Travel Journalist Career Guide: Exploring Travel Journalism

Travel journalism is a type of writing that focuses on travel, the travel industry, or the tourism industry. A travel journalist reports and writes stories about travel in a newsworthy fashion. An outlet might employ a travel journalist or hire a freelance travel journalist on an assignment basis. Travel journalists pitch stories and often travel to various places for content.

There are different paths travel journalists can pursue. Some of the most common varieties of travel journalists and writers include:

1. 1. Freelance travel journalist: The vast majority of travel journalists are freelance writers. Freelance travel writers pitch stories to various publications and build relationships with editors. A freelance journalist’s work can appear in print publications, periodicals, and websites in the form of articles, reviews, or travel guides. Often, freelance writers must pay for their own travel expenses.
2. 2. Staff travel journalist: In some cases, an outlet will hire a travel writer to pen travel stories full-time. The largest, best-funded publications can afford full-time travel journalists and writers with years of experience and excellent reputations to win these coveted jobs.
3. 3. Trade travel journalists: This field of travel journalism focuses on the travel and tourism industries. Trade journals generally publish work aimed at tourism boards and public relations staff at hotels, cruise lines, and other service-based arms of the tourism industry. Tourism is a large international industry and offers travel journalists opportunities to gain a wide readership.
4. 4. Travel author: Another type of travel journalist specializes in writing books, including guidebooks to particular cities, regions, and countries. Guidebook series frequently require updates, offering travel writers and travel editors consistent work.
5. 5. Travel blogger: Some travel journalists focus on in-depth, first-person narratives of their travel experiences. This work can be satisfying, but it requires personal transparency and can be challenging to market.

Travel journalists, travel writers, and foreign correspondents overlap in the most basic sense of content creation, but their differences result in distinctly different professions. Here are three key differences between the roles:

• Audience: The work of a travel journalist often appears in travel magazines that appeal to individuals who travel for leisure or work, whereas trade travel journalists cater to tourism companies and industry specialists. Travel writers, which can include travel bloggers, might find readership through a blog, online publications, and social media. Foreign correspondents report on-location for an audience at a home base.
• Content: Some travel journalists report specifically on the travel industry itself, while others specialize in different types of travel, like ecotourism or luxury travel. In general, travel journalists write guides and practical information for travelers. Travel writers can be similar to memoirists, focusing on personal experiences or writing detailed histories of places and their people or ecology. Foreign correspondents specialize in general news, and their job is to report on the conditions in their assigned location. Although increasingly less common in today’s journalism world, foreign correspondents typically live in the countries they report on and gather information to write about the local politics, culture, economy, and social issues.
• Publication: A travel journalist usually refers to a specific kind of writing to generate content for travel-orientated publications. A travel writer may be on staff at a generalist publication or publish work on a personal blog. A foreign correspondent is a journalist, usually staffed full-time at a magazine. Publications like the New York Times, National Geographic, Forbes, and USA Today publish travel content.

Certain traits can aid in your success as a travel journalist:

1. 1. Adventurousness: This pertains to the stereotypical aspects of travel journalism, like traveling to distant or unfamiliar parts of the world and meeting new people.
2. 2. Curiosity: A good travel journalist is curious about new locations, cultures, types of food, and people. There’s a difference between sampling the resort accommodations and learning firsthand about the place you’re visiting.
3. 3. Multitasking: Travel journalism requires a variety of skills. Not only do you need to be a good writer, you need to be good at pitching articles and emphasizing what you bring to the table versus other candidates. Other skills, like photography and marketing, can also go a long way in helping you achieve your travel writing goals.
4. 4. Resilience: Being a freelance travel journalist requires resilience, since rejection is part of the process. You also need a high degree of flexibility to work in varying time zones. Additionally, travel writing involves travel-related risks; you must be resilient to deal with lost luggage, navigate language barriers, handle issues with sanitation, and adjust to interrupted sleep cycles.

There is no set road map to becoming a travel journalist, but there are a few qualifications and experiences that can help you pursue this career:

1. 1. Get an education. Many travel journalists or writers have a degree in journalism. A degree or online certification can signal to editors that you are serious about travel journalism.
2. 2. Start writing. Writing takes practice and discipline. If you aren’t in the position to begin traveling and writing about it, start with writing about what you already know, or wish to learn about.
3. 3. Make connections. Many careers depend upon working relationships, and this is no less true in travel journalism. You can network on social media or in person with other writers and editors. Reach out to staff at media outlets to introduce yourself.
4. 4. Pitch story ideas. Keep a running list of story ideas and consistently send pitches to editors and associate editors. Focus on timely articles with a hook, and follow up on pitches after a few weeks.

Being a travel journalist can be a rewarding profession, but the job also presents challenges, especially for freelance writers. Some of the challenges include:

1. 1. Logistical complications: Travel writing often requires spending a lot of time on the road. For travel writers paying their way, the planning process involves finding affordable travel and accommodations.
2. 2. Loneliness: Many travel writers travel and write solo. This offers a high degree of freedom, but it can also be isolating.
3. 3. Low pay: Some companies and publications will cover accommodations and food costs, but often, writers must pay for travel expenses. Large publications might employ full-time travel journalists and cover travel expenses for assignments and press trips. The rates for travel articles tend to be pretty low, especially in comparison to other types of writing. Freelance travel writers typically also write about generalist topics to have a broad portfolio of work.

Become a better reporter with the MasterClass Annual Membership. Gain access to exclusive video lessons taught by award-winning journalists and broadcasters, including Bob Woodward, Malcolm Gladwell, George Stephanopoulos, Robin Roberts, and more.