May and June, I hosted two Indonesia trips, and they were so fantastic I think I will do it again someday.

<img width="930" height="523" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-1906WinkyWonk-1.jpg" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-1906WinkyWonk-1.jpg 1200w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-1906WinkyWonk-1-300x169.jpg 300w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-1906WinkyWonk-1-768x432.jpg 768w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cropped-1906WinkyWonk-1-1024x576.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

Meet Winky Wonk, Your Giraffe Son

Playtime
by Lauren Haas

Earlier this year, Indie Travel Guru adopted a giraffe named Winky Wonk. We don’t support him alone, he has a whole collection of adoptive “parents,” but we are helping.

<img width="930" height="620" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-Machu-Picchu-Landscape-Lama-World-Heritage-Peru-2774925-930x620.jpg" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-Machu-Picchu-Landscape-Lama-World-Heritage-Peru-2774925-930x620.jpg 930w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-Machu-Picchu-Landscape-Lama-World-Heritage-Peru-2774925-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

Women’s Adventure in Peru

Join me in August of 2020 for an epic women-only adventure in Peru.

<img width="930" height="522" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-person-light-people-girl-woman-street-845602-pxhere.com_.jpg" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-person-light-people-girl-woman-street-845602-pxhere.com_.jpg 1200w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-person-light-people-girl-woman-street-845602-pxhere.com_-300x169.jpg 300w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-person-light-people-girl-woman-street-845602-pxhere.com_-768x431.jpg 768w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-person-light-people-girl-woman-street-845602-pxhere.com_-1024x575.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

How to Stay Safe While Traveling Alone

Once you’ve proven to yourself that you can stay safe when traveling alone, you’ll develop tremendous confidence in your ability… Read More »How to Stay Safe While Traveling Alone

<img width="930" height="620" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-IMG_20190717_131043-1-930x620.jpg" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-IMG_20190717_131043-1-930x620.jpg 930w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-IMG_20190717_131043-1-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

Poached eggs with greens – in the microwave

Have you ever tried to make a healthy breakfast in a kitchen with no stove or oven? This is one of my favorite solutions — high in protein, only about 150 calories, tasty, and satisfying.

<img width="930" height="620" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-blue-mosque-in-istanbul-turkey-2-e1564043976597-1-930x620.jpg" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-blue-mosque-in-istanbul-turkey-2-e1564043976597-1-930x620.jpg 930w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-blue-mosque-in-istanbul-turkey-2-e1564043976597-1-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

Women’s Adventure in Istanbul

Join me in Turkey for mosques, palaces, hamam bathing, and more.

<img width="930" height="620" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Granada-930x620.jpg" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Granada-930x620.jpg 930w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Granada-300x200.jpg 300w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Granada-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Granada-768x512.jpg 768w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Granada-600x400.jpg 600w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Granada.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

Women’s Adventure in Spain

Join this small group of women for tapas, flamenco, snorkeling and more in the south of Spain in June 2020.

<img width="930" height="620" src="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/a-shop-owner-places-a-help-wanted-sign-in-the-window_4ytpaenn__F0005-930x620.png" class=" wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/a-shop-owner-places-a-help-wanted-sign-in-the-window_4ytpaenn__F0005-930x620.png 930w, https://indietravel.guru/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/a-shop-owner-places-a-help-wanted-sign-in-the-window_4ytpaenn__F0005-600x400.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" />

How to Travel for Free as a Volunteer

Would you like to fit more travel into your budget? Experience a closer connection with the local culture? Make a difference in a far-flung corner of the world? Volunteering might just be the perfect option for you!