You can belong anywhere if you learn cultural adaptation skills.
Beyond Tourism builds your confidence interacting across cultures through practical cultural intelligence training.
Traveling the world is so exciting, so interesting and so rewarding. It’s is a multi-trillion dollar industry world-wide, because we, as humans, are so curious about each other. We like to pick up and fly all over the place with the hope that somehow we will be changed. Physically being in another country carries a promise that we will become more open-minded and self-aware.
You prepare by booking flights, reserving hotels, and researching local activities. You get abroad, you have a great time, you take our pictures, and you marvel at the differences in food, transportation and daily life. And sometimes you return home with a sense that the travel was not as transformational as you wanted it to be. Sure, you have great memories and pictures, and it feels really good to say that you’ve been to a different country. But something was missing and your experience lacked depth.
Most travel is focused solely on the visible aspects of culture, like museum, food, restaurants, and art. What most travel is lacking is connecting to the soul of the country through it’s people. But interacting with people abroad is intimidating. You don’t want to say something offensive or make a wrong assumption, so fear steps in and quietly shortens your opportunities for real human connection. Language barriers can make it feel easier to keep your distance rather than try to communicate at all.
The travel industry does not prepare you for how to communicate cross-culturally, but it’s the most significant aspect of travel and it’s the most transformational aspect of travel. Because visiting the Eiffel Tower is cool, but it doesn’t actually change you as a person. People change you, and connecting with people across cultures requires a skill set: cultural intelligence.
What’s getting in the way of your ability to connect cross-culturally?
You haven’t learned how your own culture impacts your behavior.
Allowing your unexplored assumptions to damage your cross-cultural friendships.
Not knowing the right questions to ask when you’re engaging interculturally.
Not knowing how you should act when confusing situations arise.
Assuming that you don’t have any preconceived, unconscious ideas that show up in how you interact. (We all have them, and they must be examined to bring them into our awareness)
At Beyond Tourism, we help you build the cultural skills you need, so you can be confident making friends, no matter where you land in the world.
How I Struggled While Living Abroad And What It Means For You
Hi, I’m Renae. I love nothing more than talking about, thinking about, and teaching cultural intelligence. Discovering this concept gave me a framework to understand people, connect across differences, and hear the stories of some of the most remarkable humans on the planet.
In my twenties, I lived in South Korea for a year teaching English to children. While many fellow teachers stayed within the Western circles, I tried to push myself to learn the Korean language, build friendships with locals, and connect with my Korean colleagues. It didn’t always work. There were plenty of awkward misunderstandings, but every attempt provided me with a lesson.
When I returned to the U.S., I struggled to put my experience into words, until I read a book by Geert Hofstede, an early researcher of cultural values. For the first time, I could name the invisible forces that had shaped my experiences abroad. I realized how understanding myself culturally could have helped me show up more aware, more empathetic, and more prepared.
Many years later, and thousands of cross-cultural experiences later, that realization became my calling. I founded Beyond Tourism to help travelers, professionals, and global citizens move beyond surface-level experiences and connect across cultures with purpose, respect, and curiosity so they don’t have to wonder what they missed.
You can read more of my story here, including about my passion for music from around the world. I am certified by the Cultural Intelligence Center .
Me in Seoul in 2005.
That Lonely Planet guide got a lot of use.
Are you planning to move abroad? Have you just moved abroad?
This section is for you. ❤️
You’ve spent months packing, saying your goodbyes, sorting visas, and finding a new home. But once you arrive, you realize you hadn’t planned for the hardest part: adjusting to a new culture.
This stage can feel lonely and mentally draining. You notice unspoken expectations from neighbors and colleagues, and you’re unsure how to act. Should you bring gifts? Is it okay to greet people on the street? What are the rules for invitations or celebrations?
When you don’t prepare for these moments, building friendships across cultures can feel overwhelming. Culture shock is real, and it touches the very core of who you are.
You don’t have to struggle alone. With the right guidance, you can feel confident, connected, and ready to thrive in your new home. Email Renae at renae@goingbeyondtourism.com to explore your options.
If you’re tired of awkward moments, misunderstood intentions, or leaving trips saying, ‘I wish I could’ve connected more,’ you need the Individual Intercultural Training. It’s a personalized experience to to help you build your skills to thrive across all cultures.
Here’s what you get…
🧭 A Personalized 2-Hour One-on-One Training Session
Tailored to your goals, cultural context, and life situation. You’ll receive real-time guidance, real-world scenarios, and actionable tools.
🌍 Intercultural Self-Awareness
Uncover how your cultural lens shapes your assumptions, reshape those assumptions, and learn how to adapt with confidence.
🧠 Practical Cultural Intelligence (CQ) Strategies
Learn to read between the lines, recognize cultural patterns, and flex your behavior to build trust and credibility across cultures.
✈️ Immediate Application
Whether you’re heading to Germany, Ghana, or your next Zoom call with a global team, walk away with clarity, confidence, and a custom plan.
💡 Research-Based Cultural Assessment
Complete the CQ Pro Assessment and receive a personalized debrief from Renae, certified by the Cultural Intelligence Center.
I help you build your cultural confidence in a highly personalized 2-hour session, not a generic pre-recorded course. You will discover…
…your own cultural mindsets.
…how to identify other cultural mindsets.
…when and how to adapt.
Yes, Renae! I’m ready to make the world feel less foreign and be ready to thrive abroad!
Instead of confusion and miscommunication over unspoken cultural expectations, I’m ready to turn confusion into connection—so my international journey becomes an opportunity for real growth.
1️⃣ Email Renae with questions at renae@goingbeyondtourism.com. You can request a free consultation to get all your questions answered first.
3️⃣ Schedule your two-hour training at a time that works for you.
4️⃣ Renae will send you the link to the CQ Pro Assessment. Take the assessment.
5️⃣ Show up to the session prepared to expand your mind and understanding of culture.
✅Walk away with a clear action plan and the confidence to build meaningful cross-cultural relationships.
Investment is two hours and only $300.
Some businesses include long-term coaching, counseling, and a significant financial contribution.
This 2-hour session is designed for travelers, digital nomads, and anyone ready to confidently navigate cultural differences without the time or cost of long-term coaching. You will be surprised by how much can be uncovered in two hours. You will get plenty of thought-provoking feedback, and enough information to both digest AND implement. If the training doesn’t meet your expectations, we’ll meet again for free to make sure you are satisfied, or give you your money back.
Questions? Email Renae at renae@goingbeyondtourism.com
I’m deeply passionate about helping people connect meaningfully across cultures, using the knowledge I’ve gained from years of intercultural experience.
With so many people traveling internationally, I believe cultural intelligence should be affordable and accessible to everyone, which is why I’ve kept the cost low, especially in the early phase of the business.
Learn what travel alone can’t teach you. Schedule a free discovery call today.
Got More Questions? I’ve Got Answers
What is the assessment like?
The assessment measures two key areas. First, it identifies your cultural values, for example, where you fall on dimensions like individualism versus collectivism. Second, it measures the four dimensions of cultural intelligence (CQ): CQ Drive (motivation), CQ Knowledge (understanding), CQ Strategy (planning and awareness), and CQ Action (behavioral adaptability). Together, these four dimensions reflect your overall cultural intelligence, which can grow with practice and strongly predicts your intercultural effectiveness.
Your results are presented on a percentage scale, benchmarked against hundreds of thousands of participants worldwide. During our debriefs and workshops, we explore these dimensions in depth, how they interact, what they reveal about your intercultural strengths and challenges, and, most importantly, how to intentionally improve your CQ over time.
See the power of the assessment to understand your cultural perspective. Download a free sample report here.
Can you work with a group?
Yes, I’ve facilitated this many times in group settings, and it can be incredibly powerful for groups traveling together. Shared cultural preparation allows people to support each another and build accountability before, during, and after their experience abroad. Groups with diverse backgrounds find this especially valuable, because it creates a rare space to openly discuss cultural behaviors and mindsets that are often left unspoken. If you’re traveling as a group, we can design a workshop tailored to your goals, needs, and schedule.
Can’t I figure it out on my own?
You can, but without guidance, you may not even recognize which behaviors matter in different situations or how they shape your interactions. I wish I’d had this training before living abroad. I had good intentions while I lived abroad, but this type of training would have spared me countless awkward moments and helped me build deeper, more meaningful relationships much sooner.
What is Cultural Intelligence?
Cultural Intelligence (CQ) is what helps you thrive in today’s multicultural world. It’s the ability to relate and work effectively across cultures. It’s a skill that transforms how you travel, work, and connect.
Beyond Tourism uses the Cultural Intelligence (CQ) Model to assess your current abilities and cultural preferences, then helps you learn how to identify and adapt to cultural differences with confidence.
The CQ model is based on decades of research on intelligence and cultural exchange. Soon Ang and Lynn Van Dyne are the researchers that led this unique line of inquiry and developed the model. Follow this link to explore the research basis for the CQ model in more depth.
Explore our latest articles to deepen your understanding of cultural intelligence, and how it can help you in your travels.
What are they saying after their training with Beyond Tourism?
Your investment: just $300 for a lifetime of cross-cultural confidence.
In an increasingly interconnected world, cultural intelligence is the skill we all need for the future. It gives you an edge in your career, education, and life, wherever this big, beautiful planet takes you.
The skills to adapt our minds to be more culturally aware must be accessible to all people.
Who Is This For?
This training is for you if you believe travel can be more than checking places off a list.
It’s for travelers who want real human connection, not just photos and stories to bring home.
It’s for digital nomads and aspiring expats who want to feel confident, respectful, and grounded when living and working in cultures different from their own.
It’s for people who’ve felt unsure in cross-cultural moments, worried about saying the wrong thing, misreading a situation, or unintentionally causing offense, and want tools to navigate those moments with clarity and confidence.
It’s for globally curious humans who want to understand how their own culture shapes their behavior, assumptions, and reactions.
If you’re looking for cultural awareness that leads to deeper relationships, fewer misunderstandings, and a more meaningful experience of the world, this is for you.
What this is not…
This is not a place to find travel tips, sightseeing recommendations, or deals on flights. There are many skilled travel advisors and content creators that can help you with that.
This is not a checklist to “master” every culture or a guide to behaving perfectly abroad. Cultural intelligence is about curiosity, adapting and building solid relationships.
This is not about figuring out your personality.
This is not mental health care, though many people struggling through culture shock may need professional mental health care at some point during their time adapting to other countries.
If you’re open to learning, willing to reflect, and curious about how culture shapes both you and others, you’re in the right place.
Final Message From Renae
Take it from me and learn from my mistakes. Don’t skip cultural preparation before going abroad. This isn’t just a one-time lesson, it’s a lifelong skill that grows with you as you meet people from around the world.
Invest in yourself now, build your confidence, and create the kind of life you want in any country.
Renae Ninneman
Founder of Beyond Tourism
renae@goingbeyondtourism.com
NEW! Curious + Humble: Your Workbook for Meaningful, Culturally Aware Travel.
Not quite ready for one-on-one training? Start your journey with the Curious + Humble workbook and make your travels more meaningful and transformative.
Through explanations, reflective prompts, and practical frameworks like the cultural iceberg, cultural values, and cultural intelligence, the workbook helps travelers find words to describe their experiences and recognize their own cultural programming.
What makes this workbook especially powerful is its focus on curiosity and humility as skills, not personality traits. This workbook helps you start to build the awareness needed to move beyond assumptions and toward empathy with people from different cultural backgrounds.
No AI used in the creation of my workbook.
Just released and only $13.
MORE INFO
See my blog post featured on
Travel Massive, entitled:
If Travel Is The Best Education, Are We Missing The Lesson?
Featured on the following podcasts:
Moving Abroad Coach Podcast: Episode #129 Want to Adapt Abroad? Cultural Intelligence Is the Skill you Need (with Renae Ninneman)
List on Spotify ** Listen on Apple Podcasts ** Listen on BuzzSprout
The Thoughtful Travel Podcast: Episode #358 Solo Travel for Women
List on Spotify ** Listen on Apple Podcasts ** Listen on YouTube
The Thoughtful Travel Podcast: Episode #374 Cultural Intelligence for Travellers
List on Spotify ** Listen on Apple Podcasts ** Listen on YouTube
The Human Adventure: Episode #199 Hidden Currents Of Culture And Adventure with Renae Ninneman
List on Spotify ** Listen on Apple Podcasts **
“International travel is consistently listed as being among the top three to five transformative experiences in the lives of adults. Experiencing the jarring nature of being removed from our familiar surrounding, when combined with these other practices, is one of the most powerful ways to look below the tip of the iceberg. Those of us with opportunities to travel abroad are entrusted with an amazing resource for deepening our interpretive CQ.”
— David Livermore in
Cultural Intelligence: Improving Your CQ to Engage With Our Multicultural World
Our Story
In the Beyond Tourism logo, you’ll see a paper crane, a symbol of peace and hope inspired by the story of Sadako Sasaki.
Sadako Sasaki was a young girl in Hiroshima when the atomic bomb fell. Like many others, she later developed what became known as ‘A-bomb disease.’ While in hospital, a friend told her that if she folded 1,000 paper cranes, she would be granted a wish. Sadako folded more than 1,000 before she passed away.
In 2017, I had the opportunity to visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and the Children’s Peace Monument, which was built in Sadako’s honour in the 1950s. Seeing thousands of cranes from around the world left a lasting impression on me.
At Beyond Tourism, we believe that genuine connection across cultures has the power to change the world. It isn’t always easy, it’s far more comfortable to stay within our own cultural bubbles, but real growth happens when we step beyond them. Beyond Tourism helps you examine your cultural behaviors and learn to adapt. Whether you’re travelling abroad, working in a multicultural team, or supporting your local community, your new cultural intelligence skills will help you find the true riches of the world—its people.
