Kim Giovacco’s “aha” moment came in the shower. For her birthday that year, Giovacco’s partner had surprised her with a 3 day trip to New England. The highlight was a custom tour of 12 food co-ops. The trip was perfect for Giovacco, who was then on the board of a Massachusetts food co-op. After receiving a card describing the upcoming experience, something occurred to her while in the shower: “Oh, I could do this for vegans. The way she [Giovacco’s partner] planned a tour visiting food co-ops, I can plan a tour for vegans.” Within one week, Giovacco had chosen a name for her vegan travel company and secured the website domain.

It took 5 years to reach her ideal number of 10-12 tourists per trip, and Giovacco cautions anyone desiring their own business to “start it while they still have a full-time job, or a full-time salary, and just start the business on the side.” Despite Veg Jaunts and Journeys taking years to gain traction, Giovacco found herself in a fantastic position: her hobby had become her career.

A key benefit of traveling with her company, Giovacco says, is that the “sense of camaraderie is just terrific.” Each trip also “serves as a really good event for people that don’t know any vegans where they live.” Travelers share their favorite recipe websites and offer their reviews of products. 60% of Giovacco’s travelers are repeat customers, and she observes that many have become friends and “want to go on the same tours together.”

European trips are Giovacco’s specialty. When asked to identify a tour that she particularly enjoyed planning, she points to one through Belgium and Netherlands from earlier this year. Of the 12 tours that were announced this season, this was the first to sell out. It was “fun finding different vegan shops and vegan restaurants and people that were giving vegan food tours,” Giovacco recalls, “and we really got to see a lot of different places, rather than just being in one big city for 5 days or for a week.” She and her travelers visited around a dozen towns.

Giovacco recently entered a merger with Prachi Jain, the founder of Escape To. When the two vegan travel companies completely consolidate—likely in 2027—they will rebrand as the Ahimsa Travel Club. Until then, Giovacco and Jain will advertise each other’s trips. 

Giovacco has personally experienced Escape To’s tours: last February, she traveled to Mexico City with the company. She explains that “Prachi had been doing tours to Mexico City for a long time, and Mexico City was on my list for quite a while.” She “didn’t feel confident tackling that on [her] own because it’s just a huge city.” Giovacco adds that she was also eager to see how things were run at another vegan travel company.

Around this time, she was contemplating selling her company. While Giovacco loved travel, she no longer had time to research new locations, embark on personal trips, or simply enjoy life at home. Additionally, she started fearing her travelers’ safety abroad. “I was starting to get a little apprehensive about just world politics and natural disasters and lots of things that weren’t in my control,” she states. 

While she had some serious interest in buying her company, her plans shifted when Jain contacted her.  Giovacco recounts the conversation: “She [Jain] said, “What would you think about if we joined forces?” She said, “You’re the only vegan company I would consider doing that with,” and I felt the same way about her.” Her trip to Mexico City had shown Giovacco how well-organized Jain’s tours were. Even better was the fact that Jain specializes in India and Mexico, where Giovacco was hoping to expand to. Similarly, Jain was hoping to expand to Europe, Giovacco’s specialty. 

When asked about the Ahimsa Travel Club’s future, Giovacco anticipates that it will be the largest vegan travel company in the world. While this goal is in sight, she and Jain hope to attract European travelers to South America and Asia. 

Giovacco also dreams of a trip to Antarctica because there is now a “boat that can provide vegan options.” While she personally would not go because some of the trip would entail rough sailing, she does “think some people would be interested.” She and Jain “now have a lot of people helping lead tours. So anything is possible.”

This post’s featured image is of Kim Giovacco in Florence.

Kim Giovacco transitioned to veganism after 30 years of vegetarianism. Soon afterwards—in 2016—she founded her first vegan travel company, Veg Jaunts and Journeys. The company offers vegan travelers experiences free from animal exploitation and opportunities for like-minded companionship. Giovacco recently announced the Ahimsa Travel Club, a merger between Veg Jaunts and Journeys and Escape To, the vegan travel company founded by Prachi Jain. She currently lives in Greenville, South Carolina, where she is an active participant in the local vegan community.