Challenging limits, changing lives: Amar Latif's journey through sightless travel
After losing his sight at the age of 18, Amar Latif refused to let blindness define his future.
From overcoming rejection in the corporate world to leading finance teams at British Telecom, his resilience quickly became his trademark. But it wasn't enough - something was missing.
Driven by a passion for independence and discovery, Amar recognised a glaring gap in the industry. Mainstream tour operators dismissed him, assuming blindness meant dependence.
So, in 2004, he founded Traveleyes - the world's first commercial tour company for blind and sighted travellers.
Through Traveleyes, Amar has empowered thousands to embrace life through shared journeys and unforgettable experiences.
His work has made him one of the UK's most inspiring Adventure & Exploration speakers, redefining what's possible at every turn.
In this exclusive interview with The Champions Speakers Agency, Amar shares how he challenged expectations, reshaped travel for the blind community, and found humour and humanity in every obstacle he faced.
Q: You built a successful career in finance before launching Traveleyes. What was the turning point that led you to create a travel company for blind and sighted people?
Amar Latif: “After a successful career at British Telecom, I was really satisfied with my job, and I loved it. You know, heading up a commercial finance division in charge of fully sighted accountants. When I was told that I couldn't even become an accountant.
“And so it's hugely satisfying. But I felt that something was missing in my life, and it was travel. I had studied for my third year in Canada, so I'd caught the travel bug then, and I hadn't had much chance to travel.
“When I became blind, I had two problems. The first was the obvious one, you know, I was blind. But secondly, I hadn't seen much of the world. And I knew that there was just beauty all around, and I was damned if I was gonna let blindness stop me from seeing it.
“So, when I approached mainstream travel companies, they rejected me and said that if I was to travel, I needed to bring a caterer with me. But I didn't think I needed a caterer.
“And then I realised that, in this world, if you want something that doesn't exist, you've got two choices, either you do without, which I wasn't prepared to do, or you have to build it yourself.
“So back in 2004, I set up the world's first international tour operator called Traveleyes.”
Q: Since launching Traveleyes in 2004, how have you seen it change perceptions of blindness and empower the visually impaired to experience the world independently?
Amar Latif: “I guess it's provided the opportunity to the blind travellers not only to travel the world, to realise they can see the world, that they can be out on their own, independent of their family and friends.
“Because that's how we work, they just book a holiday by the sight travellers. And it gives them the opportunity to get out there and squeeze life for all that it's got.
“I mean, so many of our travellers before Traveleyes had never been on holiday before. I remember I was tour-managing this group to Cuba, and I sat next to my assistant Hannah. And she said, ‘Did you realise that Bob, who's in his mid-sixties, has never been on a plane before?’
“I took my seatbelt off before the plane took off, and I ran up to him and said, ‘Bob, you've never travelled on a plane before?’
“He said, ‘Yes, that's right.’
“I said, ‘What do you think is going to happen?’ He goes, ‘Well, the plane's going to taxi along the runway.’ ‘Okay, and then what?’ ‘Well then, I'm hoping that the plane takes off and the lovely stewardess comes over and brings me a nice large drink.’
“I was like, ‘Okay.’
“But the blind travellers are one of my greatest sources of inspiration - and the sighted travellers as well. They're all helping each other do amazing things.
“You know, the sighted travellers are out there - most of them never met a blind person before - and they're standing at this beautiful vista describing, with so much passion and love, what they can see to the blind travellers.
“And the blind travellers are really getting them energised and taking them out of their guidebooks and cameras, because we're all living in a world where we're taking Instagram shots, so we don't really feel present at the moment. And they're getting them to engage with things.
“And often, like, I'm out on trips, and when you offer the group the chance to do adventurous things like go skydiving, I'm often there leading six blind people onto a plane to go skydiving, when the sighted are just happy to stand on the beach watching these blind people coming down from the sky.”
Q: Building meaningful connections in the workplace and beyond can be challenging without visual cues. How did you navigate those early dynamics and overcome social preconceptions?
Amar Latif: “We've done like, you know, I'd go into the office, and I wouldn't be able to see my colleagues. So sometimes I didn't know my boss was sitting there, and I would sometimes think, right, now he's not there, so I won't say good morning.
“And then he'd say good morning, like, ‘Oh, good morning!’, you know, I just felt a bit rude.
“The other days, when I thought, okay, I'll just say good morning, and he wouldn't be there, and I'd feel really silly, thinking that the whole office had just heard me say good morning to the chair.
“And when I first started there, they were all working on a secret mission. They were all going off training to do something - I didn't know what it was - and apparently, they were trying to do the Three Peaks.
“And they didn't think about asking me because they thought, this poor blind guy, how is he gonna do it? Anyway, I found out they were doing it.
“And then, within a matter of weeks (I'm so competitive), I went out. I didn't even train for it, but my friend said, look, I'll go and find a quick way of doing the Three Peaks that might work for you.
“These are the ones in the Yorkshire Dales. And I actually ended up doing the Three Peaks, getting a picture on each summit, and putting it on my desk.
“And the team was like, ‘Oh, where are these pictures from?’ I was like, ‘Oh, I just did the Three Peaks over the weekend.’ Brilliant. My way of dealing with people's preconceptions is humour, and people get the idea.
“You know, there are moments when, as a blind person, I'm walking down the street, and some old lady will come and grab me and take me across the road. And then she'll be like, ‘Are you all right, love?’ And I'll be like, ‘Yes, but I didn't want to cross the road in the first place.’
“You know, we have a laugh about it. But then, you know, that's the key thing, you don't feel on edge that you're gonna do the wrong thing.
“You know, if you've never met someone who's blind before or has a disability, just be upfront. Like, ‘Not met anybody, you know, that's blind before, just let me know what I need to do,’ rather than walking on shells and thinking, ‘I mustn't say the wrong thing.’
“You know, that way it's not productive. And I'd say to employers that that's really important as well. They get cards on the table and just say, ‘Look, how would you actually do this?’
“You know, because I'm a blind entrepreneur. I'll come across obstacles all the time, just like any other entrepreneur.”
This exclusive interview with Amar Latif was conducted by Megan Lupton of The Motivational Speakers Agency.
READ NEXT: Seven things to do and see in Ohio as IndyCar races at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
