Search
Menu
Back
Close
Safari Sto Gran Tour

Yes, we're a tour operator, but like, more

Like… a travel workshop!
Banana
Like… a travel workshop!
There are no boards of directors in suits and ties deciding which trips to sell you here. Here there are maps on the table, a moka pot on the stove and loads of ideas in the air. Sto Gran Tour is a travel workshop. And we want to stay that way: craftspeople, not an industry.

We were born under the stars of Ethiopia

While crossing the country by tuk-tuk at 30 km/h, between meetings with local communities, nights in a tent in the middle of nowhere and skies we'd never seen before. At some point, there it was, the questionable idea: “hey, what if we created…” and ta-daaaa.

Wander around this page to find out who we are, what we want (spoiler: to stay small) and the pros who'll take you on the best trip of your life.
Gabriele on a tuk-tuk

Here's who came up with this gran idea

Gabriele and Erica are travelers first, founders second. Basically, ask either of them for an alignment meeting and they'll dial in from Botswana while fording the Okavango.
Gabriele Saluci

Gabriele Saluci

Co-founder, signs papers he doesn't read
He's 1% water and 99% TNT. When he explodes, he creates things. A source of inspiration for the team, who follow him at their own risk. He's a black belt in problem solving: he doesn't think twice before ditching broken-down 4x4s in the desert. Impulsive? You be the judge.

A lifelong traveler: as a kid he cycled from Iceland to Morocco, but it wore him out so much that he swore off physical effort forever. So he climbed into 4x4s to cross Africa instead. A Botswana ranger and airplane pilot, he loves high-fiving sea lions and whispering to elephants. His real job, besides founding Sto Gran Tour, is documentary maker and director of his own show “Viaggi al rallentatore” on Rai 3, on air since 2015. Oh, and on top of all that he's a safari guide too, just to be on the safe side.

Erica Rossi

Co-founder, signs papers she does read
She says she toured Malawi by bike and we believe her: we've seen her in the “Viaggi al rallentatore” series on Rai 3 too. She pulls all the strings at Sto Gran Tour and is Gabriele's personal caregiver. Basically, she makes sure he comes back alive from every trip. She looks after the whole team too, but sadly nobody looks after Erica, and since the co-founder seat is already taken by her, we leave her to fend for herself.

A traveler and FGASA safari guide (yep, that's the acronym), she can identify every animal poop in the savanna. Her mantra might come in handy: “if it's a Civettictis civetta, lovely. If you find a leopard's, drop everything and run to the car.”
Erica Rossi

Some big milestones on our journey

"Wait, hold on, where did we end up?!"
Iceland and bikes

Iceland and bikes

Gabriele sets off from Turin and cycles around Iceland. Not satisfied, the following year he rides from Turin all the way to Morocco. He starts documenting his trips for Sky.
We want to be like the diner around the corner
Simple, good, welcoming. At the diner they call you by name, top up your glass and ask how your day went. That's how we do things, on our trips too: a few destinations, carefully planned itineraries and the right people to share the table with at base camp.
Plate with some bread Plate with some bread Plate with some bread

We'll never be a fast food joint

A tour operator selling cookie-cutter trips
Copy-paste itineraries aren't our thing. We like making them by hand to give every trip its own identity.
A tour operator fighting on price
We don't race to the bottom, we work with love. We'd rather build awesome stuff, not just discounts.
A tour operator that only wants to grow
We don't want to become giants. We want to stay small so we stay attentive.
A tour operator chasing trends
We don't chase the latest viral destination. We go where it makes sense to go, not where everyone else goes.
The ones keeping the show on the road.
Hi, nice to meet you!
The ones in the photo
(and whoever was locked in the bathroom)
And them, our gran team leaders
Taking you to do awesome stuff around the world is their job, not their hobby.

Want to become a team leader?

We're always looking for curious, responsible people who are ready to experience a trip from the organizing side too. If you have peculiar obsessions, like chewing rhino dung, well, you've got a problem. And we like you!
Let's meet

We have a travel philosophy

In a few words: we travel to get dirty, get scraped up and become more. In a lot of words, there's this video.
Download the manifesto
Our philosophy
The washing machine
a newsletter with no fabric softener
Chats with adventurers and loose thoughts on travel while we wait for the spin cycle to finish. Sometimes you even find a forgotten discount in your pocket.
Sign up for Sta Gran Newsletter

What the people who traveled with us say