Meet the Co-Founder of Femscape Sojourns, Latifah Al-Hazzá
Travel trendsetter: Latifah Al-Hazzá
Growing up, traveling with my family inevitably inspired my passion for travel and my place in this world as a global citizen, but there is something inherently special about a mother-daughter trip. From day trips to weekend getaways and a full-fledged month-long journey through Oceania, I’ve been privileged to travel with my mum a number of times. So, I’m always particularly excited when I connect with other travelers who have taken life-changing mother-daughter trips—Latifah Al-Hazzá not only knows the thrill of such trips but runs a travel company motivated by this genre of travel.
Latifah co-founded Femscape Sojourns with her mother, Tami—a boutique women’s travel company specializing in mother-daughter trips. Though they took family trips growing up, it wasn’t until their first one-on-one trip together, that Latifah made it a habit of planning trips with just her mum. And this is where the concept of Femscape Sojourns was born.
From Morocco to Zanzibar, Latifah and Tami personally lead small groups of mother-daughter travelers around the world, introducing their guests to a destination’s culture via local interactions with women-led businesses and guides to enhance their travelers’ experiences as well as empower local communities. Latifah brings a unique angle to the company as a travel journalist, therefore, understands the significance in building a connection to a destination through cultural experiences. As their site quotes,
“Offering mother-daughter trips was a top priority for the two as they felt that they have more bonding experiences when they explore new cultures together and partake of novel adventures.”
I spoke with Latifah to learn more about Femscape Sojourns, how COVID has affected the business and what to look forward to in 2021.
What are some of the earliest trips you remember taking with your mum?
We traveled as a family (my mom, dad and myself) a lot when I was young. It wasn't until I was in high school that my mom and I decided to take our first mother-daughter trip.
Our first trip was to Hawaii and I remember being wary of traveling with just my mom, even though we have always gotten along really well. But, I was at that awkward age when kids don't like to be around their parents as much—how horrible!
Anyway, we had an amazing time and it changed my perspective of mother-daughter trips. Shortly after that we traveled to Egypt together. Ever since then, we have traveled to several countries together just as mother and daughter.
Tell me a little more about the trips you run and what a guest can expect when booking with you.
Our trips are so much fun! Femscape Sojourns offers three types of trips:
1. For women ages 40+
2. For women in their 20s and 30s
3. For mothers and daughters
Our trips range from five to 10 days and we offer domestic and international trips. Our small group trips (maximum 12 women) allow us to be available for the women 24/7. We travel with the women as their guide, we engage in the planned activities with the women, we introduce them to our favorite restaurants and shops. We have insider knowledge of the destinations we travel to, we usually speak the language, we have connections and we understand the culture.
We are particularly concerned about the status of women in the communities that we visit. Another huge aspect of our company is that we make every effort to do business with women-owned establishments, locate female artisans and engage with local women.
How do you choose the destinations and organizations you work with?
We only take our women to destinations that we have traveled to several times and we only work with companies, businesses, organizations that we have personally used, tried, been to as a normal client. We make every effort to do business with women-owned establishments.
Is there a particular story or destination that stands out to you where you'd be more biased about recommending it over another destination? Why?
I think my mother and I are biased in offering a Morocco trip every year because we love it so much. We love every country we take our women to, but Morocco is near and dear to our hearts, in part, because of the generosity and hospitality of the Arab people.
Morocco is a country that in one area you can spot carts being pulled by donkeys, craftsmen pursuing their art with the same techniques and tools that were used thousands of years ago, and women engaging in age-old rituals that their great grandmothers performed. While in another area you can witness modern and cutting edge changes like artists who are changing the narrative of art, and restaurants where chefs are mixing traditional and modern cuisines to create new and exciting dishes. Morocco is truly a unique country because you're able to get as close to the authentic culture as possible, yet also explore the vibrant changes that are occurring.
How have you adapted your business to the current circumstances regarding COVID-19?
We had to cancel our 2020 mother-daughter trip and it looks like we will have to cancel our October 2020 trip. But we are staying positive and moving our cancelled destinations over to 2021 and planning to travel to even more destinations next year.
What's in store for 2021?
Stay tuned for sojourns to Zanzibar, Morocco, Barcelona, Cape Town, Baja California, Los Angeles, Charleston, Costa Rica and a surprise destination. Also growing and expanding our Femscape Boutique!
What are some of your go-to spots when you're home?
This is difficult because I don't really live full time anywhere. I like to spend most of my time while in the U.S. in Los Angeles. In L.A. I recommend:
Sidecar Doughnuts for their Huckleberry donut
KazuNori for handrolls
Milo + Olive for their burrata pizza and country bread
Blue Plate Taco for their marg pitchers
The Bungalow Santa Monica is my go-to nightlife spot
Griffith Observatory (especially at night to see Saturn's rings through the gigantic telescope)
Abbott Kinney for beautiful street art and clothing boutiques
El Matador State Beach for amazing sunsets
Xo,
J