In this episode, Despina sits down with Kelly Kuhn, the experience maker behind Juggle House Experiences and River Murray Dark Sky Tours in regional South Australia. Kelly shares her journey from a country farm and a tourism degree into government policy roles, local council leadership as deputy mayor, and ultimately into running not one but two award-winning tourism businesses. She opens up about the pivotal meeting that launched her into astro tourism, the resilience required to survive COVID and one-in-one-hundred-year Murray River floods just as her business was finding its feet, and the deeply emotional moments when guests see the Milky Way for the first time and burst into tears. Along the way Kelly unpacks what regional collaboration really looks like when competitors become partners, why protecting your peace matters as much as building your business, and how place-making, agritourism, and community can turn a dark night sky into something worth heritage listing for future generations.
In this episode you’ll learn:
- How a single meeting of five competitors in a motel room sparked a whole new astro tourism industry, and why they chose collaboration over a competitive SWOT analysis
- Why trusting your gut and acting fast matters more than a perfect risk management plan when crisis hits, and how Kelly worked through “plan E” during the floods
- The moment data revealed stargazing was 52% of her business, and why she gave it its own identity as a separate company
- How saying no and protecting your peace beats an unhealthy hustle, plus the daily habits that keep her grounded
- Why “progress, not perfection” and asking for help early can break the paralysis that holds so many operators back
- How astro tourism and nocturism are opening new income streams for farmers through agritourism during drought
- The difference between “blue deep thinking time” and “red action time,” and how to find when you are most productive
Episode Chapters
00:00 New Year Welcome
01:28 Kelly Tourism Origins
04:30 Leadership and Empathy
07:29 Dark Sky Spark
11:32 Resilience in Crisis
18:24 Turning Points and Awards
23:22 Observatory and Placemaking
27:48 Excellence Round Pricing
31:00 Habits Tools and Books
36:19 Favorite Travel Memory
38:53 Connect and Closing
Connect with Kelly Khun:
Juggle House Experiences: https://www.jugglehouse.com.au/
River Murray Dark Sky Tours – https://www.rivermurraydarkskytours.com.au/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kuhnkelly/
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Show hosted by Despina Karatzias and brought to you in association with the Institute of Excellence and the Australian Regional Tourism Network.
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