THE TRAVEL LAB is the brainchild of Raymond Hawkins. 

Raymond has travelled his entire working life in different roles. He worked with Australian rock and roll bands in Australia, New Zealand, America and Europe as a production manager and tour manager. That included tours with David Bowie, AC/DC, The Angels, Midnight Oil and Cold Chisel.

For a decade, he was the head of Audiovisual at the Sydney Opera House, working with Opera Australia and the Sydney Dance Company.

A radical change saw him follow his passion for long-distance walking. He took 3 months off to walk solo from Melbourne to Sydney along the Great Dividing Range. Then, for almost two decades, he operated fascinating walking programs for writers, artists, photographers and choirs in remote Australian country.

His fascinating life was published in a memoir entitled THE ELECTRONIC SWAGMAN, recounting his time spent in remote Aboriginal communities.

Over three decades, he has developed and operated unique programs for writers, artists, musicians and thinkers in Ireland, Australia, Nepal and India. He is now turning his creative gaze towards IndoChina.

Raymond brings a viewpoint that offers a new way of creating travel programs, as well as a philosophy that the traveller’s passion should be reflected in the travel experience. Artists should paint. People fascinated with stories should explore narratives. Singers should rejoice in music. 

Now in a semi-retired stage of life, Raymond seeks to mentor and develop unique creative travel programs throughout Indo-China, lending his specialised talents and experiences to reimagine travel.