A common love for meticulous research and all things travel brought Alisha and Friyan together at one of India’s leading travel magazines. As members of the magazine’s research team they spent their days happily planning trips for the monthly, trawling through every resource to find extraordinary travel experiences. Seven years and countless trips later, Alisha and Friyan decided it was time to throw caution to the wind and branch out on their own. Fuelled by their love for designing custom-made holidays and armed with over 14 years of combined experience in the field, they set up Handmade Journeys.

 
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Alisha Wadia

Alisha studied Tourism Management at SKEMA Business School in the south of France. She spent lots of weekends exploring the Cote d'Azur and Provence, and did an internship at the Nice Tourism Office. With her Master’s degree tucked under her belt, she soon set out to create a career around travel.

It was at Lonely Planet Magazine India that she really discovered her love for travel and wildlife, and developed a slightly worrying obsession for maps. Alisha loves hiking, diving and eating anything that she can get her hands on. Her dream trip is to Peru and the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador. She also loves France, especially Paris, but believes there’s no place like India.

alisha@handmadejourneys.com

Friyan Driver

Friyan got her Bachelor's degree in Economics from Jai Hind College in Mumbai, India, before she went on to study law. About halfway through her law degree she realised she wanted to trade her textbooks for guidebooks and the courtroom for a cramped seat on an airplane. After all, she had been travelling since she was 16 and was only ever truly happy on the road.

When she started researching trips at Lonely Planet Magazine India, she was convinced it was her life’s mission to create travel itineraries. Friyan loves beach holidays and is especially partial towards Malta, Sicily, Zanzibar and the Maldives. Her dream trip is to the Galapagos Islands and the Chilean Patagonia.

friyan@handmadejourneys.com