Travel Writer
What it is:
A travel journalist is simply a person who travels and writes about the places they visit. This job can be very luxurious or very eye-opening depending on where you are traveling to. Possible writing opportunities include writing for travel magazines or freelance writing for newspapers. Another important aspect a potential employer might be looking for is photographs to go a long with your writing. Photography is much more than just pointing and shooting, so basic photo skills can make you much more marketable.
Average Salary:
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, writers and authors, including travel writers, earned an annual median salary of $55,940 in 2012. In addition, SimplyHired.com listed an average annual salary of $35,000 for freelance travel writers in October 2013, though actual pay can fluctuate due to the status of many travel writers. In 2010, the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicted slow job growth of 6% through 2020, for authors and writers, but noted that professionals who adapt to digital means and online media will have a better chance of getting a job.
Necessary Skills:
Travel journalists and travel writers need a very open schedule. They can receive a call from a magazine saying there is an opportunity to go to Mexico tomorrow to write about a new up and coming resort. Are you going to pass that up? If you have responsibilities, like a family, you just might have to. I would personally suggest this career path for a single man or woman. Travel writers and journalists must also be able to write reviews. While a review is mostly all opinion based, the writer has to be able to consider the audience and their employer when writing up their review. For example, if the journalist is writing for a family travel magazine, the audience might not be as curious about the night life than a regular travel magazine's audience might be.
A Day in the Life of a Travel Journalist
Imagine waking up to the sound of the waves in a beautiful luxury suite in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. First thing on the list, check out the breakfast. While being waited on, note-taking is an absolute must. Specific detail are the most important details. Everything from the smell of the food, to its taste, to the manners of the wait staff can all be beneficial to your article. Next up is a tour of the resort. It might be smart to bring a long a camera, because words can never do a picture justice, at least in a beautiful place like Cabo. You can write a thousand words on this resort, but the pictures are going to be what sells it. The pictures themselves will tell a thousand more words. After the tour of resort, it's time to relax. Sitting on the beach with a drink in hand, you suddenly realize, Oh my gosh! I have a deadline to meet! and suddenly your relaxation time turns into stress, until the article is written.
or….
Imagine waking up to the scorching heat of the African desert. You are so hot, you are drenched in your own sweat. Water is scarce, but is an obvious necessity, so a hunt for that reaches the number one most important thing to do today. While you head towards town, you realize that today is your deadline, and you still need some facts for your article. It is much more difficult to find someone that understands you, or someone for you to understand, that you think this is going to be impossible. Finally, you make it to the village where there is only one water pump. You decide to go wait your turn, because you really don't have any other choice. After hours of waiting, you reach the pump. you fill up all anything you can with water, and are off to find someone who can understand you. Walking and searching for the rest of the day, you decide to head back and report to your boss that you can not complete the article because you were unable to get all of the information he or she wanted. The only relief that you have from sending the incomplete email, is that in the morning, you get to back up and leave.
Sample Work:
Bahamas Hotels
Cancun Sights
African Safaris
European Backpacking
China's Great Wall
The Great Barrier Reef
Cancun Sights
African Safaris
European Backpacking
China's Great Wall
The Great Barrier Reef
Education for the Career:
This career can be done without any degrees. If you have a knack for writing, and think you are pretty good at it, I would say give it a shot. You may be less marketable than someone who has a journalism degree, or some other degree in writing, but it is not impossible to receive this job without a degree.
Notable Travel Writers
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (Mark Twain)
Tom Miller
Peter Jenkins
Tom Miller
Peter Jenkins
Jobs Available:
None currently based out of Philadelphia. Feel free to check back as frequently as you'd like.
Monster: Travel Writer
Indeed: Travel Writer
Travel Writing Tips
Monster: Travel Writer
Indeed: Travel Writer
Travel Writing Tips