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Great Travel Writing Examples from World Renowned Travel Writers

Are you ready to be a better travel writer? One of the best ways to do this is to read great travel writing examples from great travel writers.

Writing about travel in a way that keeps your reader reading is not always easy. Knowing how to write an irresistible first paragraph to entice the reader to keep reading is key. Writing a lede paragraph that convinces the reader to finish the article, story or book is great travel writing.  This article features travel writing examples from award-winning travel writers, top-selling books, New York Times travel writers, and award-winning travel blogs.

Ads are how we pay our bills and keep our blog free for you to enjoy. We also use affiliate links; if you make a purchase through them, we may receive a small commission at no cost to you.

The writers featured in this article are some of my personal favorite travel writers. I am lucky to have met most of them in person and even luckier to consider many friends. Many I have interviewed on my podcast and have learned writing tips from their years of travel writing, editing and wisdom.

11 Great Travel Writing Examples

Writing with feeling, tone, and point of view creates a compelling story. Below are examples of travel writing that include; first paragraphs, middle paragraphs, and final paragraphs for both travel articles as well as travel books.

I hope the below examples of travel writing inspire you to write more, study great travel writing and take your writing to a higher level.

Writing Example of a Travel Book Closing Paragraphs

Don George is the author of the award-winning anthology The Way of Wanderlust: The Best Travel Writing of Don George , and the best-selling travel writing guide in the world: How to Be a Travel Writer .

He is currently Editor at Large for National Geographic Travel, and has been Travel Editor at the San Francisco Examiner-Chronicle, Salon, and Lonely Planet.

I had the wonderful opportunity to see Don speak at Tbex and read from one of his books as well as interview him on the Break Into Travel Writing podcast. You can listen to the full podcast here .

Below is the closing of Don’s ebook: Wanderlust in the Time of Coronavirus: Dispatches from a Year of Traveling Close to Home

I continued hiking up to Lost Trail and then along Canopy View Trail. Around noon I serendipitously came upon a bench by the side of the trail, parked my backpack, and unpacked my lunch. Along with my sandwiches and carrot sticks, I feasted on the tranquility and serenity, the sequoia-swabbed purity of the air, the bird and brook sounds and sun-baked earth and pine needle smells, the sunlight slanting through the branches, the bright patch of blue sky beyond.

At one point I thought of shinrin-yoku, forest bathing, the Japanese practice that has become widely popular in the U.S. This was a perfect example of shinrin-yoku, I thought: Here I am, alone in this forest, immersed in the sense and spirit of these old-growth redwoods, taking in their tranquility and timelessness, losing myself to their sheer size and age and their wild wisdom that fills the air.

I sat there for an hour, and let all the trials, tremors, and tribulations of the world I had left in the parking lot drift away. I felt grounded, calm, quiet—earth-bound, forest-embraced.

In another hour, or two, I would walk back to the main paved trail, where other pilgrims would be exclaiming in awe at the sacred sequoias, just as I had earlier that day.

But for now, I was content to root right here, on this blessed bench in the middle of nowhere, or rather, in the middle of everywhere, the wind whooshing through me, bird-chirps strung from my boughs, toes spreading under scratchy pine needles into hard-packed earth, sun-warmed canopy reaching for the sky, aging trunk textured by time, deep-pulsing, in the heart of Muir Woods.

• You can read the whole story here: Old Growth: Hiking into the Heart of Muir Woods
• Please also download Don’s free ebook here:  Wanderlust in the Time of Coronavirus
• In addition to writing and editing, Don speaks at conferences, lectures on tours around the world, and teaches travel writing workshops through www.bookpassage.com .

Writing Example of a Travel Book Intro Paragraphs

Francis tapon.

Francis Tapon , author of Hike Your Own Hike and The Hidden Europe , also created a TV series and book called The Unseen Africa, which is based on his five-year journey across all 54 African countries.

He is a three-time TEDx speaker. His social media username is always FTapon. I interviewed Francis on the Break Into Travel Writing podcast about “How to Find An Original Point of View as a Travel Writer “. You can listen to the full podcast here .

Below is the opening of Francis’ book, The Hidden Europe:

“This would be a pretty lousy way to die,” I thought.

I was locked in an outhouse with no way out. Outhouses sometimes have two latches—one on the outside and one on the inside. The outside latch keeps the door shut to prevent rodents and other creatures who like hanging out in crap from coming in. Somehow, that outer latch accidentally closed, thereby locking me in this smelly toilet. I was wearing a thin rain jacket. The temperature was rapidly dropping.

“This stinks,” I mumbled. It was midnight, I was above the Arctic Circle, and the temperatures at night would be just above freezing. There was no one around for kilometers. If I didn’t get out, I could freeze to death in this tiny, smelly, fly-infested shithole.

My mom would kill me if I died so disgracefully. She would observe that when Elvis died next to a toilet, he was in Graceland. I, on the other hand, was in Finland, not far from Santa Claus. This Nordic country was a jump board for visiting all 25 nations in Eastern Europe.

You can find his book on Amazon: The Hidden Europe: What Eastern Europeans Can Teach Us

For $2 a month, you can get Francis’ book as he writes it: Patreon.com/ftapon

Intro (Lede) Paragraph Examples of Great Travel Writing Articles

Michele peterson.

Former banking executive Michele Peterson is a multi-award-winning travel and food writer who divides her time between Canada, Guatemala, and Mexico (or the nearest tropical beach).

Former banking executive Michele Peterson is a multi-award-winning travel and food writer who divides her time between Canada, Guatemala, and Mexico (or the nearest tropical beach). Her writing has appeared in Lonely Planet’s Mexico from the Source cookbook, National Geographic Traveler, Conde Nast’s Gold List, the Globe and Mail, Fifty-five Plus and more than 100 other online and print publications.

She blogs about world cuisine and sun destinations at A Taste for Travel website. I met Michele on my first media trip that took place in Nova Scotia, Canada. I also had the pleasure of interviewing about “ Why the Odds are in Your Favor if you Want to Become a Travel Writer” . You can listen to the full podcast here .

Michele’s Lede Paragraph Travel Writing Example

I’m hiking through a forest of oak trees following a farmer who is bleating like a pied piper. Emerging from a gully is a herd of black Iberian pigs, snuffling in response. If they weren’t so focused on following the swineherd, I would run for the hills. These pigs look nothing like the pink-cheeked Babe of Hollywood fame.

These are the world’s original swine, with lineage dating back to the Paleolithic Stone Age period where the earliest humans decorated Spain’s caves with images of wild boars. Their powerful hoofs stab the earth as they devour their prized food, the Spanish bellota acorn, as fast as the farmer can shake them from the tree with his long wooden staff. My experience is part of a culinary journey exploring the secrets of producingjamón ibérico de Bellota, one of the world’s finest hams.

You can read the full article here: Hunting for Jamón in Spain

Perry Garfinkel

Perry Garfinkel has been a journalist and author for an unbelievable 40 years, except for some years of defection into media/PR communications and consulting.

He is a contributor to The New York Times since the late ’80s, writing for many sections and departments. He has been an editor for, among others, the Boston Globe, the Middlesex News, and the Martha’s Vineyard Times.

He’s the author of the national bestseller “ Buddha or Bust: In Search of the Truth, Meaning, Happiness and the Man Who Found Them All ” and “ Travel Writing for Profit and Pleasure “.

Perry has been a guest on my podcast twice. He gave a “ Master Class in Travel Writing ” you can listen to the full podcast here . He also shared “ How to Find Your Point Of View as a Travel Writer ” you can listen to the full episode here .

Perry’s Lede Travel Article Example from the New York Times

SAN FRANCISCO — A block off Grant Avenue in San Francisco’s Chinatown – beyond the well-worn path tourists take past souvenir shops, restaurants and a dive saloon called the Buddha Bar – begins a historical tour of a more spiritual nature. Duck into a nondescript doorway at 125 Waverly Place, ascend five narrow flights and step into the first and oldest Buddhist temple in the United States.

At the Tien Hau Temple, before an intricately carved gilded wooden shrine and ornate Buddha statues, under dozens of paper lanterns, Buddhists in the Chinese tradition still burn pungent incense and leave offerings to the goddess Tien Hau in return for the promise of happiness and a long life.

You can read the full article here: Taking a Buddhist pilgrimage in San Francisco

Elaine Masters

Elaine Masters apologizes for pissing off fellow travelers while tracking story ideas, cultural clues, and inspiring images but can’t resist ducking in doorways or talking with strangers.

She’s recently been spotted driving her hybrid around the North American West Coast and diving cenotes in the Yucatan. Founder of Tripwellgal.com, Elaine covers mindful travel, local food, overlooked destinations and experiences. Elaine was a guest on my podcast where we spoke about “ How to Master the CVB Relationship “. You can listen to the full podcast here .

Elaine’s Lede Example

I jiggered my luggage onto the escalator crawling up to the street. As it rose into the afternoon light, an immense shadow rose over my shoulder. Stepping onto the sidewalk, I burst into giggles, looking like a madwoman, laughing alone on the busy Barcelona boulevard.  The shadow looming overhead was the Sagrada Familia Cathedral. It had mesmerized me forty years earlier and it was the reason I’d finally returned to Spain.

You can read the full article here: Don’t Miss Going Inside Sagrada Familia, Barcelona’s Beloved Cathedral

Along with his wife, photographer Mary Gabbett, Bret Love is the Co-Founder/Editor In Chief of Green Global Travel and the Blue Ridge Mountains Travel Guide.

He’s also an award-winning writer whose work has been featured by more than 100 publications around the world, including National Geographic, Rolling Stone, American Way, the Washington Post, and the New York Times.

Bret’s Lede Example

Congo Square is quiet now. Traffic forms a dull drone in the distance. A lone percussionist taps out ancient tribal rhythms on a two-headed drum. An air compressor from Rampart Street road construction provides perfectly syncopated whooshes of accompaniment.

Shaded park benches are surrounded by blooming azaleas, magnolias, and massive live oaks that stretch to provide relief from the blazing midday sun. It’s an oasis of solitude directly across the street from the French Quarter.

Congo Square is quiet now. But it’s here that the seeds of American culture as we know it were sown more than 200 years ago. And the scents, sounds, and sights that originated here have never been more vital to New Orleans than they are now, more than a decade after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city.

You can read the full article here: Treme, New Orleans (How Congo Square Was The Birthplace Of American Culture)

Middle Paragraph Examples of Great Travel Writing Articles

Mariellen ward.

Canadian travel writer and blogger Mariellen Ward runs the award-winning travel site Breathedreamgo.com , inspired by her extensive travels in India.

She has been published in leading media outlets worldwide and offers custom tours to India through her company India for Beginners. Though Canadian by birth, Mariellen considers India to be her “soul culture” and she is passionate about encouraging mindful travel.

Mariellen’s Middle Paragraph Example

While the festival atmosphere swirled around me, I imbued my  diya with hope for personal transformation. I had come to India because a river of loss had run through my life, and I had struggled with grief, despair and depression for eight years. I felt I was clinging to the bank, but the effort was wearing me out. Deciding to leave my life and go to India was like letting go of the bank and going with the flow of the river. I had no idea where it would lead me, what I would learn or how I would change. I only knew that it was going to be big.

You can read the full article here: The River: A tale of grief and healing in India

Joe Baur is an author and filmmaker from Cleveland currently based in Berlin. His work has appeared in a variety of international publications, including BBC Travel, National Geographic, and Deutsche Welle.

He regularly reports for the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and is the author of Talking Tico detailing his year of living in Costa Rica and traveling around Central America. I interviewed Joe about “ How to Find Unique Travel Stories “. You can listen to the full podcast here .

Joe Baur’s Middle Paragraph Example

I first became aware of the Harz mountains and the Brocken when reading the works of some of Germany’s great writers, like Goethe and Heinrich Heine. Legends of witches congregating with the devil being the main theme of the mountain’s mythology. I, however, was more interested in a refreshing time spent in nature rather than reveling with the devil.

The first stage from Osterode to Buntenbock was a warm-up to the more rigorous stages ahead. It began on sidewalks before sliding into the forest sporting a healthy shade of green — a gentle jaunt that made my hiking boots feel a bit like overkill given the dry, pleasant weather.

You can read the full article here: Follow the witch through the forest: 5 days hiking Germany’s Harz

Samantha Shea

Samantha is a freelance travel writer with bylines in Matador Network, GoNomad and more. She also runs the travel blog Intentional Detours which provides thorough guides and tales related to offbeat adventure travel in South Asia and beyond.

When she’s not writing she enjoys cycling, hiking, the beach, as well as language learning.

Samantha Shea’s Middle Paragraph Example

Suddenly, the spark of a match pulsed through the early-fall afternoon and my head snapped towards the men. Amir touched the flame to an unidentifiable object that seconds later made itself known by the deep earthy scent of Pakistani hashish.

Amir’s ice blue eyes focused intently on his creation: a combination of tobacco and nuggets of greenish-brown charas. He forced the mixture back into the cigarette, before bringing it to his pursed lips, flicking the match, and setting flame to his high.

I reached out from the cot to take my turn and took a deep inhale, acutely pleased. I savored the familiar burn of the drag, the rows and rows of corn and apple plants in front of me, the stuttered cacophony of animal exclamations behind me, and the generosity of the men to my left, some of whom we had just met an hour before.

You can read the full article here: Thall Tales: A Hazy Afternoon in Thall, Pakistan

Final Paragraph Example of Great Travel Writing Articles

Cassie bailey.

Cassie is a travel writer who has solo backpacked around Asia and the Balkans, and is currently based in Auckland. Alongside in-depth destination guides, her blog has a particular focus on storytelling, mental health, and neurodiversity.

Cassie’s Final Paragraphs Example

So my goal is to feel, I guess. And I don’t mean that in a dirty way (although obvz I do mean that in a dirty way too). This is why we travel, right? To taste crazy new foods and to feel the sea breeze against our skin or the burn on the back of our legs on the way down a mountain. We want to feel like shite getting off night buses at 4am and the sting of mosquito bites. We know we’re going to feel lost or frustrated or overwhelmed but we do it anyway. Because we know it’s worth it for the ecstasy of seeing a perfect view or making a new connection or finding shitty wine after a bad day.

My goal is never to become numb to all of this. To never kid myself into settling for less than everything our bodies allow us to perceive. I’m after the full human experience; every bit, every feeling.

You can read the full article here: Goals inspired by life as a solo backpacker

Lydia Carey

Lydia Carey is a freelance writer and translator based out of Mexico City who spends her time mangling the Spanish language, scouring the country for true stories and “researching” every taco stand in her neighborhood.

She is the author of “ Mexico City Streets: La Roma ,” a guide to one of Mexico City’s most eclectic neighborhoods and she chronicles her life in the city on her blog MexicoCityStreets.com .

Lydia’s Final Paragraphs Example

Guys from the barrio huddle around their motorcycles smoking weed and drinking forties. Entire families, each dressed as St. Jude, eat tacos al pastor and grilled corn on a stick. Police stand at a distance, keeping an eye on the crowd but trying not to get too involved.

After this celebration, many of the pilgrims will travel on to Puebla where they will visit some of the religious relics on display in the San Judas church there. But many more will simply go back to their trades—legal and illegal—hoping that their attendance will mean that San Judas protects them for another year, and that he has their back in this monster of a city.

You can read the full article here: San Judas de Tadeo: Mexico’s Defender of Lost Causes

I hope you enjoyed these examples of travel writing and they have inspired you to want to write more and write better! The next article that will be published is a follow-up to this and will include travel writing examples from my first travel writing teacher, Amanda Castleman. This article will include travel writing tips from Amanda and travel writing examples from her students as well as one from her own writing.

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Alexa Meisler is the editorial director of 52 Perfect Days. Born in Paris, France she has since lived in Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon. She currently resides in San Diego with her husband and son where they enjoy exploring California and Mexico.

Travel has always been a part of her life; traveling to such places as Morocco, Tangiers and Spain as a young child as well as taking many road trips to Mexico with her grandparents as a young girl. Since then, she has traveled abroad to locations such as Russia, Taiwan and throughout Europe.

Prior to working at 52 Perfect Days she was a freelance travel writer; focusing on family and women’s adventure experiences.

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Travel Writing Examples!

Anthony bianco – travel writing examples.

Hey, I’m a versatile kind of chap! I write in all sorts of styles and formats, both online and in print. I’ve listed a few travel writing examples on this page to give you an idea!

I really enjoy travel writing and have undertaken a number of press trips and famils , blogger trips and travel influencer campaigns .

Some of the places where my work has appeared has included a number of publications and industries, including:

Airline In-flight Magazines

Travel Insurance Content

Thought Leadership

Roadside Assistance

Travel Tips

Visa Information

I have a lot more where that came from.

I also have online content and SEO skills .

Give me a yell and contact me for more information!

6 examples of gorgeous travel writing

Inspiration to help your next travel blog, guidebook, or article stand out from the crowd.

We live on a wondrous, ever-changing planet— from alpine lakes and cloud forests to ancient cobblestoned cities.

The best travel writers can transport readers to these far-flung destinations, and to introduce them to new cultures and experiences. When done well, travel writing can be an insightful, thought-provoking and even life-changing genre of writing.

And with interactive content platforms, it’s possible for travel writers to create truly immersive reading experiences online. In this guide, we introduce six ideas — and examples of travel writing — to help you create beautiful, interactive travel stories.

Whether you're a beginner travel writer, a publisher, destination marketer, or freelance travel blogger, we've got plenty of inspiration to get you started.

What do the BBC, Tripadvisor, and Penguin have in common? They craft stunning, interactive web content with Shorthand. And so can you! Publish your first story for free — no code or web design skills required. Sign up now.

The features of great travel writing

The best travel writing is unique, but there are still some general guidelines you’ll want to follow to make your travel writing stand out from the pack. Here are some travel writing tips to help you compete with the best examples of the genre.

• Have a point of view. Great travel writers — from the travel books of Bill Bryson and John Steinbeck to the documentaries of Paul Theroux — all have very specific points of view that are difficult to copy. Find your voice, and your travel articles will truly sing.
• Take great photos. The best travel writing is visually immersive, using high resolution images and video to engage the reader’s senses. Even if you’re not creating a photo essay , modern travel writing relies of great visual assets.
• Use multimedia content where you can. If you can, create audio and video assets, too, and consider building out your story with a digital storytelling platform to use interactive features. Embed podcasts and clips to keep the reader engaged.
• Learn from the best. Keep track of longform feature stories in the New York Times and the Washington Post, and steal their techniques. (Good travel writers borrow, great travel writers steal, to butcher TS Eliot.)
• Create a beautiful web presence. We love the print Lonely Planet travel guides, but these days you need to produce stunningly engaging content on the web. Standards are high, but you’d be amazed what you can do with modern interactive content platforms.
• Provide a sense of adventure — even if you’re not strictly doing ‘adventure travel’. Whether you’re writing a first person travel memoir or writing about your backpacker’s trip through the Amazon, you want to keep your reader engaged with your travel experiences.
• Make it educational. Teach the reader something new about the world they’re exploring.
• Edit your work. The best travel writers kill their darlings and pay attention to details — hello, commas — knowing that this is how the best work is created.

Want to improve the efficiency of your writing process? Check out our list of the best writing tools .

Inspire readers and move them to action by exploring a location's unique history and culture. By focusing on just one place, your readers get the chance to experience it deeply through your words and imagery.

Intrepid Travel's Shorthand story 'Welcome to Olkola Country' is simple, yet effective. The highlight of the story is its elegant writing — a blend of reporting and personal narrative that explores the history, culture, and ecology of an ancestral land of the Olkola people in Australia. The story is elevated with thoughtful photos and videos, and ends with a call to action for the newly-inspired reader.

Looking for more inspiration? Check out our roundup of ten stunning photo essay examples .

The right images can make a story feel polished and inspired.

2 . Time travel

Taking readers back through historical moments is a great way to achieve more depth in your stories.

In the story The Museum of Atari, Mario and Electronic Childhood Dreams , Channel News Asia uses Shorthand to create a stunning visual story about a little-known museum of retro video games in Singapore. The highlight of the story is an interactive scrollytelling timeline about the history of video games, which is created using the Shorthand Reveal feature and animates a pixel character as the reader scrolls.

Our Reveal section allows animations like this to be controlled by the reader's scrolling.

3 . Immerse your reader

When words and photos simply aren't enough to convey the complexity of a travel story, add another layer of reader engagement using various forms of media.

The Sydney Opera House story  A Guide to Dance Rites uses multimedia to bring indigenous culture to life. With elements like animation, slideshows, and embedded audio clips, readers can feel fully immersed in one of Australia's most traditional dance competitions.

Embed your own code to add further customisation to your story.

With Shorthand, remember that you always have the option to add custom HTML to add further customisations to your stories. See a list of our recommended third party tools in this support document .

4 . Just the highlights

Not every trip allows for the luxury of time. In order to get the point across, sometimes a quick and to-the-point listicle is all that's necessary to deliver a clear and time-efficient message.

Mansion Global's story 6 Cities, 6 Continents takes a quick jaunt around the world to some of the best cities to buy a dream vacation home. The destinations are all tied together by an interactive map that tracks a route between the cities — a creative use of the Shorthand Reveal section .

Interactive maps can help connect different locations in your story.

5 . Keep it practical

Travel stories don't always need to inspire wanderlust or transport readers to far-flung destinations. Some of the most effective and important travel stories simply provide practical advice — whether that's how to exchange currency, say "thank you" in a foreign language, or avoid danger.

Travel Weekly's story Traveling While Female explores how female travellers can stay safe, and uses data to stress the importance of improving women's safety abroad. By displaying the data as interactive graphics, Travel Weekly draws extra emphasis to key statistics.

Make your data memorable by giving it special emphasis.

6. Zoom out

When you've written a couple of beautiful travel stories, what's next?

Tie together your creative vision by consolidating your stories into a single landing page. You can use Shorthand to create a home for all of your stories, whether that's by using our Collection section or by including links in other section types.

For example, Luxury Travel nests all of their feature content within a Shorthand story. The page takes advantage of our media-rich sections to create a scrolling archive of their beautiful travel stories.

Consolidate your features in a single Shorthand story.

There are myriad ways to turn a Shorthand story into a landing page. Here's another example from Perth Now, which takes a simple, colourful approach.

There are many ways to customise a Shorthand story to serve as a landing page.

Creating a unique online travel story can seem like a daunting task, but Shorthand's many easy-to-use features exist to help make your stories exceptional. There are thousands of destinations waiting to be written about, and we can't wait to see where your stories take us next.

Publish your first story free with Shorthand

Craft sumptuous content at speed. No code required.

Dan Linstead | 28 December 2021

10 top tips for writing inspiring travel articles.

Want to begin your travel writing career in 2022? Start with this advice – from having a clear storyline and using dialogue, to beginning with a killer first paragraph...

1. Have a clear storyline in mind

A trip is not a story in itself, it’s just a series of events. Some of these events will be interesting (you made it up Kilimanjaro!) and some will not (you arrived back at the airport on time).

That said, what makes an event interesting depends on the story you want to tell. A rriving back to the airport on time  could  be interesting, but only if your story was about how everything ran late while you were in Tanzania.

So, as a writer, your first job is to decide on the particular story you want to tell, and the events which make up that story, and ensuring all of those events are interesting or useful to the reader. 

To see the kinds of stories that get published, look at the bold line of introductory copy (known as ‘standfirsts’ in the trade) of articles in papers, magazines and websites. Try writing the standfirst for your own story, and then use it as your brief.

2. Make sure your article has a purpose or goal

Is crossing Costa Rica your goal or purpose? (Shutterstock)

Some trips have a physical objective (like reaching the top of Kilimanjaro, crossing Costa Rica, or seeing a tiger) that gives your article direction and purpose. The reader (hopefully) sticks with you because they want to know if you’ll achieve your goal.

But many trips don’t have an obvious goal. They are more about discovering a place, unpicking its history or meeting its people. In this case, create a personal goal to give your reader a sense of where you’re taking them.

Sentences like “I wanted to discover…” or “I was keen to understand…” give readers an idea of what’s to come, instead of you simply plunging them into the unknown.

3. Edit your experience to fit your story

Stories have characters, dialogue, pace, plot, suspense, drama – and all of those things need shaping and organising to hold the reader's attention.

Once you know your storyline, gather the experiences that fit it – and dump the rest. Most travel articles will be 1,000 to 2,000 words long. That's only 10 to 20 paragraphs, so you don’t have time for detours.

4. Write an irresistible first paragraph

You can start a travel article any way you like, as long as it grabs the reader’s attention. You can use drama, humour, dialogue, (or all three) – but those first sentences must grip like glue.

Many travel articles start in media res – in the thick of the story – and then backtrack to explain how you happened to be in this situation. Give this a try if you aren't sure of another way in.

Put yourself in the reader's shoes - what would grip you to keep reading? If you're unsure, our travel writing prompts   will help you get there.

5. Include dialogue

Saw a tiger on your trip? What did you have to say about it? (Shutterstock)

“Look! There! The tiger is on the prowl,” whispered Joseph. Or: "we could see the tigers heading off hunting." Which sentence is more interesting to read?

Dialogue brings a scene to life, gives personality to the people in your story, and allows you to convey important information in a punchy way. Whenever you travel, make notes of what people say and how they say it, so you can refer to your conversations accurately when you come to write your article.

6. Value the difference between 'show' and 'tell'

‘Showing’ and ‘telling’ are two everyday storytelling techniques you probably use without realising.

Showing is when you slow down your writing and describe a scene in detail – what you saw, tasted, heard, felt – you are showing the reader the world through your eyes. Telling is simply moving the story along: "We returned to the tents for a well-earned rest."

Articles typically switch repeatedly between the drama of ‘showing’ and the practical economy of ‘telling’ – you need both, so include a good mix in your feature.

7. Aim to entertain the reader, not impress them

Novice writers often try to pack their writing with complicated phrases or recherché nomenclature (like that). Fortunately, it's not necessary, as the point of an article is to entertain and inform the reader, not show off your literary prowess.

Good writers tend more to follow Hemingway’s maxim: “My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way.” That doesn’t mean you can’t be playful and experimental – just don’t do it at the reader’s expense.

8. Use vivid language to describe your surroundings

Travel articles are peppered with meaningless words and phrases: stunning, incredible, pretty, diverse; ‘land of contrasts’, ‘melting pot’, ‘bustling’. They surely apply to your destination, but they could also be applied to thousands of destinations worldwide.

We'd recommend trying to use language that is specific to what you’re describing, and which allows readers to paint a picture in their mind’s eye. Make an effort to switch up the descriptive words you use.

9. Leave signposts throughout the article

Where are you headed? Let the reader follow your journey (Shutterstock)

If you’re wandering around a strange country without a guidebook, you look for signposts. So do readers as they travel through your story. Every few paragraphs, tell them where you’re going next and remind them of your ultimate goal.

For example, you could write: ‘The next day we travelled from Tokyo to Hirosaki.’ Or you could signpost things a little, by writing: "It was tempting to linger in Tokyo’s restaurants, but my search for Japan’s best sake would next take me deep into the countryside." 'Aha', thinks the reader: I can see where this is going, and why – I’ll keep tagging along.

10. Give yourself time to finish

In an effort to include every fascinating tidbit, too may travel articles finish like a high-speed train hitting the buffers, leaving readers dazed and confused. With a paragraph to spare, put the brakes on and start setting up your conclusion.

Show your readers that the end is nigh. Think about where you started, and reflect on the journey. Try to sum up the experience. And - though it may well be true - come up with something more specific than, ‘I would just have to come back another time.’

More travel writing guidance:

How to turn your travel passion into a blog, a few key travel writing mistakes to avoid, the top travel blogs you must read, related articles, looking for inspiration.

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The Best Travel Writing of 2021: Our Favorite Stories of the Year

Tom Lowry , Skift

December 28th, 2021 at 1:30 AM EST

In a year when travel's recovery began, only to sputter, the pandemic was still a story for Skift that just kept giving. Our reporters and editors kept their heads down on crisis coverage, but shared some of the adrenaline too, on other worthy travel topics. Here's our team members' favorites, and how those stories came to be, in their own words.

The first year of the pandemic was an extraordinary achievement for Skift’s team of reporters and editors covering the unparalleled crisis in real time. Year two tested the mettle of the team in new ways, as glimmers of hope seesawed with the heartbreak of setbacks. But the journalism was no less exceptional in 2021.

As I am at this time every year, I am proud upon reflection of what Skift’s journalists accomplished. As is our tradition, I once again asked the difficult question of every reporter and editor who each produce a couple hundred stories a year: Which one was your favorite? They delivered, of course, explaining why the story was their favorite, and how it came to be.

We hope you find that our favorites are yours, too.

Edward Russell, Airlines Reporter

Behind-The-Scenes With American Demothballing Jets From Pandemic Storage

The Backstory: After writing so much about airlines pulling down their schedules, parking jets, and threatening to furlough staff, it was refreshing to actually see how airlines were recovering. In this case, how American Airlines put their jets back in the air to be ready for the then-forecast surge in summer travel. I flew to American’s largest maintenance base in Tulsa, Okla., to see exactly how the carrier did this. The team in Tulsa walked me step-by-step through the process of checking and re-checking every flap, seal, door, and crevice to make sure they were up to par for carrying passengers again.

What really struck me on my visit to Tulsa was how, for all the doom and gloom around the pandemic, the dedicated professionals at American never ceased working hard to make sure every aircraft was safe and ready to fly. Even for the seemingly thankless task of keeping black widow spiders from building webs in wheel wells.

Matthew Parsons , Corporate Travel Editor

Companies Face Challenge of Inclusivity on Travel for Remote Workers

The Backstory: The conversation around business travel shifted even further to remote work In 2021, as the phenomenon flipped from temporary measure to mainstream movement. It spring-boarded countless scenarios, mostly tinged with tourism because destinations saw plenty of marketing opportunities.

But among the images of work and play, I was struck by a conversation I had with the co-founder of a community interest organization who wants to level the playing field. Talking with Lorraine Charles of Na’amal , I was reminded the brave new world of remote work doesn’t revolve around middle and high-income countries, where people have ample opportunity to travel and work where they please.

Charles’ mission is to make remote work available for refugees, for people who don’t have the privilege of a U.S. or European passport, or the means to hop from one sun-kissed island to another with their laptop. She told me she wanted to help convert refugees into employees by training them on the softer skills needed, like Zoom meeting etiquette, then help them connect with potential employers.

In the same way travel broadens horizons for a tourist, does the same apply to an organization that recruits outside of its comfort zone? Later on in the year the topic was broached by immigration lawyer David Cantor , while the growing need for intercultural communications also emerged as a one-to-watch topic during 2021.

The plight of refugees around the world was brought home as we witnessed crises such as the large-scale evacuations from Kabul, and the tragedies of migrants in France attempting to cross the channel to the UK. Climate migration may also become a factor in the years ahead. 

A lot of progress has been made in diversity and inclusion over the past few years, and this is one area that I imagine, or hope, more organizations will address over the coming years.

Sean O’Neill , Senior Travel Tech Editor

What Accor’s Top Technology Executive Has to Say May Surprise You

The Backstory : This year, we launched Skift’s first Travel Tech Briefing , a guide for travel executives to decide if their company should “build, buy, or partner” to stay ahead in enterprise technology.

I was delighted that the first edition spotlighted Floor Bleeker, who gave his first interview since becoming Accor’s chief technology officer. The hotel giant had taken a contrarian tech strategy but hadn’t publicly discussed it before.

Until recently, Accor had planned to centralize its core technology systems. That’s a common trend among many large hotel groups. But around the time Bleeker came on board, the company decided to give up its plan to centralize its core technology systems. It will now be running multiple property management systems instead, allowing owners to tap upstart players, such as Treebo and Mews, after it certifies them.

While the move may seem like small potatoes to an outsider, the decision is significant for the hotel technology sector. It allows smaller players to compete to provide critical software to properties. Guests could be the ultimate beneficiary as competition may spur faster innovation in how hotels interact with guests.

Madhu Unnikrishnan , Editor, Airline Weekly

The United Airlines Engine Failure Is a Story Being Wildly Botched by Media: Commentary

The Backstory : On February 20, 2021, one of the two engines on a United Airlines Boeing 777 exploded in spectacular fashion, showering a Denver suburb with wreckage and terrifying passengers with sights of flames shooting out of the jet. The story dominated U.S. television news for several days, and pundits spouted dire predictions about Boeing’s future and the safety of commercial aviation.

Granted, it’s been an exceedingly difficult few years for Boeing, after two fatal crashes grounded its best-selling 737 Max for almost two years (forcing Boeing to admit that the aircraft’s flight-control software was flawed and responsible for the crashes); Federal Aviation Administration inspections of its 787 have halted delivery of a long-range aircraft airlines depend on; and its 777X has been delayed by several years. Boeing has gotten a lot of things wrong in recent years, but the United 777 failure was not one.

There’s an old adage that says a lie travels halfway around the world before the truth puts on its pants. Television news fell all over itself to air video that had already spread on social media. Important context was missing. Yes, the footage was horrific, but what was lost was why the incident happened. A fan blade broke loose from one of the aircraft’s Pratt & Whitney engines, causing the engine to fail and exposing its combustion chamber. The fan blade did not pierce the fuselage.

What was lost in the consumer media’s coverage was this: The aircraft stayed intact, and its many safety systems prevented a catastrophic accident. The crew performed flawlessly and safely landed the airplane without any injuries. In fact, most of the flight’s passengers were rebooked and carried on with their travels that same day. In other words, the real story was that the everything and everyone worked as they should, which may be a lot less exciting than the breathless stories the news media reported, but important to note.

Lebawit Lily Girma, Global Tourism Reporter

Why Tourism Needs to Step Up and Push for Vaccine Equity

The Backstory: The horrific pandemic surge in India in April had just unfolded and in parallel, the travel industry in the U.S. and Europe, and their consumers, were focused on planning for the start of a “hot vaxxed summer.” The contrast was glaring and a clear sign to me that vaccine access would be critical for a full and fair tourism recovery. So while it was a difficult choice to make — this being my first full year of tourism coverage for Skift — I am most proud of this initial story on vaccine equity. It became the first in what has been a series of updates from us throughout the year after leading this conversation for the travel industry.

Why this topic continues to matter is because first, it’s an issue that remains critical for the industry and continues to impede and influence travel’s recovery everywhere, as we’re currently witnessing with the Omicron variant. Second, it’s critical to push travel leaders in the major source markets to recognize that solely advocating for the lifting of border restrictions is a short-sighted approach. There’s a clear business case for the industry — particularly the World Travel & Tourism Council and the United Nations World Tourism Organization and their members — to use its political muscle to push for more rapid vaccine distributions and donations globally so that the recovery is sustainable.

Third, this is a time in which we need bold leadership and vision. We saw companies such as Intrepid Travel and Expedia Group move forward with vaccine equity campaigns some months after this initial story was published. Many more need to follow.

We need this industry to have a reckoning on what global tourism should represent and stand for in the future, and that it’s about more than arrival numbers and gross domestic product. Vaccine equity is an opportunity to do just that.

Rashaad Jorden , Editorial Assistant

How One Tour Operator Is Using a 1977 Hit Tune to Lure Back Travelers

The Backstory: I was looking to write a story about a tremendously successful tour operator marketing campaign that I thought could become a regular feature, and I was referred to Steve Born, the chief marketing officer of the Globus family of brands. 

How exactly? Globus was saying that landmarks popular with their guests – including the Eiffel Tower and the Easter Island statues – had missed them by singing Player’s hit Baby Come Back. Born explained in the story how the campaign came about and why it had enjoyed success.

It was my favorite story from the year because as Born mentioned, travel is fun and supposed to bring a smile to travelers’ faces. Seeing the video of popular landmarks — or even thinking about it — has never failed to elicit a chuckle from me. Born talked about the hard work that went into creating the campaign, which was timed to coincide with the reopening of numerous destinations. 

But most importantly, travel for many is a cause for celebration, and despite numerous ongoing challenges, some tour operators have had things to celebrate this year. 

Cameron Sperance , Hospitality Reporter

Lessons for Travel’s Recovery From Anthony Bourdain’s New Book

The Backstory: Some travel stories span beyond one’s assigned beat. It was timely to see the late Anthony Bourdain’s travel guide come out just as unruly airline passengers and rude hotel and restaurant guests became the unfortunate legacy of the pandemic. You couldn’t go days without seeing a headline of a diverted aircraft because some idiot wouldn’t wear a mask and punched a flight attendant to make a point — a point the federal government and airlines responded to with jail time and a lifetime ban from flying.

Restaurants and hotels weren’t spared the abuse. Irate was the default mood for patrons who had to wait longer than expected for a meal or, heaven forbid, were told by hotel management to keep their volume down.

Bourdain’s book made me miss his weekly wisdom doled out on his TV series, and I felt a particular bond with the words since I live in Provincetown, Mass. — the seaside town at the end of Cape Cod where he got his start in the world of restaurants.

But the guide also painted some important travel lessons: Always remember you’re a guest in someone else’s hometown. Be patient in this era of longer waits: It’s not neglect; it’s a labor shortage crisis.

Oh, and stop being a jackass to hospitality workers.

Angela Tupper, Deputy Editor, EventMB

The Catch-22 of Zero-Covid Zones: Events Happen But Can Cancel on a Dime

The Backstory: A major part of our 2021 news cycle was dominated by Covid coverage, but this story was particularly compelling because it approached a well-known news story from an under-reported angle. While major publications were drawing attention to Australia and New Zealand’s success with enforcing a zero-Covid policy, there was very little coverage of what this approach meant for the event industry. Headlines announced that life Down Under was able to continue largely as normal, apart from periodic snap lockdowns whenever a handful of cases were confirmed. Were large-scale events able to move forward as well? 

Through multiple interviews with event professionals in Australia, a consistent story emerged: The nation’s successful suppression of Covid transmission made it much safer to hold events from a public health standpoint, but the measures needed to maintain zero-Covid status also meant that a lockdown could be triggered by just one case — with events therefore prone to last-minute cancelation. In other words, reducing the health risk indirectly amplified the financial risk. In turn, What began as an investigation into the viability of events turned into a conversation around the need for event cancelation insurance. With private insurers unwilling to cover the risk, lobbyists were calling for government-backed programs. 

In some ways, this story provided a glimpse into the “stop-and-go” future that the global event industry would soon be facing in a post-vaccine world periodically threatened by new variants of concern. Since then, the UK has announced a government-backed event insurance scheme, as has the Australian state of Victoria. The impact of these programs will be a story to watch in the coming year.

Dennis Schaal , Founding Editor

Vacasa Paid $619 Million for TurnKey Vacation Rentals in Mostly Stock

The Backstory: This story combined two things I love: A scoop of sorts and scouring Securities and Exchange Commission financial filings.

What’s the first thing that travel veterans ask you when they learn of an acquisition? Namely, what do you think the sale price was? On smaller deals, when a startup gets bought by a public company, the buyer doesn’t necessarily have to explicitly disclose the price, and when a private company acquires a startup, the usual thing is there is no public statement about the price.

Vacasa’s acquisition of a smaller property management company, TurnKey, wasn’t a small deal, it turns out, but it involved two private companies. I therefore didn’t expect Vacasa to disclose the acquisition price — and apparently neither did the rest of the press — but the twist was that Vacasa was slated to go public in a blank check merger and was filing its financials with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Vacasa eventually went public, on December 7.

I love reading certain Securities and Exchange Commission documents and frequently tell my reporter colleagues that you can find all kinds of news bits and scoops if you take the time to read them, which I often do during the evenings or on weekends — for fun.

So there was the price tag and details about the deal in a Vacasa financial filing. Vacasa acquired TurnKey for nearly $619 million, mostly in stock. As TurnKey had only raised some $120 million in funding, it appears as though co-founders T.J. Clark and John Banczak did fairly well for their investors.

Miguel Neves , Editor-in-Chief, EventMB

Event Tech Investment Tracker

The Backstory: For my favorite article, I am going to say the  EventMB Event Tech Investment Tracker . This continually evolving post sums up a lot of my learnings in 2021. I knew that joining Skift to lead EventMB, I would bring the event professional’s point of view with me. With this post, I am not distilling what I have learned from all the amazing editors at Skift and their unique ways of looking at the travel industry. I’ve had help from many members of the Skift and EventMB to make this post a real at-a-glance review of the crazy world of mergers and acquisitions in event tech. Everyone I have shared it with has given positive feedback and I know it will be an important part of future iterations of the EventMB website, so the story will continue to evolve.

Colin Nagy, On Experience Columnist

Doha Quickly Comes of Age Ahead of World Cup 2022

The Backstory: This was an interesting story to report, as Doha is in the harried run-up to a major milestone, the World Cup in 2022. The event has been a forcing factor for a lot of the obvious things like hospitality and infrastructure but also has accelerated a lot of Qatari soft diplomacy: museums, interesting small businesses and centers to attract more of the global creative class. Covid has put a damper on a lot, but it is clear to see there’s been clear vision and a lot of progress. I liked this piece because it was an honest look at what is working well, and what needs to be improved in a region that has a lot of shallow, one-note coverage from Western outlets. There is a lot of depth and moving parts to the modern Qatar story: from regional and global politics, to business, investment, real estate to national country branding and the desire to live up to the promise of the World Cup. These are my favorite stories to try and make sense of when I can.  

Ruthy Muñoz , Freelancer

How Unruly Do Airline Passengers Have to Be Before the Government Decides to Prosecute?

The Backstory: I love writing feature stories that bring extraordinary people to the forefront, but surprisingly, when faced with choosing my favorite account this year, a Skift feature wasn’t it. Instead, my favorite story is accountability in the other pandemic- unruly passengers.

As a former flight attendant, I understood there’s only so much flight crews could do without the backup of airlines, the FAA, the Justice Department, and Congress.  Writing this and other stories on unruly passengers and holding everyone accountable to bring about needed change is what the power of the journalistic keyboard is for me.

Lisa Jade Hutchings , Branded Content Writer

How Event Professionals Can Cope With Imposter Syndrome

The Backstory:  I have had the opportunity to work on some great stories this year, such as the effect of the pandemic on local event industries around the world and an analysis of the sector’s commitment to net-zero. However, my favorite post explored the topic of how event professionals can better cope with imposter syndrome. 

While massive technological advancements and innovation have taken place within the sector, I wanted to delve deeper into the human experience of an event professional through real-life insights into the current situation. As professionals working in a high-stress industry (events), the cancellations and job losses due to the pandemic have impacted the mental health of those working within the space. Because of this, many planners have experienced crippling self-doubt in adapting to new tech, event formats, external stressors — all while learning new skills.

In writing the post, a background of the syndrome was given, alongside actionable tips to coping so people could gain tangible value by reading the piece. To better understand imposter syndrome, its effects, and how people can manage, insights were gained by speaking at length with a counseling psychologist, researching the topic online, connecting with others in the industry, and drawing on past personal experiences. 

The highlight of the post for me was seeing the effect it had on others in the industry — people were able to relate and felt that a voice had been given to an experience so many people live with daily.

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• INTELLIGENT TRAVEL

The New World of Travel Writing

As a writer, editor, and teacher, I care about   travel writing that matters. My own journey of learning about and reflecting on the ever-evolving world of travel writing and publishing is a continual one, propelled each year by the Book Passage Travel Writers and Photographers Conference , held each summer   in the Bay Area, where I live. Even more recently, I was thrilled to attend the Melbourne Writers Festival and TBEX travel bloggers gathering   as a guest speaker—where   the conversation gained momentum.

One of my prime lessons this year has been the fact that today, what might be called “mainstream travel writing” encompasses a broader spectrum than ever before. This stretches all the way from the traditional independent journalism that newspapers and magazines have been publishing since well before I enterered this field three decades ago, to a kind of cutting-edge destination marketing that includes blog posts and other writing as part of a larger package negotiated with a destination marketing organization or other travel-related company.

One importance of this for the budding travel writer   is the fact that there are more ways than ever to make money writing about travel. Bearing in mind that for the vast majority of writers, the money to be made in this way is still “icing on the top” rather than the career cake itself, it can still be inspiring and encouraging to realize the full range of options out there, from writing for third-party outlets (publications, websites) to working with travel-related companies such as luggage and clothing manufacturers, hotels, airlines, and tourism boards.

The issue this ever-broadening spectrum has raised for me is a thorny one that has been around for a long time in one guise or another, but that seems even more central now. Namely: Who controls the content?

In the traditional publishing world in which I grew up professionally, publications paid for their content by running advertisements. There was a generally well-respected division between “church” and “state”—editorial and advertising.

When I was travel editor at the San Francisco Examiner & Chronicle , the most we blurred this division was when we published “special sections,” usually themed by geography—Asia, Europe, the Caribbean, and so on. The closest we came to merging editorial and advertising (there’s even a name for it   now, “advertorial”) was when we did sections on Mexico and Hawaii. At one point, the newspaper’s ad salespeople approached me saying, “Such-and-such resort will buy a full-page ad if we can guarantee to include a story about them. Can you do that?” And my answer would always be, “No. All I can guarantee is that the main articles will be about some aspect of Hawaii.”

I leapt from print into cyberspace in 1995. In the two decades since then, at most, if not all print publications, these church-state divisons have become increasingly blurred—but at many, the notion of editorial independence from advertising is still a cherished principle (though the degree to which it is followed is often scaled to how financially robust the media outlet happens to be).

On some of the new content islands that have risen via the plate tectonics of online publishing, however, these distinctions are irrelevant. Some self-publishing content creators now approach a destination or a travel provider and say, “We want to work with you. We can offer you a full menu that includes blog posts, tweets and Twitter chats, Facebook shares, Instagrams, and   Pinterest pins, plus appearances at conferences and conventions. We’ll work with you to help you get your message across. And it will cost you this much.”

Clearly, this isn’t travel journalism, nor does it pretend or claim to be; this is essentially marketing. And while in the Old School part of my brain, this kind of content   is immediately editorially suspect, I’ve learned that doing marketing of this kind doesn’t have to mean sacrificing standards. High-quality storytelling can be incorporated into these efforts. In the same way that three decades ago nonfiction appropriated the stylistic elements of fiction to create the New Journalism , we might say that today, the best cutting-edge marketing is appropriating the traditional storytelling elements of travel writing to create the New Marketing.

What this relationship does ultimately entail, though, is a sacrifice of independence. The message is finally dictated by the destination or company that is paying for it. Does this mean that the New Marketing creators blindly produce whatever their payers ask them to? No. The best ones work with the payer to try to ensure that the quality of its offering is as high and appealing as it can be, so that they can promote it with passion and conscience intact. In this sense, they actually provide a further service.

But what worries me about this model is that, taken to its ultimate extension, it would mean that travel coverage would depend directly on budget. Destinations and companies that have little or no budgets for promotion would fall off the metaphorical map.

A big part of what I loved about being travel editor at the Examiner & Chronicle was that I got to shape and share a little world each week. Every Sunday I’d have one story about Asia, one about Europe, one about North America. I’d cover South America every other week, and the Middle East and Africa at least once a month. I’d combine articles every Sunday to create a picture-puzzle mix of travel styles and budgets, tips and tales.

This world was a reflection of me, of course, and of my thinking about my readership—but my desire to engage, inform, and inspire that readership was what fueled my editorial decisions each day. That same desire also fueled my own decisions about where to travel on the newspaper’s dime, and what subjects to write about. Where the funding was coming from to publish the section was almost never a factor in my decisions.

So, a related question this new world of travel content raises for me is this: Where is the consumer in this new equation? The consumer, the reader, was truly paramount for me. In the new world of travel content creation, there is a danger that the reader is being reduced to an afterthought, useful chiefly as a statistic—an accumulation of fans, likes, unique visitors—that can be used to convince a travel company to employ one’s services.

These twin reductions—in the range of destinations covered and in the attention given to readers’ interests and needs—diminish both the world of travel storytelling   and the actual world which is the subject of that content.

These are the thoughts my own wanderings in the past few months have inspired, and they’ve raised further questions: Going forward, who decides editorial focus? Who vets editorial content? If the funding for independent third-party travel outlets such as newspapers, magazines, and websites dries up, who will dictate the content? If there’s no budget   to pay independent travel writers, how can they maintain their independence? Who will pay for the mind-expanding narratives that explore the wide world outside and the soul-stretching essays that explore the wide world inside? Whither travel publishing?

I’ve also become convinced that more than ever, individual travel writers are becoming the gatekeepers—the stewards—of the planet that readers see, regardless of medium. In this regard, the following guidelines seem urgently critical to me:

1. Transparency is key. It’s important to be clear about—and to state clearly—who funded your travel and your content. Readers won’t necessarily think less of you or trust your descriptions and assertions less if you reveal that you were the guest of a destination. But they may well think less of you—and question your content more keenly—if you don’t share this information up front and they discover it some other way instead.

• Nat Geo Expeditions

2. Integrity is essential. No matter who is paying for you, you have to maintain your own quality guidelines and principles. Integrity is the bedrock of readers’ trust in you. Don’t promote something you don’t believe in. Don’t tell us something is wonderful if you don’t really think it is.

3. Quality in creation is still paramount. Do the best you can to make your writing accurate, detailed, and lively. All the tips I wrote earlier this year about creating quality—attention to passion points, sensual details, music, meaning—are critically important in this emerging new world.

4. Honor yourself, honor your subject, honor your reader. Know your subject and your audience thoroughly, tailor your content to serve that audience, and create the most passionate, evocative, engaging, and connected work that you can.

5. Cultivate your sense of respect, gratitude, and wonder. Those of us who get to travel the world on someone else’s dime, whether on assignment or on a press trip, are incalculably lucky. It’s essential that we bear this in mind and keep our experiences in perspective—and that we continue to connect with the core of wonder that inspired us to travel this path in the first place. Honoring our shared craft in this way will enhance and enrich us all.

Don George   is an editor at large at   Traveler   a nd the author of   Lonely Planet’s Guide to Travel Writing .   He   has also edited   several award-winning travel-writing anthologies, including   Better Than Fiction .   Follow Don on Twitter   @don_george .

> Related:

• Travel Writing Tips From Don George  
• More Travel Writing Tips From Don George  
• The Quality Quotient: Travel Writing That Matters

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Posted on Jun 21, 2017

12 Types of Travel Writing Every Writer Should Know

So, you want to be a travel writer?

There are plenty of reality doses out there already, so we’re going to focus on the positives, and what you can do to maximize your chances of travel writing professionally. One of the first steps: you should absolutely know your markets, and what types of travel writing are popular in them. In today’s competitive market, this knowledge can both help you structure your article  and target the right audience.

In this post, we break down modern travel writing into three distinct categories: freelance journalism , blogging, and book-writing. Then we identify the prevalent types of travel writing each category is known for, to give you an initial sort of compass in the industry.

Freelance Travel Journalism

The truth is this: the travel sections in major publications (New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal) are slimmer now, so competition will be tall. But there are other outlets. Local newspapers are sometimes open to travel pitches from freelancers. Certain websites pay for travel articles, while magazines can be great for targeting niche audiences.

So what are the common types of freelance travel journalism?

Destination articles

Here, the game’s in the name: destination articles tell readers about a place to which they might want to travel one day. One of the most standard type of travel stories, these pieces act as the armchair reader’s bird-eye view of a place. Useful or interesting facts pepper the writing. History, points of interest, natural scenery, trendy spots: a destination article can touch upon them all within the framework of a broad narrative.

Where the average article gives readers a sense of the destination, the best of the best convinces readers that this is a destination they want, nay, need to visit. As such, though some destination articles are written in first person, the focus is rarely on the writer. Instead, the destination is the star of the show.

For examples of destination articles, check out:

• Besalú, the most interesting Spanish village you probably don’t know (LA Times)
• In Indonesia (Washington Post)
• 36 Hours In The Finger Lakes Region of New York (New York Times)

Special-interest articles

Special-interest articles are offshoots of destination articles. Instead of taking the reader on a tour of an entire country or city, these pieces cover one particular aspect of the destination. This kind of writing can cover anything from art in Colombia, ghost towns in the U.S., trekking in Patagonia, alpaca farms in Australia, motorbiking in Brazil, railroads in France, volunteering in Tanzania — you get the gist.

Since special-interest articles are narrower in topic, many writers tailor them for niche magazines or websites. Before you start pitching, we recommend flipping through the Writer’s Handbook , one of the most useful guides to the freelance publishing market, to see which publications fit your target audience.

For a taste of some special-interest articles, see:

• Exploring Portugal — From Pork To Port (epicurious.com)
• This Unsung Corner of Spain is Home to Fabulous Food (Washington Post)
• Karsts of China's Getu River region attract rock climbers, other travelers (CNN Travel)

Holiday and special events

Holiday and special events travel articles ask writers to write about a destination before the event takes place. The biggest global events are magnets for this type of travel writing, such as the World Cup, the Olympics, the World Expo, fashion weeks, and film festivals. Depending on the publication, regional events work just as well.

Want to see what special events pieces look like? Have a read through these:

• This summer’s solar eclipse is southern Illinois’ chance to shine (Chicago Tribune)
• How To Plan A Trip To The 2016 Rio Olympics (Travel & Leisure)

You’ll recognize a round-up article when you see one, as it’ll go, “40 best beaches in West Europe,” or, perhaps, “20 of the greatest walks in the world!” It’s a classic tool in any magazine or newspaper writer’s toolbox, taking a bunch of destinations and grouping them all under one common thread.

Ultimately, a clear motif makes this type of article a breeze to read, as they’re a play on the ubiquitous List Format. But, OK, before you jump at this excuse to sacrifice your belly at 99 food trucks in New York City, remember that your premise should be original, not to mention practical. What’s tough is coming up with X ways to do Y in the first place, as that demands you put in the travel and research to produce a thorough write-up.

Want even more examples of round-up articles? Here you go:

• 12 new art exhibits to see this summer (Smithsonian)
• 21 ways to see America for cheap (Huffington Post)
• 41 places to go in 2011 (New York Times)

Personal essays

Publishers are experiencing something of a personal essay fatigue , so the market for more might be scarce these days. However, quality trumps all, and a good personal travel essay is just plain good writing in disguise: something that possesses a strong voice while showing insight, growth, and backstory.

Just don’t make it a diary entry. In an interview with The Atlantic , travel writer Paul Theroux said: “The main shortcut is to leave out boring things. People write about getting sick, they write about tummy trouble. They write about waiting. They write three pages about how long it took them to get a visa. I’m not interested in the boring parts. Everyone has tummy trouble. Everyone waits in line. I don’t want to hear about it.”

Here’s a jumping-off point for personal travel essays:

• Taking the Great American Roadtrip (Smithsonian)

Have a burning opinion to share? Sometimes publications end up giving op-eds to staff, but there are always open calls for opinion pieces.

Travel op-eds are much rarer than political opinion pieces, but there’s a pattern to the ones that make the cut: good persuasive writing. If you can come at a topic from a unique angle (and argue your case clearly) then you may be able to publish your opinion.

If you’re in the mood for travel op-ed articles, see:

• The West Coast Is The Best Coast For Food In America (Food & Wine)
• Why Climate Change Is Actually Relevant To Travel (Conde Nast)

Travel Blogging

When typing “travel blog” into Google returns 295 million results, we can guess it’s a fairly competitive market.

Here’s the plus side: bloggers get to write what they want and go where they please. When it comes to blog posts, there are no editors, no gatekeepers. Only you and the “PUBLISH” button.

We won’t go revisit the types of travel writing we covered earlier (such as the roundup format). Instead, we’ll explore some of the other formats bloggers use to tell their travel stories. Since the rules of travel blogging are next to non-existent, our tally below is by no means definitive. And, again, our best advice is to note what your favorite bloggers do on their blogs.

Already running a successful travel blog? You might consider turning that blog into a book !

How-To articles are already fairly popular in magazines, but they’re positively omnipresent in the travel blogging world. Blogs provide a direct communication platform, allowing trust to build up quicker with the readers. As a result, for the search query, “How to travel Europe on a budget,” six out of the top ten results are posts from trusted independent blogs.

A How-To article is the most standard form of advice column a travel blogger can produce. It’s intrinsically useful, promising that it’ll teach something by article’s end. A blogger’s challenge is delivering fully on that promise.

How to read more How-To articles? We got you covered:

• How To Start A Travel Blog (Nomadic Matt)
• How To Travel Solo To A Party Destination (Adventurous Kate)
• How to Visit Penang’s Kek Lok Si Temple (Migrationology)

Itineraries

Itineraries reveal the schedule that the writer took at a given destination, city-by-city or sight-by-sight. They’re meant for the traveler who’s embarking on a similar trip and needs a template. Typically, you’ll find that an itinerary post is an easy place for you to slip in recommendations, anything from the accommodation you used or the restaurants you tried.

You can use itinerary posts to reinforce your blog’s brand. For instance, an itinerary posted on a blog focused around budget travel will probably maximize cost-saving chances.

For more itineraries, see:

• My Trip To Japan (A Complete Japan Itinerary)
• Backpacking Vietnam on a budget: 2-3 Weeks Itinerary + Tips

Longform posts

Longform travel blogging tells a travel story through extended narrative content, as it takes a week’s worth of adventure and shapes it into a story. Longform blog posts about travel often end up being creative nonfiction : a way to present nonfiction — factually accurate prose about real people and events — in a compelling, vivid, dramatic manner.

Photography can add another dimension to the form, as Emmanuel Nataf (our co-founder!) shows on his travel blog . And Reedsy's very own Arielle provides a glimpse into why she prefers longform travel writing on her blog, Steps, a Travel Journal :

My favourite kinds of stories are the ones that give you a real sense of place. That’s why I enjoy longform travel blogging: I get to describe the character of a place through the experiences I encountered there.

If you want to dip your toe into the sea of longform posts, you can also read:

• The Cow Head Taco Philosopher King of Oaxaca (Legal Nomads)
• The Best Worst Museum In The World

When it comes to writing a book, you can take all the challenges about travel writing from above and magnify it times 2,000. If you’re asking readers to commit to you for more than 100 pages, you’d best make sure that your book is worth their while.

As far as examples go, travel writing’s boomed in the mainstream book market recently. But there’s much more to it than Eat, Pray, Love and its descendants.

Travelogues

In travelogues, authors record their adventures in a way that illustrates or sheds insight upon the place itself. Travelogues possess a storied past, from Lady Mary Wortley Montagu’s Turkish Embassy Letters in 1763 to Mark Twain’s 1867 The Innocents Abroad , which paved the way for the sort of comic travelogues that Bill Bryson’s perfected today.

Up for some travelogues? Check out:

• Notes From A Small Island , by Bill Bryson
• In Patagonia , by Bruce Chatwin
• Travels with Charley In Search of America , by John Steinbeck

Travel memoirs

Nowadays, travel memoirs are practically synonymous with Elizabeth Gilbert’s wildly popular Eat, Pray, Love and Cheryl Strayed’s bestselling Wild , which were both recently adapted into Hollywood blockbusters.

That said, be aware that you’ll need a pretty exceptional personal story for your memoir to compete in today’s market . If you’re still set on writing or self-publishing a travel memoir, it’s tricky to balance personal backstory and travel for 400 pages, so think about taking on a professional for a second pair of eyes.

Did you know? You can find Nicki Richesin , a top Bloomsbury editor who’s edited for Cheryl Strayed, on our marketplace.

In addition to Eat, Pray, Love and Wild , you can read:

• Under the Tuscan Sun , by Frances Mayes
• Coasting , by Jonathan Raban
• Wind, Sand, and Stars , by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

As Oscar Wilde said, “I never travel without my diary. One should always keep something sensational to read in the train.” But these days, people are replacing diaries with travel guides — the ubiquitous Lonely Planet becoming one of the more common sights on transit.

Travel writing in guidebooks is straightforward, informative, and fact-filled. In addition, there’s a certain amount of responsibility that comes with the job. Lonely Planet alone is read by millions of travelers worldwide.

General Tips and Guidelines

As we mentioned before, the trick to producing great travel writing is ultimately simply writing well . To that extent, you should make sure to follow all the guidelines of good writing — not least, spell-checking your article before submitting or publishing it anywhere. You don’t want an editor or reader to see it while it stilll reads lik edis.

Also, keep in mind the tone, style, and vibe of the publication and platform (and by extension, your audience). A story about a moon-rock could go into a kid's magazine or it could go into Scientific America .

Finally, some category-specific tips:

• If you’re freelance writing, always check submission guidelines. Publications may accept only pitches or they may welcome articles “on spec” (pre-written articles). Some sources only take travel articles that were written within 6 months of the trip.
• If you’re blogging, brand your website (same advice if you’re an author who’s building an author website ).
• If you’re writing a book, get a professional editor! An unedited book is an unwieldy thing, and professional eyes provide direction, continuity, and assonance. ( Layout designers can be important if you’re publishing a travel photography book, in the meanwhile.)

Travel writing isn't a cinch. In fact, it's a long and often hard grind. But by figuring out what type of travel writing you want to try your hand at, you're taking the crucial first step.

Have you tried travel writing before? Want to show us the cool travel blog that you're keeping? We're always in the mood for great travel writing + pretty pictures. Leave us a note in the comments and we'll be sure to check it out! 

7 responses

Amanda Turner says:

20/03/2018 – 16:20

Thank you, this was very helpful. Here's one of mine: http://vagabondingwithkids.com/every-mothers-guide-to-piranha-fishing-in-the-amazon/

Travalerie says:

24/05/2018 – 18:42

I landed on this page Googling for one thing and coming up with another. Haha! But what I found instead was helpful as I'm devouring as much as I can on travel writing. A few months ago, I started a new travel business, revamped my website including a new blog, and am in the process of writing, writing, writing. I took 2 trips this year so far and wrote what seemed like a mini-novella. Burning out in the process. I know I can do better. But I had no idea what I was writing could be re-worked to fit a certain category of travel writing -- which is what I found helpful in this post above. Thanks https://www.travalerie.com/blog

Surya Thakur says:

04/03/2019 – 12:39

Very good information. Lucky me I discovered your blog by chance (stumbleupon). I’ve saved as a favorite for later! KuLLuHuLLs

David Bishop says:

08/05/2019 – 12:28

Thanks for this good article. I'm in my third year on the road and recently started my senior solo adventure travel website. I think my site has some pretty good stuff, of course. Take a look and tell me what you think. www.davidhunterbishop.com

Iris C. Permuy says:

23/05/2019 – 18:03

Thank you very much for all of these useful pieces of advice. I will make sure to implement them all on my travel blog, which is a combination of travel and gastronomy and uses the memoir and itinerary types, apart from recipes. Come check it out if you feel like it! I am more than open, eager for some professional feedback :)

Serissa says:

26/10/2019 – 14:53

This post is the perfect diving board for aspiring travel writers. I plan to link to this page from my travel blog if that is alright! ?? The link on my website will appear as "[title of this post] by Reedsy Blog". I assume this is alright, but if not, please email me directly to let me know! Thanks so much!

↪️ Martin Cavannagh replied:

29/10/2019 – 10:11

We'd be absolutely delighted if you shared this article on your blog :)

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8 mins read

10 Travel Blog Writing Examples For Inspiration

Planning to be a travel writer? Don't start without looking at these 10 examples of exceptional travel writing! Plus, here's why you need a travel writing portfolio.

Shreya Bose

Written by Shreya Bose , edited by Protim Bhaumik , reviewed by Eric Hauch .

23. Feb 2023 , updated 30. Jun 2023

Nothing opens our minds quite like travel, does it? However, not all of us are lucky enough to travel more than once or twice a year (if that) while juggling a 9-5, school/housework, kids/pets, and everything else in between.

But there are certain people who actually choose to live a life of travel. No, I am not talking about trust fund babies but about the travel blogger.

Giving up the secure desk job to pursue travel stories, writing them, and getting paid is not the life for everybody. But I won't be lying if I say quite a few of us secretly (or not-so-secretly) wish we could live that life.

If you're thinking of embarking on a "job" that takes you around the world, and you think you can write travel blogs that delight and educate every reader, this article is for you. To get started, have a look at these 10 travel blog writing examples. The individuals discussed in this blog post are living the life you want, and exploring their work is a good way to start your travel writing career before building your unique voice and brand.

10 Amazing travel bloggers & their work (to inspire you to write your first blog)

Elizabeth chorney-booth.

Elizabeth Chorney-Booth is a Canadian writer exploring food, drink, travel, medical writing, and general interest topics. She is the weekly restaurant columnist for the Calgary Herald, a regular columnist on CBC Radio, and a weekly contributor to Canada.com 's travel section. Her work has appeared in multiple publications like the Globe and Mail, Culinaire, Bold Travel, Savour, Leap, OnBoard, and more.

Gwendolyn Richards

Gwendolyn Richards is a Calgary-based food and travel writer & photographer who loves patent shoes, bourbon, and burgers. She has also written and published a cookbook named Pucker. If you're looking to have travel adventures (of the stomach especially) in and around Calgary, her portfolio and blog are must-reads.

Jamie Carter

Jamie Carter combines travel blogging with writing about science, and his portfolio and blog showcase the coolest, most eclectic collection of articles and images you'll come across. His work has been published in Forbes, Travel+Leisure, Sky & Telescope, BBC Sky At Night, South China Morning Post, TechRadar, and WhenIsTheNextEclipse?

Jamie's blog: jamieacarter.com

Louise Goldsbury

Louise Goldsbury runs a famous travel blog that has won her the Best Travel Writer award at the National Travel Industry Awards twice. She has also been a 2022 finalist for the same. She writes as a freelance for The Australian, Escape, and Explore. She is also the Editor-at-large at Cruise & Travel magazine (Big Splash Media)

Louise's blog: louisegoldsbury.substack.com

Gina Rich is an award-winning freelance writer exploring topics around parenting, health, travel, and the natural world. She's also quite a coffee enthusiast, as her own travel blog will showcase.

Gina's blog: lovehopeandcoffee.com

Vicki Reeve

Vicki Reeve is a Cornwall/London-based freelance writer & editor who works on Departures International, Centurion, Compendium, and NetJets magazines, Vogue, Art Fund's Art Quarterly magazine, Elephant magazine, and Wylde (among others), and writes about Cornwall for the Mail on Sunday's travel section.

She is also a senior editor at Ultratravel magazine.

Salt in our Hair

Run by Hannah and Nick, two travel bloggers from the Netherlands, this award-winning blog has it all — travel stories, travel photography, travel tips, and even information for solo travelers.

By detailing their own travel adventures, Hannah and Nick provide helpful information and fun-laden itineraries for anyone looking to jet-set around the world.

This is a great travel blog example, encompassing everything from an adventure travel blog to laid-back travel ideas.

Hannah & Nick's blog: saltinourhair.com

The Blonde Abroad

Kiki has been traveling solo for years and collecting her experiences in her travel blog. She has visited over 70 countries and collates information specifically for solo female travelers. Of course, she also covers other categories like adventure travel, budget travel, couple travel, etc. But it's her tips for women traveling alone that really get her blog to stand out.

Kiki's blog: theblondeabroad.com

The Travel Book

Is it possible to travel while being environmentally conscious? The Travel Book says Yes!

It doesn't matter what your travel destination is, this blog will tell you how to have amazing trips without leaving too much of a negative impact on the ecology. This is a great resource if you're looking to travel internationally since those long plane rides are just the start of expanding our carbon footprint. Tips from Karoline and Rasmus (who run the blog) help you counteract that, without missing out on the most beautiful places on this planet.

Karoline and Rasmus' blog: thetravelbook.world

Be My Travel Muse

Much like Kiki, Kristin has also been traveling solo for over 9 years. Her tips about saving money and traveling safely without missing out on any adventures have led her blog to be one of the most popular ones in its niche. She attracts about five million readers per year, and I don't have to tell you how impressive that is.

Kristin's blog: bemytravelmuse.com

Now that you've seen some top-shelf travel blog writing examples, let's move on to a related question.

Are you planning to create a travel writing portfolio?

You've obviously noticed that the first few examples are portfolios rather than blogs. I included them on purpose because these portfolios actually provide a more comprehensive view of the writer's work at one glance than a blog would. In a blog, you'd have to click through different sections or scroll around to find actual articles.

In a portfolio, it's all right there on the front page. Moreover, if you're planning to write about travel for magazines, editorials, and other third-party publications, you need a portfolio. Clients usually don't have the patience to scan through your blog to find relevant articles. Additionally, if you're a professional writer of any kind, you're expected to have an updated portfolio that can be sent out in a second. Failure to meet this expectation immediately demotes you from their list of potential candidates.

Moreover, clients may not end up actually reading/viewing your best work if they are left to scroll by themselves. On the other hand, you can curate your portfolio so that your best work shows up first, and you get to your best professional foot forward.

Ok, so... how do I create a travel writing portfolio?

There are an overwhelming number of portfolio builders available today. You've probably already heard of some — Squarespace, WordPress, Clippings, etc. They're all excellent options, depending on your profession, requirement, and professional seniority.

Before creating my own writer portfolio, I went through quite a few of these tools before choosing Authory. I'm not saying you should choose it too (but you should if you're a writer), but just telling you why it stood out to me over the other, more established, name-brand portfolio makers .

• Automatic importing of ALL your bylined content from ANY digital source you enter. You enter the source website, and Authory finds all your bylined pieces and imports them into its database. You can import from an unlimited number of sources. Moreover, Authory won't just import all existing content from each source, but all pieces published in the future as well. You never have to copy-paste/manually upload any of your bylined pieces to your portfolio ever again. You can, of course, manually upload, non-bylined content if you want.
• All imported content is permanently backed up, in the ORIGINAL format (text/media) rather than screenshots.
• All imported content is downloadable as high-res PDFs or exportable as HTML files. No lock-in period.
• Multiple, low-effort customization options to make your portfolio visually appealing and easily navigable.
• Email notifications every time a new article is imported by Authory.
• In-built search engine optimization and responsive design so your portfolio looks good on mobile screens and shows up on search engine results.
• In-built analytics that provides real numbers on content performance (engagement, readership) across the web and popular social media sites every 30 days.
• Allows creation of newsletters with a couple of clicks. Post setup, Authory will automatically send your newly published content to subscribers.
• Widgets to display your portfolio on other sites, such as your personal website (if you have one).

If you're someone who reads reviews before making a purchase, I've got you covered. Check out these testimonials from Authory users:

today i've looked at 100+ applications for freelance writing projects. tons say something like, "I'm qualified but can't share my ghostwritten samples." just use @Authory to do this. hiring managers need to see your best samples! not an ad, just trying to make my life easier 😆 — Jimmy Daly (@jimmy_daly) February 15, 2023

Epic tool I recently discovered 👇 With @Authory , podcasters, influencers, journalists, businesses and personal brands can create a professional portfolio that highlights their best articles, stories, episodes and other written content including PR. https://t.co/LWXZFauvgR — Adel (@AdeldMeyer) February 15, 2023

I just started using @Authory , it looks great, let's you organize your content super easily and can automatically import all your pieces from the web. It also keeps a backup of everything in case one of your articles is ever taken down. ~8-10 bucks a month 🙌 — Historian turned techie👩‍🎓👩‍💻 (@christina_haaa) February 9, 2023

Emma Wilkinson

I do still love Authory - I do nothing just sit back and let it collate all my work (and tell me interesting things about stats etc) and I now have 1.4k articles on there 👍If you want a bit of a longer free trial to have a go yourself try this link https://t.co/IbHfEk3FDO https://t.co/RDYq2D8dKP — Emmajourno (@Emmajourno) February 7, 2023

Is it any wonder that Authory is chosen by 6X Emmy winner David Pogue , Steven Levy, Editor at Large, WIRED , Brian Fung, a Technology Reporter at CNN , and other industry stalwarts to create their portfolio?

Get started with Authory for free today!

Seasoned writer & editor working with B2B & B2C content since 2017. Writes about music on weekends. Trying to overcome caffeine addiction.

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Big Star Copywriting

01803 865025

Are your travel blog posts struggling to take off? Read these travel article examples to inspire your writing

Some people travel the world and make a living out of it. Others write travel blogs to increase traffic to their brand’s website. Whatever reason leads you to share your experiences exploring the globe, here are our favourite travel article examples to inspire your writing. 

Why you need a blog on your travel site

Travel content can take many different forms. From brochures that line the shelves of travel agents to website destination pages and social media posts, finding the right words is essential when selling destinations or experiences. People look forward to holidays; they work hard to save their pennies and annual leave to enjoy time in a different country or place. 

‘Nothing will help your travel company stand out from the crowd like quality content’, says  Search Engine Journal  and good travel content includes copywriting that makes these once-in-a-lifetime trips seem worthwhile. It tells its readers exactly what to expect and why they will love it.

While over 80% of holidaymakers head to the web to start planning their holidays,  33% of travellers  use travel blogs for travel advice. For travel agents, publishing the right travel content puts you at the advantage of increased website traffic. Businesses that blog experience up to  twice as much  traffic as those that don’t. 

Gaining authority in search is a competitive sport. Google needs to trust that you can deliver exceptional content to users. A well-informed blog that provides extra information, a little entertainment, and click-worthy quotes or stats goes a long way. By writing  SEO-optimised travel articles , you can get search engines on your side, increase your site’s authority, and, with the right words, guarantee more business. 

Are you struggling to drive traffic to your travel website?

Our favourite travel article examples, thomas cook.

Thomas Cook uses their travel blog to share destination highlights, itineraries and places to visit in many of the locations where they host their package holidays. In this sample travel article, Thomas Cook writes about the ‘Top 5 hidden gems in the Algarve’. Here’s what they do well:

• It’s structured with subheadings, varying sentence lengths and short paragraphs. 
• It offers ‘top tips’ segments to provide insider information tailored to its consumers. 
• It knows its audience. Phrases such as ‘Instagrammable beach’ appeal to the young women likely to be considering booking a girl’s trip to Portugal. 
• It takes you on a journey. Illustrative and colourful, the description of each attraction leads you on a path through the intricacies and experiences on offer. 

L’Hotel, a well-known luxury hotel in Paris, use its blog to provide potential customers with travel blogs that cover niche topics, including history and the various influences of the hotel. In this blog, L’Hotel looks at the famous guests who have visited their hotel – and shares their favourite quotes from one of the most famous residents, Oscar Wilde, who stayed there many times. This is what this travel blog writing example does well: 

• It provides a unique perspective while delving into the hotel’s history which is likely to appeal to tourists visiting Paris. 
• It’s well-structured with clear headings and is organised logically to flow well. 
• It’s written in a conversational, authentic tone that conveys the hotel’s values in an accessible and digestible format.  
• It signposts a clear call-to-action that allows readers to share their favourite moments of the hotel with them, including reviews and photos. 

Condé Nast Traveler

Condé Nast is well-known for their glossy, editorial-style articles that share the world’s most unique and wonderful experiences. They’re descriptive, they’re detailed, and they are excellent examples of storytelling. The writer delves into Egypt’s past through local stories in this travel article example. Here is what it does well: 

• It zooms in on detailed snapshots of place and time, offering immersive accounts of time spent in Egypt. 
• It’s personal. This article is written in the first-person narrative, and it contains insight into the writer’s individual experiences while advising on what to expect and how to handle certain situations.
• It’s written in-depth. Although long, the article doesn’t lack attention-seeking snippets of information. 
• It features stunning imagery taken by the author, illustrating the picturesque locations described in the copy. 

Hays Travel

Independent Travel Agent Hays Travel uses its blog to suggest holidays its audience may enjoy based on interests, the seasons and the attractions they offer. In this travel blog writing example, Hays Travel shares their top destinations to visit for the best Christmas markets. This is what they did well: 

• It provides vivid and engaging descriptions of each Christmas market, giving readers a sense of what to expect in terms of atmosphere, activities, and unique offerings at each location. 
• It covers a diverse range of Christmas markets in different European cities, catering to a wide audience with varying travel preferences.
• It offers practical information, such as the dates when the markets take place, unique attractions, and tips on what to do at each location. This information is helpful for travellers planning their trips and looking for recommendations.
• It adds a personal touch to the descriptions, such as mentioning specific dishes, traditions, and unique features of each market. 

Would you like to rank for the best travel keywords?

The ultimate travel company.

The Ultimate Travel Company are an independent travel agent that uses its knowledge of destinations across the globe to create tailor-made holidays and tours. In this sample travel article, the brand shares insight into the time they spent discovering Estonia. Here is what they did well: 

• It provides practical information such as how to navigate Tallinn on foot, the location of the markets and the best hotels to stay in. 
• It shares recommendations for excursions and activities that can be enjoyed in Estonia based on the writer’s personal experiences. These are unbiased and given in detail. 
• It’s descriptive and illustrative in its narrative while also being organised efficiently to flow smoothly. 
• The blog supplies particular itineraries for travel in Estonia, including the option to pair the trip with a visit to Helsinki for a twin-city break. 

easyJet – the nation’s favourite budget airline. Known for its super cheap flights across Europe, the brand shares frequent travel articles on its blog, the Traveller. In this particular travel article, easyJet shares its take on the most beautiful islands in Europe. This is what they did well: 

• The highly immersive article uses great adjectives to help readers visualise the place. Our favourites include notebook scribbling, tottering, tumbling, and svelte. 
• It’s well-structured, using sub-headings for each of the islands it discusses, and ‘must-see’ pull-out quotes add a little intrigue. 
• Call to action is used well in each section, allowing readers to head straight to the booking page for package holidays and flights. 
• It’s long and in-depth. It’s not a listicle confined to 500 words; this blog offers plenty of holiday recommendations to suit a variety of tastes. 

Avalon Waterways

Avalon Waterways provide river cruises on some of Europe’s most famous rivers. Sailing through multiple countries at a time or docking in one particular spot for the duration of a holiday, holidaymakers can explore sites and relax in great company. With many options, their blog shares details of various trips and itineraries with its readers to help them choose. This is what we can learn from this travel article example:

• It’s practical. This blog offers in-depth information on what to expect on one of their cruise routes on the Rhine. 
• It highlights attractions and sites guests can enjoy on their travels. 
• It used vivid language to describe the routes taken, crafting illustrative imagery in readers’ heads. 
• It includes customer testimonials and case studies to share their experiences on the boat. 

Radisson Hotels

This European hotel chain uses its blog to sell its hotels’ destinations. In this particular travel article example, Radisson Hotels relies on sensory storytelling to share their take on a holiday in Venice. This is what they did well: 

• It puts their hotel in the front seat. Evolving the story around a stay at their canal-side location shows readers how they can craft the most memorable stay. 
• It uses sensory words to immerse the reader in a detailed experience, from sharing their favourite food experiences to attractions that will ignite sound, taste and smell. 
• It includes valuable links to book the attractions it mentions and provides readers with practical advice, including the best times to visit. 

Be My Travel Muse

A slightly different kind of travel blog to many others on this list, Be My Travel Muse is an independent blog that reviews and shares tips, advice and stories from travelling. In this blog post, the writer shares their experiences in Paris as a solo traveller. Here is what this travel blog post example does well: 

• It provides actionable advice based on personal experiences to help keep solo travellers safe. It doesn’t assume that you know anything, so it’s easy to understand and digest with clear explanations. 
• It offers a fresh viewpoint on a city commonly dubbed the ‘city of love’. 
• It’s conversational and personal. The writing style makes it feel like you’re receiving advice from a friend. 
• It is accompanied by striking original imagery that helps readers visualise what is being explained or explored in the text. 

Great Rail Journeys

Great Rail Journeys is a train travel company spanning mainland Europe. Known for the Glacier Express and other picturesque trips, they’re a one-stop-shop for booking holidays by train. The brand shares its favourite sustainable winter holidays in this travel blog post example. Here is what they do well: 

• They write with their brand values in mind. Great Rail Journeys champions greener travel, and this blog has sustainability at its core. 
• It goes beyond their product offering and shows readers how to embody these values in every aspect of their holiday planning. 
• It offers unique ideas to inspire customers’ holiday itineraries, from local cuisines to try, to initiatives to support while travelling. 

Our top tips for good travel writing

Scrolling these travel blog examples should give you an idea of what makes a decent blog. But for some fairly defined advice, here are our top tips for good travel writing. 

Find out about our  travel copywriting service  »

Get personal 

Your travel copywriting needs to be personal. The words you write hold a lot of weight and need to form an intimate conversation with your reader. When read by your target customers, they need to feel like that travel blog was meant for them. If you strike the right chord, it’s a lot more persuasive. 

“There is your audience. There is the language. There are the words that they use.” – Eugene Schwartz

How to write conversational copy? 

• Use your customer’s words, not industry jargon. 
• Involve the reader in your copy by breaking the fourth wall.
• Don’t be afraid to break grammar rules. 
• And you can start sentences with conjunctions
• Load up on personal pronouns. 
• Don’t try too hard to impress. 

A blog that does this well?  Read this travel article example by   Ryanair.

Need a helping hand from the travel content experts?

Use high-quality visuals.

Great photos seal the deal when it comes to writing travel content. Without them, you’ll struggle to keep readers engaged and your blog traffic will find it hard to get off the ground. Include striking imagery in your blog that reels in your reader and compliments the words on the page. Check you have permission to use the images you source or opt for copyright-free imagery from sites like Unsplash. 

A blog that does this well?  Read this example of a travel article by   Nomadic Matt.

Take your readers on a journey

According to the  Brand Shop , 55% of consumers are more likely to remember a story than a list of facts, and your travel blog should have a clear start, middle and end. Picture it like a gentle walk through a picturesque valley; you want your customers to feel like they’re walking through the vibrant location you describe in your blog. Hold their hand through areas that already flow into each other in the physical world and make them the main characters in the story. Tell them what they could do in their travels and why they’d enjoy it. 

“What matters isn’t storytelling. What matters is telling a true story well.” – Ann Handley

Storytelling best practices: 

• Connect with the right audience
• Align the narrative with your brand values
• Be authentic and relatable. 
• Grab their attention with striking imagery 
• Provoke action at the end of the story

A blog that does this well?  Read this travel article example by   Wanderlust.

Immerse your readers in detail

The detail in your writing is essential. But we don’t mean explaining everything. We mean picking out details to make your story much more memorable. By being unique, and descriptive and expressing your brand’s personality in your writing, you’re offering readers something they can’t get anywhere else. And that’s important when travel blogs are available to browse in abundance online. Find ways to stand out in your writing, from your tone to the mental imagery you create. Think back to an advert that sticks in your head – for example, Go Compare. It was unusual, but it stuck out and because of that, the money comparison site is front of mind when people need that service.

A blog that does this well?  Read this travel article example by   Secret Escapes.

Keep it practical 

“All the elements in an advertisement are primarily designed to do one thing and one thing only: get you to read the first sentence of the copy.” – Joseph Sugarman

The practicalities of blog writing are like the crucial pieces of furniture that make a place a home. Without them, it’s an uncomfortable experience you exit quickly and without further action. Although descriptive, your blog needs to provide customers with helpful information and details that will actually help them in their holiday planning. You can include: 

• Practical itinerary ideas and attractions to see while visiting
• Any information that customers may need to know to keep themselves safe
• Important advice on travel, eating out and places to stay
• A clear call to action at the end of each section or page

A blog that does this well?  Read this travel article example by   Emirates Holidays.

Blog writing is a task to get right. Even when you’re equipped with all the tips needed to write well, finding great words doesn’t come naturally for everyone. And that’s even before you consider technical details like SEO. That’s where we come in. We’ve been writing great travel content for some of your favourite brands since before the iPhone. Our team are passionate about travel, and we know how to craft excellent copy that will resonate with your audience. The right words can sell a destination, and we’d love to help your travel blog take off.  Get in touch.  We can help. 

Melissa Hawkins

For over five years, Melissa has worked with a variety of lifestyle brands to create compelling campaigns across multiple content formats. She has a particular interest in effective storytelling techniques and enjoys experimenting with tools and ideas to engage users with effective digital content.

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The global online travel market size was valued at USD 795.1 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.1% from 2021 to 2028. While many travel companies failed to be a part of such rapid growth, there is one that took advantage of powerful travel article writing to grow their business in a short period.

Airbnb launched its own magazine, Airbnb Magazine, in 2017, which features stories from hosts and travellers around the world. It allowed Airbnb to gain loyal subscribers who were interested in such experiences. 

Moreover, Airbnb saw a significant revenue bump after the launch of its magazine. Due to its real value-adding properties and gorgeous aesthetics, the magazine has won several awards for its design and content and has a circulation of over 1 million. 

In this article, we will go through such characteristics that enable travel article writing a success for travel companies and travel agencies.

Who are we? Content Whale is a complete content writing company specializing in 30+ content writing domains, such as blogs & article writing, magazine articles, graphic design, website content writing, etc. 

We serve 33+ industries, out of which the travel & tourism industry is one of our niche industries. We have served travel companies such as MakeMyTrip, Redbus, Thomas Cook, TripAdvisor, etc., providing affordable travel article writing solutions.

If you are a travel company looking for affordable travel article writing services to grow rapidly in the market, Content Whale will be a viable solution for you.

However, if you are writing one yourself, ensure that it is unique and adds value to your audience. But how can you ensure your write travel articles stand out from the crowd and resonate with your audience? Here are some travel article writing tips and best practices to keep in mind.

1. Practical Niche-Specific Research for Travel Article Writing

Let’s say you are a travel company that offers customized tours to Japan. You want to write an article about the best places to visit in Tokyo during cherry blossom season. How would you do your research?

a) First, identify your target audience and their pain points, goals, interests, and preferences:

• Google Analytics – to find which page of your website your audience relates to the most and what bounces them off your website.

• Different SM Insights – Behaviour of your social media followers on different posts related to Japan & Tokyo.

• SurveyMonkey – To understand your email subscribers’ CTRs, interests, and successful email campaigns.

• Google Trends/BuzzSumo – popular or trending topics in the travel niche related to Tokyo & Cherry Blossom.

b) Now you can collect the right information for travel article writing:

• Wikipedia – To collect credible data on Japan’s history, culture & attractions. (Check the reference section to ensure the data is reliable.)

•  TripAdvisor – for experts’ opinions, people reviews & recommendation places & hotels in Tokyo.

•  Lonely Planet – for travel guides on how to travel more efficiently & economically.

• Instagram/Pinterest – for visual inspiration or user-generated content on Tokyo’s cherry blossom spots.

c) Finally, organize everything in one place. Some widely used tools are:

• Evernote/Google Docs – for notes, key points, and creating outlines. 

• Excel/Google Sheets – for creating charts, graphs, or tables to visualize your data.

If you don’t want to invest your time into writing travel articles yourself, you can always outsource to us at Content Whale . 

2. The Right Way of Content Writing for Travel Companies (ft. Funnel Model)

One of the most important aspects of travel article writing is storytelling. Storytelling increases the likelihood of readers remembering the information. According to a Stanford study , people are 22 times more likely to remember a fact when it is embedded in a story, rather than presented as a raw data point. 

Additionally, storytelling can help you convey your message, and showcase your brand personality, and persuade your readers to take action.

But how do you tell a good story in a travel article? One of the methods you can use is the funnel model. The funnel model allows you to structure your story from broad to specific, general to personal, and abstract to concrete. The funnel theory consists of four stages: hook, overview, details, and call-to-action.

a) Hook: It’s the first sentence or paragraph of your travel article that should be able to hook your audience, alluring them to read more. The hook can be a question, a quote, a statistic, a fact, a joke, a story, or anything else that sparks curiosity or interest. 

A dramatic hook is one of the most powerful hooks in travel article writing. However, a ‘ Do-you-know’ bit or a rhetorical question also works with almost the same efficacy.

b) Overview: The overview is the second part of your article that gives the reader an idea of what the article is about and why they should care. The overview can be a summary, a thesis statement, a problem statement, a benefit statement, or anything else that explains the purpose or value of your article.

c) Details: The details are the third part of your article that provide the main information, evidence, or arguments that support your overview. The details can be facts, figures, examples, anecdotes, quotes, or anything else that adds depth and credibility to your article.

d) Call-to-action: The call-to-action is the final part of your article that tells the reader what to do next. The call-to-action can be a link, a button, a coupon, a phone number, an email address, or anything else that encourages the reader to take action.

If you are not sure about how you’ll pull this off, let us handle the writing part for you. Connect with your dedicated account manager now!

3. SEO Content Writing for Travel Companies

There is no doubt that SEO improves your website’s visibility and ranking on search engines. It helps creating content that is relevant, useful, and engaging for your target audience, as well as optimized for search engines.

According to a study by BrightEdge , organic search accounts for 53% of all website traffic. This means that more than half of your potential customers are reaching out to you from search results. Hence, SEO content writing is highly important for your travel company.

How do you write SEO content for travel companies? Here are some tips and best practices to follow:

• Keyword density (1-2%)

•  Meta Tags (Insertion of keywords)

•  Mobile Optimization (Average 50% of users are mobile users)

•  Image Size (As small as possible to load faster)

•  Image Alt Text (Relevant to images and, if possible, keyword insertion)

•  Snippets (Brief description of the topic)

•  FAQs (Relevant to the target audience)

However, if you wish to have a detailed explanation of SEO, check out this article .

Don’t be overwhelmed, you can always rely on a professional and affordable travel article writing company. Share your requirements with us!

4. Travel Article Writing & Tourism Article Writing

Travel article writing is more focused on the personal experiences, opinions, and emotions of the writer or traveler. Tourism article writing focuses more on the factual information, features, and benefits of a destination or service.

Differences between travel article writing & tourism article writing:

a) Travel article writing:

• More subjective, creative, and narrative

• Uses storytelling techniques such as anecdotes, dialogue, sensory details, humor, or suspense to engage the reader’s attention and imagination.

• Uses the first-person point of view (“I”) to share the writer’s perspective and personality.

b) Tourism article writing: 

• More objective, informative, and persuasive

• Uses data-driven techniques such as statistics, facts, examples, quotes, or testimonials to establish credibility and authority. 

• Uses the third-person point of view (“they” or “it”) to present a neutral or professional tone.

How can travel brands leverage both types of content writing? By using them for different purposes and audiences. 

Travel article writing can inspire, entertain, and connect with potential customers looking for travel ideas or inspiration.  For example:

• You can use travel article writing to showcase your brand’s unique selling proposition, such as personalized tours, local guides, or cultural immersion.

Tourism article writing can be used to inform, educate, and convince potential customers who are looking for travel information or solutions. For example:

• You can use tourism article writing to showcase your brand’s competitive advantages, such as its prices, discounts, or guarantees.

5. Use of Visual Elements While Writing Travel Articles

Visual elements are an essential part of travel article writing. Visual elements can help you attract and retain the reader’s attention, enhance your message, and increase your conversion rate.

How can travel brands use visual elements while writing travel articles? Here are some tips and best practices to follow:

a) Use of high-quality and relevant visuals for writing travel articles:

• Can include images, videos, infographics, maps, charts, graphs, or icons.

•  Clear, sharp, original, authentic, and diverse. 

•  Use tools like Unsplash, Pixabay, Pexels, Freepik, etc. for royalty-free images or videos. 

•  Use tools like Canva or Piktochart to create your own infographics or charts.

•  Illustrate your points, provide evidence, or evoke emotions. 

b) Incorporate your branding elements in your travel articles:

•  Find the right colors, use tools like Coolors, Adobe Color, etc.

c) Finally, optimize your articles for SEO & performance:

•  Use keywords in your file names, alt texts, captions, and titles. 

•  Right image formats, sizes, and compression. 

• To reduce file size, use tools like TinyPNG, Compressor.io, etc.

Final Words

Travel article writing is a powerful way to grow your travel brand and reach your target audience. By following the tips and best practices we’ve shared in this article, you can create travel articles that are informative, engaging, and effective.

However, we know that travel article writing can be challenging and time-consuming. That’s why we’re here to help. As we mentioned initially, we have worked with many travel & tourism brands for their travel article writing requirements. Hence, we believe, we can benefit you as well, with our affordable travel article writing services.

You can contact us here to get started.

A travel feature article is a type of travel article that focuses on a specific aspect or theme of a destination or experience. A travel feature article usually provides more depth, detail, and insight than a regular travel article. A travel feature article can be written in different styles, such as descriptive, narrative, persuasive, or informative.

To write a travel article, you need to follow these steps:

• Choose a topic and a purpose for your travel article.

• Do research on your topic and audience.

• Create an outline for your travel article.

• Write the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion of your travel article.

• Edit and proofread your travel article.

• Add visual elements and optimize your travel article for SEO.

The aim of travel writing is to inform, entertain, inspire, or persuade the reader about a destination or experience. Travel writing can also help writers express their thoughts, feelings, or opinions about a destination or experience.

To find SEO article writers, you can use different methods, such as:

• Searching online platforms or directories that connect clients with freelance writers.

• Asking for referrals or recommendations from your network or industry peers.

• Hiring a content writing service that specializes in SEO article writing.

Content Whale is a content writing service that offers high-quality and SEO-friendly content for various niches and purposes. Content Whale has a team of professional and experienced writers who can create content that meets your needs and expectations. Content Whale also offers fast delivery, affordable prices, unlimited revisions, and a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

• February 28, 2024

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Beyond "What I Did on Vacation": Exploring the Genre of Travel Writing

• Resources & Preparation
• Instructional Plan
• Related Resources

In this lesson, students are introduced to the genre of travel writing. After reading and analyzing short examples and discussing conventions of the genre, students engage in some guided travel writing activities. They brainstorm events and/or personal experiences that might make a fun piece of travel writing and select one event for freewriting. They then turn their notes into a travel article, using a list of characteristics of good travel writing to assess their writing as they work. They peer review and revise drafts of their writing before publishing it using an online multigenre tool. This scalable lesson can be completed in a few days as a short mini-unit, before a school break as a chance for students to do some real world writing, or over a longer period of time as an extended unit with integrated research.

Featured Resources

• Elements of Good Travel Writing : This handout lists characteristics of good travel articles.
• Multigenre Mapper : Students can use this online tool to create multigenre, multimodal texts, including three types of writing and a drawing, in response to the Gettysburg Address.
• Suggested Reading in the Travel Writing Genre : This reading list includes books and magazines in the travel writing genre.

From Theory to Practice

In her book Thinking Through Genre , Heather Lattimer discusses genre study as "an inquiry into text form" (4). One of the ways to help students see the structural and rhetorical features of a piece of writing is to immerse them in the study of various genres. By studying a wide array of genres, students are better able to see the many decisions a writer makes as a matter of purpose, audience, and form or genre, rather than as arbitrary teacher-established rules. Lattimer suggests, "A genre study is not about reading a particular text; individual texts are read and discussed for the purpose of developing strategies of comprehension appropriate for the genre" (4). Dean states, "Even if we can't develop the full contextual aspect of some genres because of the restrictions of the classroom situation, it is helpful for students to know that not all writing is the same. They can learn the concept of genres." (45) By reading and writing in new genres, students gain strategies for reading new kinds of texts as well as insights into different ways of producing texts. Further Reading

Common Core Standards

This resource has been aligned to the Common Core State Standards for states in which they have been adopted. If a state does not appear in the drop-down, CCSS alignments are forthcoming.

State Standards

This lesson has been aligned to standards in the following states. If a state does not appear in the drop-down, standard alignments are not currently available for that state.

NCTE/IRA National Standards for the English Language Arts

• 1. Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works.
• 4. Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.
• 5. Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
• 6. Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and nonprint texts.
• 12. Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).

Materials and Technology

• Suggested Reading in the Travel Writing Genre
• Sample Piece of Travel Writing: “The Visit” (or substitute with your own piece if you prefer)
• Computer with Internet access
• Analysis of Travel Writing
• Elements of Good Travel Writing

Preparation

• Read and the Analysis of Travel Writing and note how the characteristics apply to “ The Visit .”
• Consider how travel writing might fit into your larger conversations with students about writing. For example, using travel writing as part of a genre approach to teaching writing can allow teachers to compare and contrast it with other forms of writing. There is a strong overlap between travel writing and personal narrative, as good travel writing centers on good stories and engaging voice and style. Mixed in with that, however, is the description and informational aspects of expository writing. Travel writing also often overlaps with persuasive writing, making emotional appeals to entice readers to take particular sorts of trips. Seeing travel writing as a hybrid genre not only will give students an additional form to work in; it will help them see aspects of familiar forms by comparison.
• Make one copy of the Analysis of Travel Writing and Elements of Good Travel Writing for each student.
• Test the Multigenre Mapper on your computers to familiarize yourself with the tool and ensure that you have the Flash plug-in installed. You can download the plug-in from the technical support page .

Student Objectives

Students will:

• learn the conventions of the travel writing genre.
• attempt new methods of generating personal writing.
• practice process-based writing and writing for an audience.
• integrate research with personal experiences and reflection.

Session One

• Ask students what they know about travel writing and what they expect to find in travel writing. List their comments on the board or on chart paper. Save this information for use later in the session.
• Hand out copies of “ The Visit ,” or have students access it online. Alternately, you can share another piece of travel writing with students from your class textbook or another source.
• Hand out copies of the Analysis of Travel Writing to each student.
• Have students read “ The Visit ” and then answer the questions on the Analysis of Travel Writing , either individually or in small groups.
• Discuss the article and student responses to the Analysis of Travel Writing handout.
• Ask students to compare that they found in the reading with their observations and expectations at the beginning of the session. Encourage exploration of the similarities and differences.
• Hand out a Elements of Good Travel Writing to each student, and discuss these elements as they apply to the reading.

Session Two

• Review the Elements of Good Travel Writing handout from the previous session.
• Have students watch the short clip " Developing Travel Writing " from BBC.
• When they finish reading, ask students to brainstorm a list of events and/or personal experiences that might make a fun piece of travel writing.
• Give students a few minutes to share their lists with their peers.
• Have students select one event from their lists and write down, using freewriting and brainstorming techniques, everything they can about it during the remainder of the session. If time is short, have students complete their notes for homework. Ask them to bring their notes to the next session.

Session Three

• Allow students a few minutes to review their notes from the previous session and make any changes or additions.
• Explain that these notes are source material for students’ own travel articles.
• Have students compare their notes to the Elements of Good Travel Writing . Ask them to identify any characteristics that are not present in their work or that need to be strengthened.
• Try for a clever attention grabber (explain that this may be the last or most difficult part).
• Give enough background information to set the context: Where were you? Why were you there? Why was this event important?
• Clearly describe the setting. Use details that appeal to multiple senses.
• Clearly describe an important person (alternately, an animal or thing) in the story. Make sure that your reader will understand who the key people are in the article.
• Look for places where you can add dialogue. If the event happened a long time ago, dialogue does not have to be direct quotations. Suggest students focus on the general comments and feelings in their dialogues.
• Mix in personal reflections with the telling of the story.
• Ask students to bring a completed draft of their travel article to the next class session for peer review.

Session Four

• Have students share their revised drafts in small groups of two to four students.
• Ask peers to evaluate the articles by comparing their characteristics to the Elements of Good Travel Writing .
• Encourage students to share supportive feedback and praise as well.
• Have students revise their work using feedback from their peers to create a final draft.
• If desired, allow time for students to publish their travel writing using the Multigenre Mapper to incorporate drawings into their final work.
• Have students research the location in their writings and then incorporate relevant information into the finished versions.
• Read additional travel writing. Some suggestions are included on the Suggested Reading in the Travel Writing Genre handout.
• General interest magazines often carry travel pieces as well. Discuss the kinds of travel writing that are included in non-travel magazines such as Cottage Living and the differences between these and articles found in travel magazines such as National Geographic Traveler . Use this comparison as a basis for a discussion of audience and purpose.
• For some additional ways to write about travel, consult Ten Ways to Write about Your Vacation , which includes writing prompts that can be used as starting points or as more polished pieces.

Student Assessment / Reflections

• Assess students’ finished travel writing by comparison to the genre conventions established during discussion and in the Elements of Good Travel Writing . Finished pieces can be shared with peers, family, and/or the school at large via a “travel” edition of a school publication.
• Calendar Activities
• Student Interactives
• Professional Library

Students read a section from On the Road that deals with cross-country travel and reflects Kerouac's unique writing style. Students then attempt to write a narrative using Kerouac's stream-of-consciousness style.

Families are invited to a June literacy fair to end the school year and get students on the right track for the summer.

This interactive invites students to create original multigenre, multimodal works--one drawing and three written texts--making the tool flexible for multiple writing activities.

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