Combining Comedy With Wanderlust: Touring With Natasha Hansen

What do you get when you combine comedy with travel?

While the question may seem like the beginning of a very bad joke, the end result is the adventure of a lifetime that makes you laugh and fall in love with travel.

Natasha Pearl Hansen has combined her passion for travel with her wanderlust and has been touring the world doing stand-up comedy for the last 9 years.

She said: “I just enjoy visiting different cities, to meet up with friends and setting up shows in those places. I’ve been doing my own comedy tours for a really long time. I’ve just finished touring in Europe and I’m heading to the Caribbean next.”

Combining comedy with travel

She first started to infuse comedy with travel at the age of 14 when she represented the US as a student ambassador.

This was a role that allowed her to travel overseas and during her adventures, she kept a journal of all the funny stories that happened on her trips abroad.

This led to Natasha being invited to parties held by older kids where she would recount those stories. She later took up public speaking in high school and then theatre when she was in college. This made her realize that she had a talent for performing in front of others.

But now after many years as a seasoned comedian, she decided to add something new into the mix by becoming a WiGo Trips ambassador and opening up her comedy tours to a wider audience.

Natasha first came across WiGo Trips during her European tour, where she visited 7 different cities in 7 different countries.

She said that meeting new and interesting people with similar interests was a big part of the attraction.

“I saw WiGo Trips as an opportunity because they are trying to change the way that travel is done,” she added: “When I tour as a comedian, I meet up with people from all over the place, and I meet new people, hang out with my audiences after the shows and I do a lot of things that other comedians don’t do.

“So I thought it would be fun to organize a group tour of like-minded people who also love comedy. I’m excited to work with WiGo Trips on some exciting tours this year.”

As you can imagine, visiting so many countries across the world as a stand-up comedian has brought its fair share of crazy adventures and funny stories.

After all, not everyone can say that they have oil-wrestled for money. I’m not kidding. This is one of many hilarious and memorable adventures that Natasha has experienced.

She added: “I’m kind of the queen of finding random competitions and winning them. I was running out of money in the Caribbean and I saw a sign in a bar that advertised oil wrestling on that night. So I oil-wrestled a woman to win a cash prize of $150. I won and was able to stay in the Caribbean for a few more days after that.”

For Natasha, going on overseas adventures has always been a dream of hers. But she explained that the best part of travel has always been the people she has connected with.

She added: “Travel has always been a part of who I am. I love connecting with and meeting people from all over the world and getting to know different cultures. I also really enjoy the infusion of comedy and travel in my life.”

Living life to the full

Many people allow fear to hold them back from experiencing all that this world has to offer.

However, Natasha is certainly not one of those people. Her advice to would-be travelers is to get out there and do it.

After all, you only live once, so you may as well live life to the fullest.

“Most people are afraid to travel because they are afraid that something bad will happen. But bad things happen everywhere,” she said, adding: “Just because you are somewhere different, it doesn't mean that your chances of being injured are higher. You just have to be smart about things and be aware of people.

“What is the point of living until the age of 90 if you don’t have any stories to tell?”

       Janine Griffiths | Journalist 

​Janine is a copywriter and marketing strategist from England, with a background in journalism. She has represented many major brands throughout her career such as HSBC, Prudential and BIM. She runs a popular travel blog called janinesjourneys.com and has made has previously worked for major regional newspapers in the UK such as the Guardian, Yorkshire Post and the Shropshire Star

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