Kensington expands Ancestry partnership, adds heritage itineraries

Kensington has expanded its partnership with Ancestry and launched new Personal Heritage Journeys, offering travellers privately guided trips based on their family histories.

Launched in March 2021, the program pairs a Kensington Destination Expert with a genealogist from AncestryProGenealogists. 

Using DNA insights and genealogical research, the pair develops a custom itinerary focused on locations and events connected to the traveller’s family.

“The most meaningful journeys are personal, shaped not only by where someone travels, but by why that place matters to them,” said Helen Giontsis, president of Kensington. 

“By expanding our work with AncestryProGenealogists®, we can help more travellers experience the places connected to their family history through journeys designed entirely around their individual discoveries.”

Trips are led by local private guides who specialize in the history and culture of the destination. 

Travellers can also add an onsite genealogist to provide further context during the journey.

Three research options are available, ranging from foundational genealogical work to a more comprehensive investigation of a family tree and history.

"Family history takes on a whole new meaning when you can experience it beyond names and dates—by walking the streets your ancestors knew, visiting the places that shaped their lives and seeing firsthand where your story began," said Kyle Betit, travel program manager and senior genealogist at Ancestry. 

"Through our work with Kensington, the discoveries uncovered through DNA and family trees become deeply personal journeys rooted in each traveller’s unique history. "

The expanded collection includes new and updated itineraries in Sicily, Italy, Ireland, Japan, Germany, Scotland, Poland, England and Ghana.

In Sicily, itineraries could incorporate genealogical records in Palermo, ancestral towns and agricultural land connected to a family’s history. 

A full day with a genealogist helps travellers connect historical records with specific places.

The Ghana itinerary examines connections to the African diaspora and the transatlantic slave trade, incorporating DNA research and visits to sites including the Doors of No Return. 

It also features Accra, Kumasi and Elmina with local guides.

A new Ireland itinerary runs from Dublin through Belfast, Derry-Londonderry and Donegal before ending in Galway. 

Experiences may include the Ulster American Folk Park, churches, ancestral land and time with a genealogist.

For travellers with Jewish roots in Poland, a dedicated itinerary includes Warsaw’s Old Jewish Cemetery, Krakow’s Kazimierz Jewish Quarter, the former Lodz Ghetto, Oskar Schindler’s factory and the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum. 

Private guides provide historical context throughout the journey.

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