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Tag: travel writing

  • 31 Travel Magazines and Websites That Pay Freelance Writers

    31 Travel Magazines and Websites That Pay Freelance Writers

    When you dream about your writing career, do you picture yourself scribbling in notebooks about your world travels, hoping to combine your wanderlust with your creative flair to earn money for your adventures? 

    If you have travel stories to tell, it’s time to stop dreaming and start finding travel writing jobs!

    Lots of markets are willing to pay for your stories about destinations, tips and your experiences on the road.   

    Get paid to write about travel

    Don’t think travel writing is limited to travel-specific magazines or travel websites. Plenty of local and regional publications are actively looking for travel stories, even for destinations right in your own backyard.

    Some writers envision travel writing jobs as sharing tales of globetrotting and exploring the ancient artifacts of Greece, or wandering Machu Picchu. But that’s only a small part of travel writing.

    Publications are often even more eager to snap up stories about the mountain trails an hour away that make for easy weekend adventures or the nearby metropolitan city that has a new art exhibit and great restaurant scene.

    Publications that offer freelance travel writing jobs.

    Publications that offer freelance travel writing jobs

    While full-time travel writer jobs can be hard to come by, it’s more common for freelancers to sell travel writing to magazines and other outlets. To get you started, we compiled 36 paying international and domestic travel markets. Click on each title to access submission guidelines or editorial contacts.

    So let’s get to it! Here are dozens of publications that provide opportunities for travel writing jobs:

    1. Matador Network

    Matador Travel seeks original writing, photo and video contributions “that speak to the adventures, cultures, and identities of people around the world.” It encourages  creators to join their Matador Creators Community to find the latest journalist opportunities. 

    While the website does not list a specific payment, Who Pays Writers reports payments ranging from $0.03 to $0.20 per word.

    2. ROVA

    Want to share your thrilling stories of life on the open road? The site often looks for stories featuring road trips, RVs and adventure. Most of their readers travel the roads of North America and want insightful stories about the continent.  

    Submit an article or photo essay and earn $200 upon acceptance at the ROVA Magazine website. 

    3. Outpost Magazine

    Outpost Magazine looks for submissions about travel, adventure and culture. It is looking for longform travel stories, travel guides, and stunning photography from writers anywhere in the world. The publication is Canadian and it has a “Canadian slant.”

    Online stories typically range from 800 to 1,500 words, 2,000 to 4,000 for print and features can be up to about 5,000 words; pay varies.

    4. Wanderlust

    Wanderlust, a British travel magazine, publishes destination features up to 2,200 words, along with shorter dispatches, travel guides, round-up features and more.  Pay is typically £220 (about $275) per 1,000 words, but rates vary.

    5. Travel + Leisure Magazine

    While Travel + Leisure Magazine doesn’t have specific submission guidelines online, Freedom with Writing says this magazine is written 95 percent by freelancers on assignment and pays up to $1 a word. Submit your pitches to submissions@travelandleisure.com.

    6. Arizona Highways Magazine

    Arizona travelers rely on this magazine for destination-based ideas, and the publication also encourages travelers to come to Arizona. Check its guidelines to see when queries (typically on specific locations) are accepted. This period is often in March. Pay varies.

    7. Canadian Geographic Magazine

    Write about Canada’s people, frontiers, places and issues in Canadian Geographic Magazine, which comes out six times a year. There are no formal guidelines to follow, but you might want to familiarize yourself with their content and tone to get an idea of what they’re looking for.

    It buys about 30 features a year and pay varies.

    8. Escapees Magazine

    RV travelers with stories to tell and wisdom to share might consider submitting to Escapees Magazine, which specializes in RV lifestyle. The publication only accepts fully written articles on spec.

    They pay $100 to $200 for feature submissions and $50 to $100 for short fillers.

    9. KANSAS! Magazine

    Celebrate the wonders of Kansas with KANSAS! Magazine offered by Kansas Tourism and partner organizations. Pitch a 400- to 800-word nonfiction story that has the potential for interesting photography and reflects the state positively. 

    Most readers are locals over the age of 50. Payment varies.

    10. Los Angeles Times Travel

    The travel section of the Los Angeles Times looks for pieces with a strong visual component. Trips must be taken in the previous two years and writers must follow specific ethical guidelines, including not receiving comped travel.

    Print stories vary from $200 to $750; online-only stories generally pay $500; Weekend Escapes pay $200, plus additional money for original photos.

    11. Wildsam Magazine

    Wildsam Magazine is for RV enthusiasts wants travel stories covering all aspects of the RV lifestyle, including travel destinations, activities and events and more.

    It can pay up to $900 for technical manuscripts with photos, and less for shorter pieces.

    12. Oregon Coast Magazine

    Write about Oregon’s stunning coastal region and tell stories about everything from day-long driving tours to restaurant features and historical sites in Oregon Coast Magazine.

    Payment ranges from $100 to $650 depending on story type and word count.

    13. Pathfinders Travel

    A travel magazine for people for color, Pathfinders Travel looks for fresh ideas and stories about travel and the travel industry. 

    Stories typically pay $150.

    14. Road and Travel

    Road and Travel specializes in automotive, travel and personal safety articles, including articles that appeal to female business travelers. Travel articles should relate to hotels and resorts, spas, airlines and airline rules, bed & breakfasts, destination reviews, places to go and things to do and much more.

    The magazine pays up to $100 per article.

    15. Sunset Magazine

    Sunset Magazine focuses on 13 Western states and wants “take action” travel ideas as well as destinations that offer a variety of experiences and “soft adventures.”

    Pay varies.

    16. World Nomads

    World Nomads looks for travel articles that fall under these categories: love, fear, discovery, connection and transformation. Pitch a personal, authentic story about a life-changing journey or experience.

    They pay 50 cents per word for stories between 600 to 800 words. Payment is made after publication.

    17. Airways Magazine

    Airways Magazine seeks business, travel, technology and personality articles, among other topics.

    Rates range from $150 to $700 depending on the topic, length and treatment of an article.

    18. WestJet Magazine

    WestJet’s Canadian lifestyle-travel publication wants stories ranging from insider tips and service-oriented advice to local cuisine and features.

    Payment varies.

    19. AAA Insider Magazines

    The American Automobile Association publishes several magazines, focusing on auto travel.

    Payment varies.

    20. Backpacker

    Backpacker Magazine covers North American destinations. Pitches must cover foot-based travel, wilderness or backcountry experiences and advice.

    A feature story’s word count varies from 1,500 to 5,000 words, although there are shorter assignments available from 100 to 1,200 words. They accept pitches via email and require a signed contract which specifies the payment amount and payment terms. 

    Pay varies, but Who Pays Writers reports rates up to 50 cents per word.

    21. New Mexico Magazine

    Showcase New Mexico’s rich environment and culture through New Mexico Magazine, a publication of the New Mexico Tourism Department. One-third of readers live in the state and the out-of-state readers typically visit twice a year or so. The magazine looks for a lively editorial mix, with articles that show readers things they can do in New Mexico.

    Pay is typically 35 to 40 cents per word.

    22. Texas Highways

    Texas’ official travel magazine reaches 500,000 readers in 54 countries each month. It is looking for pieces featuring “scenery, history, small towns, and out-of-the-way places.”

    Pays 50 cents per word.

    23. International Living Magazine

    International Living Magazine and website is a comprehensive resource that helps readers find their dream retirement overseas. It wants stories from expats and anyone who can inform their readers about ways to stretch their dollars and simplify their lives.

    Pay is up to $150 for website stories; print stories pay $225 for 900 words and $350 for 1,600 words, plus $50 per photo; 600-word daily postcards pay $100.

    24. New Worlder

    New Worlder Magazine isn’t interested in a taco that has the most buzz—but it definitely wants to know why it has the most buzz. Pitch stories with strong angles about travel, food, culture and people for an American and Latin American audience.

    While pay is confirmed, no specific rates are provided in the guidelines.

    25. Odyssa Magazine

    Freelance submissions are accepted each quarterly issue of Odyssa Magazine, though editors are particularly looking for travel pieces in the form of a guide, personal travel experience or reflection of how travel affects our thoughts and who we are.

    Pay is $30 per article up to 1,500 words.

    26. HitTheRoad

    To get the green light, write and pitch a story to HitTheRoad about the adventures, cultures and amazing experiences of road trips in Australia, New Zealand, USA and Canada. Emphasis is put on experiences in rented campervans and motorhomes, but a journey on the open road is what matters most. 

    Standard payment is a link to your site and $50 depending on article type and length.

    27. Cruising World

    Cruising World welcomes author inquiries and unsolicited manuscripts at all times, but make sure to include photos with your submission. Feature-length articles shouldn’t exceed 2,000 words, and non-features (technical articles and general interest) are capped at 1,200 words.

    Payment varies depending on the type of article: $25 to $200 for short, newsworthy items and $300 to $1,000 for technical and feature articles.

    28. Lonely Planet

    Lonely Planet is an award-winning website that gives travelers the tools they need to plan their next trip such as in-depth information on destinations, things to do and travel advice. They are looking for freelance contributors who want to write digital content, travel news and guidebooks.

    Rates vary, but Who Pays Writers reports a rate of 30 cents per word.

    29. Transitions Abroad Magazine

    Transitions Abroad Magazine is for people who live abroad is looking for a variety of pieces about working, living and studying abroad, as well as cultural and culinary travel. Heads up: They’re currently primarily seeking stories about online learning to teach English as a Foreign Language (TEFL).

    Pay is typically $75 to $150 for a 1,250-word article for the web.

    30. GoNOMAD

    Write travel articles about destinations, activities and experiences for GoNOMAD, but take note that this website seeks pieces that meet its style and focus.

    If you want to write for GoNOMAD, note, “No glossy magazine fluff, no standard guidebook descriptions, no promotional hype.” Articles are typically 1,200 to 2,000 words, and a detailed list of locations and topics the publication is seeking is available in its guidelines.

    Pay is $25 per article.

    31. DesertUSA Magazine

    Desert lovers can write all about the North American desert in DesertUSA Magazine, which targets those who love the natural and cultural history of the region. Wildlife, adventure, history, desert lore, and travel stories are in demand.

    Articles with photos receive payment of $50.

    Write your own travel book

    An alternative to finding travel writing jobs is to simply go ahead and publish your own travel book. If you have written over 10,000 words for a certain travel journey or advice, you could easily turn that into a whole book to sell.

    Advertisement for the Freelance Writers Den, a writing community with more than 300 hour of training for one affordable monthly price

    The original version of this story was written by Kristen Pope. We updated the post so it’s more useful for our readers.

    Photo via natalia_maroz/ Shutterstock 

  • 4 Resources for Women Interested in Travel Writing

    4 Resources for Women Interested in Travel Writing

    After I graduated from college, I moved to Ibiza, Spain to teach English. On a daily basis, I experienced new ways of seeing the world and learning about food, language and society in another country. I felt like I had so much to say, but I had no idea how to say it.

    I found several resources to help me get started as a writer, but I still wanted to find a way to learn how to tell stories about my travels. I stumbled upon many online classes, but many seemed better suited for people already in the industry.

    Unsure if writing was even the path I wanted to pursue, I was hesitant to invest time and financial resources into online writing courses.  

    Because I wanted to write about personal transformation through travel that revolved around being a woman, I also wanted to find workshops focused on those themes.

    The following affordable, newbie-friendly workshops or short-term courses are a great way to learn the basics and start writing confidently. As a bonus, these courses are specifically geared toward women.

    1. Pink Pangea

    Pink Pangea is a community of women who love to travel.

    They hold online travel writing workshops ($12) where women writers not only receive feedback and guidance on writing, but are also encouraged to step out of their comfort zones. It’s an encouraging space where new writers will feel comfortable exploring their thoughts and experiences through writing.    

    The website features stories of growth and adventure written by women from all parts of the globe who have found meaning through travel. Pink Pangea also hosts week-long writing and yoga retreats around the world, along with a series of online workshops and classes, including memoir writing, a four-week travel intensive ($360) and travel blogging.

    One of the best parts of contributing to Pink Pangea or taking one of their courses is access to their online community, where women travelers and writers share advice and support one anoother.

    2. Jillian Schedneck’s Travel to Memoir Program

    Travel memoirist Jillian Schedneck, author of Abu Dhabi Days, Dubai Nights, holds several four-week travel memoir programs throughout the year.

    Her courses are applicable to writers of any stage in their career (male writers are also welcome), but new writers will find her advice and editing especially helpful. Schedneck teaches students a story structure that is sure to pull readers in and keep them invested in writer’s personal journey.

    The course also features weekly “read like a writer” segments, which gives writers the tools to dissect a piece of writing and figure out why it presents a successful story.    

    At the end of each week, writers submit their assignments to Jillian, who gives feedback in an encouraging, constructive manner. At the end of the course, participants will have a story ready to submit for publication. It can be intimidating to submit your first piece of writing to a publication, but with Schedneck’s support you’ll feel confident your story is worth sharing.  

    The class runs around $200.

    3. D.I.G. Transformative Workshops for Women

    D.I.G. stands for “Dream, Inspire, Grow” and is ideal for women who need some confidence in getting their authentic thoughts on the page.

    D.I.G.’s interactive travel memoir workshop is for women writers of all levels.

    Following the original D.I.G. workshop style, it includes elements of the three fundamental components, dreams, inspirations and ways to grow. According Raquel Reyes, the founder of D.I.G., those are the three things any woman needs for “heartfelt and successful writing.”

    Reyes started these workshops after meeting with a group of women writers in Italy. She was so moved by the experience she wanted to give other women the opportunity to work in have a safe space.

    D.I.G. workshops transcend teaching travel writing tools. Reyes says that while the main focus is writing, there’s also the opportunity for personal transformation. Women are given a space to open up and connect with one another.

    All group online workshops (she also offers in-person in Los Angeles and New York) are under $20 a session.

    4. Women on the Road’s Free Travel Writing Course

    Twenty years ago, former news reporter Leyla Giray Alyanak, now a travel writer and blogger, funded her solo travels through Africa and Asia as a freelance writer. She’s continued to thrive,  writing, blogging and running her website Women on the Road, where she gives women the advice and tools they need to travel solo.

    After so many people asked how she was able to write and travel, she developed a ‘crash course’ Kindle book to introduce the world of travel writing. This e-book, called My Free Travel Writing Course was then republished on her website.

    The course offers informational, easy-to-read content surrounding the world of travel writing, including everything from the actual writing to what it means to report and shape a story.

    According to Giray Alyanak, this course is all about the fundamentals of being a writer and just happens to focus on travel. The course is a great way for women interested in travel writing to have access to a comprehensive introduction — a ‘first step,’ so to speak — without investing in an expensive course. Through its content, Giray Alyanak gives women a chance to ‘test the waters’ and give new writers a no-nonsense idea of what travel writing actually involves.

    Each of these workshops is a great chance for women new to travel writing to explore their burgeoning skills in a safe environment.

    After you’ve tried some of these workshops, you’ll not only have the tools and confidence to share your transformative travel experiences, but will also have a better idea of if writing is a career or hobby you’d like to pursue further.

    Have other courses to share? Let us know in the comments below!

    This post contains affiliate links. That means if you purchase through our links, you’re supporting The Write Life — and we thank you for that!

  • Writing a Memoir: Here’s What Worked for These Travel Writers

    Writing a Memoir: Here’s What Worked for These Travel Writers

    Traveling the world while getting paid to write about it is the ultimate dream for many writers.

    Kim Dinan and Jo Piazza are two writers who have made that dream come true. Both have recently published travel memoirs reflecting on travel, love and marriage.

    Dinan wrote The Yellow Envelope: One Gift, Three Rules, and A Life-Changing Journey Around the World about the journey she and her husband took after quitting their jobs, selling everything and leaving their life in Portland, Oregon, for a trip around the world.

    Before they left, friends gave them a yellow envelope with a check inside, encouraging them to distribute the funds to people they met along the way. Her book tells the story of their journey and the people they met, and shared the money with, along the way.

    While Dinan and her husband were married for years before their journey, Piazza’s memoir How to Be Married: What I Learned from Real Women on Five Continents About Surviving My First (Really Hard) Year of Marriage is more of a honeymoon tale.

    Piazza, a travel editor and globe-trotting reporter, made her way around the world with her journalist husband asking people she met along the way for their marriage advice. It was fitting since the couple met on a boat in the Galapagos Islands where both were on assignment and married three months later.

    Read on to see what worked well for these writers in publishing their own travel memoirs.

    How to begin

    Before heading off, Piazza spent a lot of time doing preliminary research on the themes she wanted to explore. She studied the history and sociology of marriage and interviewed marriage experts and feminist writers like Erica Jong.

    On the road, she interviewed hundreds of people, typically setting up interviews ahead of time. But she stayed open to letting her travels take her in new and unexpected directions.

    “I set up a lot of the interviews beforehand, but many ended up being serendipitous as the best interviews usually are,” Piazza says. “Case in point, I went to India to research arranged marriage and then a tuk tuk driver told me I couldn’t leave the country without going to the place where the women rule to interview the matrilineal Khasi tribe in Meghalaya. Obviously, I extended my trip.”

    Have a field plan

    Once Piazza was in the field, she took notes and recorded interviews in a variety of ways, from typing on a laptop to handwriting in notebooks. When she was hiking Kilimanjaro, she even plotted chapters in her head, hurriedly recording them on paper whenever she had a chance.

    While people were eager to open up to her about love and marriage, she found finding good translators, especially for such a sensitive subject, a bit more difficult.

    ”The trickiest part was when I would have to use a translator, especially male translators translating for women,” Piazza said. “It was a big problem for me in Tanzania and Kenya because I knew they weren’t telling me everything the women were saying. I just knew. I had to switch translators several times.”

    While Piazza had a specific plan when she left home, Dinan wasn’t intending to write a book when she set out on her trip, so she didn’t conduct formal interviews along the way. However, she did journal extensively and, when it came time to prepare to write, she pored over her journals, blog entries, and emails, and racked her memory. She also printed out hundreds of photos she took on the trip, displaying them around her desk to immerse herself in her travels.

    “I was amazed at what I could remember when I sat down and let my brain wander back in time,” Dinan says.

    Writing a proposal and finding a publisher

    The Yellow Envelope was Dinan’s first book. She started with a very rough draft, getting her thoughts out on the page without concern for style or typos. After she wrote around 60,000 words she set the draft aside and began her book proposal, which took a month or two and included a query letter and sample chapters.

    Then, she went online and used AgentQuery.com to assemble a list of around 30 potential agents. She sent out her query letter and received some requests for the full proposal. Eventually, she had two agents offering to represent her, and she selected one.

    Working with her new agent, she polished  the proposal and her agent began shopping it around, eventually finding a home with Sourcebooks. Dinan detailed the whole process on her blog.

    In contrast, Piazza already had an agent she had worked with before, Alexandra Machinist. Though Piazza’s previous novel, The Knockoff, was published with one publisher, her agent shopped Piazza’s 100-page proposal for How to Be Married around with a variety of publishers, eventually placing it with Harmony.

    Marketing can be a full-time job

    While Dinan and Piazza had different strategies to write their books and get them published, they had one thing very much in common: marketing their books was a huge endeavor.

    Dinan’s publisher assigned her a publicist, but she also chose to spend a lot of time promoting her book.

    “From my perspective, I’m doing everything I can to get the word out about my book,” she says. “The way I see it is, I’ve spent years working on this book and if I don’t throw myself into publicity in the same way I threw myself into writing the book then what’s the point?”

    She planned a DIY book tour around the U.S., meeting blog readers and their families and friends along the way. Her marketing efforts include radio and podcast interviews, book giveaways, targeted Facebook ads, using writing group connections and more.

    “I’ve been saying ‘yes’ a lot and that’s great — but it’s been hard to manage the paid writing work I do to pay the bills with the time it takes to do book publicity,” Dinan says. “Let’s just say I’m learning a lot and I’ll have a better idea what to say yes and no to next time.”

    Piazza is also spending a lot of her time marketing, saying it can be a full-time job for an author. She also uses her personal connections to help spread the word, asking friends and colleagues to read the book and post about it.

    “We’ve been incredibly lucky to get great reviews for How to Be Married right out of the gate and a lot of press has been very interested in the book,” Piazza says. “But I will say that getting publicity for a book is often harder work than writing it.”

    Writing a travel memoir isn’t easy, but for these two writers, their perseverance led to the opportunity to share their experiences of life, love and travel with readers. And each used different strategies to research, write and publish, showing there are a number of ways for a writer to find success in the world of travel memoir publishing.  

    The 3 Core Elements that Every Memoir Has

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