We travel
like guests.
Meridian is a nineteen-person company in Lisbon that runs about forty departures a year. We are not trying to be the biggest — only the most welcome.
Our story
One route, a borrowed van, and a rule we never broke.
In 2009, Ines Ferreira led six friends along a shepherd's path in Serra da Estrela. She charged them the cost of diesel and dinner, and promised the farmer whose land they crossed a share of whatever came next. That promise became a policy: every route is co-designed and co-owned with the people who live on it.
Sixteen years on, we run forty departures a year across thirty-four countries. The groups are still twelve. The guides are still local. And the ledgers — carbon, water, community spend — are still published after every trip, including the parts that don't flatter us.
We are a small company by choice. Growth for us means deeper relationships in fewer places, not more flags on a map.
“The measure of a trip isn't how far you went. It's whether the place would have you back.”
Founder & lead guide
34
Countries on the roster
62
Local guides, all year
81%
Of trip spend stays local
1%
Of revenue to the wild
What we hold to
Four rules we've never traded away.
They cost us margin, speed and a few destinations. They're also the reason our guides stay.
Local first
Guides, cooks, drivers and hosts come from the region. No exceptions, no fly-in contractors.
Twelve, not twenty
Small groups cost more to run. They're also the only ones villages invite back.
Publish the numbers
Carbon, water and local spend go out with every post-trip letter. Bad news included.
Slow by design
Fewer kilometres, longer stays. Two nights minimum anywhere we sleep.
The people
Nine in Lisbon. Sixty-two in the field.
Ines Ferreira
Founder & lead guide
Twenty years in the Iberian high country. Still packs the same dented thermos.
Tomas Berg
Head of expeditions
Former alpine rescue. Builds routes the way he builds ropes — with slack and care.
Amara Okoye
Sustainability director
Keeps our ledgers honest, and our suppliers honest too. Owns a very large spreadsheet.
Jonas Lind
Logistics & safety
Permits, weather windows, and the calm voice on the satellite phone.
Milestones
A slow, deliberate sixteen years.
-
2009
Six friends, one valley
The first Meridian walk in Serra da Estrela, led by Ines with a borrowed van and a shared bill.
-
2014
The first ledger
We published carbon and community-spend figures for every departure — years before it was expected.
-
2018
The guide school
A paid, year-long training programme with eighteen graduates now leading their own routes.
-
2026
Forty departures, thirty-four countries
Still twelve travellers a trip. Still publishing the numbers. Still no brochure.
Come walk with people who live there.
Tell us what kind of quiet you're looking for. We'll answer within two working days.