When Fazleen Nazri started going on hiking trips, she never thought of turning it into an adventure club. She was just someone who enjoyed the outdoors and frequently ventured out of her comfort zone.
The more she travelled, though, the more she saw its viability.
It began with her friends asking to join on hiking trips, both in and out of Malaysia. Then those friends invited their other pals and relatives. Each time, she would host a bigger crowd with new faces.
Eventually, without her realising it, the adventure club formed itself and she was at the helm of it.
What else was she to do but seize the opportunity? That’s the tale of how PajelinTrip got its rather impromptu start.
Fun fact: The name PajelinTrip was created by Fazleen’s friend because “Pajelin” sounds like Fazleen.
A safe space for ladies
Established in 2017, the adventure club is a space where women can experience the outdoors without fearing for their safety.
Speaking candidly, Fazleen shared that she understands the issues the fairer sex faces, particularly when you’re out of the house. “Some women experience sexual harassment [and] uncomfortable flirting when outdoors or during travel activities.”
It’s a common issue around the world and has unfortunately caused many women to forgo having such hobbies.
This is what Fazleen is hoping to change through PajelinTrip. By providing a comfortable environment for women, her aim is to encourage girls to break the cycle and try something new.
As such, the adventure club offers a few programmes to choose from: Women Camp, Women Trip, and group hikes.
For Women Camp, it’s an all-inclusive experience so you don’t have to bring anything but yourself and your personal belongings. There is a participation fee but the camping trip is all-inclusive where camping equipment and food will be provided. Fazleen’s team of two also furnishes the tents with air mattresses for comfort.
The hiking trips are similar, where most aspects are covered by Fazleen and her team. All you need to do is bring along a sense of adventure.
Building a community from the ground up
On the other hand, the Women Trip is for leisure travels. The team will prepare transportation, accommodation, and a tour guide throughout the vacation.
If you think this sounds similar to a travel agency, you wouldn’t be alone. You still have to fork out your share to join these activities. But the founder clarified that the brand sees itself as more of a community that organises events.
This is because all of the club’s activities are founded on the basis of building close relationships with each other. Before any adventures happen, the team hosts classes with participants at its studio in Kelana Jaya.
These gatherings are meant as briefings to explain the itinerary and give some background knowledge for hikes and camps. But more importantly, it’s to foster connections amongst new and existing club members.
Essentially, the idea is to ensure that you know each other before the trip. Because let’s be real, travelling with strangers can make a trip awkward and uncomfortable.
So far this strategy seems to be working. Fazlees even shared that many of the club members have become friends outside of PajelinTrip as well. In fact, the only crew member aside from Fazleen and her co-founder (who prefers to remain anonymous) was once a client.
A speech therapist by day, Siti Fatimah joined the adventure club back in 2020 before the pandemic happened. She wanted a medium that allowed her to be comfortable outdoors and fell in love with the community it built.
Going all in ’cause it’s now or never
Thus far, PajelinTrip has brought groups of people to visit various places such as Kota Kinabalu in Sabah, Mount Rinjani in Indonesia, and Annapurna in Nepal last year.
Its participants come from a wide range of age groups as Fazleen doesn’t discriminate. They’ve even had a 60-year-old woman join one of their camping trips alone. Again, this is where the community comes in as moral and emotional support.
“They know that they can rely on us when they reach the campsite for safety and privacy,” Fazleen stated.
Up until the third quarter of 2023, Fazleen was running PajelinTrip as a passion project on the side. But six years into the club’s founding, she finally took a leap of faith and left her career in the accounting industry.
“It was about time for me to try and give myself the space to pursue this as a business. I think if I don’t try it, I won’t know [if it will work out],” Fazleen confided.
Looking at how the club has grown over the years, though, there’s certainly a demand for PajelinTrip’s services. It’s possible that we’ll see more brands tailoring services for women mushrooming in the coming years (or even months), but if they’re just there to profit, they might have their work cut out for them.
As Fazleen put it, “We don’t sell the [adventure] packages, we sell the bonding experience.”
Featured Image Credit: PajelinTrip
