Being a travel writer

Here are some tips for making your travel content interesting and relevant. These don't really differ from any piece of writing you do. The principles are the same.

• Target your feature to a specific market so you can tailor the content accordingly and write in the correct style and tone for the publication

• Find a fresh angle

• Write about what you know because that will make your piece credible

• Answer these - What? Where? When? Why? How? Who?

• Know what the point of your article is and emphasize this throughout

• Write a great introduction

• Keep the content tight - no flowery prose, no cliches, no unnecessary, complicated words, and show don't tell

• Be accurate with your facts  

Starting out as a travel writer

Here are some ideas for how to establish yourself as a travel writer:

• Competition for the magazines you see on the book stands is intense, so start with submitting online articles and fillers.

• Build your portfolio through a website or blog. Articles, fillers, photos and videos should all feature.

• Find your niche and own it. By owning it, I mean sharing your stories on social media, blogging, interacting with other blogs and participating in online forums.

• As well as networking online, network in the flesh. Go to travel events. Go to travel blogging events. Go to events that fit your niche within travel. Make up some business cards and get them into people's hands.

Holidaying to a budget

You may want to seriously watch your pennies whilst on holiday, or you may like to keep those finances in check on the proviso that the budget is there but you have a little room for maneuver, or even if you're just keen to educate yourself on how, where and when you can save to avoid being ripped off, here are some ideas and things to watch out for:

• No frills airlines are not always cheaper once you've added extras like hold luggage, in-flight meals, seat selection, oh and an oxygen mask on RyanAir! For example, BA do some very competitive holiday packages and you'll be flying with BA.

• Always compare package deals if you're thinking about booking each segment separately.

• Apartments may be cheaper than hotels.

• Check out what you should be paying for things like car hire and excursions ahead of time. Use price comparison websites.

• See which currencies are performing poorly against the £ and that's where you'll get a bargain holiday.

• Go to your local GP for your jabs. Travel clinics are more expensive.

• Avoid travelling in peak UK periods, unless you're visiting family for Easter or Christmas.

• When booking, use a debit card rather than a credit card to avoid the handling fee.

• A la carte menus will always be more expensive.

• Check out the best way to carry your money whilst in-country.

• Annual travel insurance policies are amazing value for money, rather than purchasing single trip, even if you don't plan to travel again within the year.

• Apply for a free European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) if travelling within the EU. Added bonus and peace of mind to compliment your travel insurance policy.

Travel changes

Looking back through some very old holiday snaps got me thinking how everything about travel has changed so much even just in my lifetime. From researching a destination to booking the holiday to how we capture the memories during and after... and with the changes in Security, I often wonder whether I would've been able to bring back some of the more exotic items I have in the past like spice powders from Zanzibar in unmarked packets and huge quantities of dates from Marrakech. I remember being able to take big bottles of water and whatever size toiletries in my hand luggage including giant cans of hairspray (could be considered a weapon!) and no one batted an eyelid. Now everything is squeezed into 100ml bottles, tightly sealed in a security bag and scrutinized like there's no tomorrow.

But what we've lost in the innocence of travel, we've gained in the speed, efficiency and transparency of the booking process and the communication and knowledge along the way. No hotel can escape the truth of TripAdvisor and if that one excursion you really want to do is no good, you'll be able to get a head's up and make alternative plans long before you set foot on the plane. You can communicate with people who have travelled the same roads you plan to travel, you can find exact timings for journeys, where the likely rest breaks will be and detailed descriptions of what to expect on that one remote bus full of chickens and sleepy locals.

Whilst walking into a Travel Agent's, picking up a brochure, saying I want to go there and then having everything done for you is fun (it is, I've done just that), the convenience of the World Wide Web is pretty darn amazing. It's not just the fact that everything is at your fingertips, but also because the journey from inspiration to research to booking to sharing is an incredible experience if you really and truly love travel. Everyday new concepts for booking a holiday are being created and it makes for an interesting ride. 

Smarter, wiser travel

Here's a post on how to be a responsible traveller in six easy steps:

Which company?
Choose wisely and ask questions of the company you are looking to book through. Let them know you are a responsible consumer. Is the company certified and has it won any awards? What policies have they implemented in-house and within the countries they visit? Ask them how they educate their employees and potential customers like yourself, and whether the tours they offer use local guides, family run hotels and guesthouses, and locally source transport. A lot of tour operators today have the basics of an RT policy, so make sure you do your research and support those companies that are making the effort to educate and promote a better quality travel experience.

Are you taking a flight?
One of the easiest things you can do even before you have left your house is to offset your carbon omissions either through the company you have booked with or independently online. The Climate Care website (www.climatecare.org/) will take you through calculating your emissions and buying your offsets, but more importantly, it will explain why this is such a positive step for travelling responsibly. Ultimately, your offsets are helping fund some great projects such as creating efficient cooking stoves in Uganda and Cambodia, introducing the human powered treadle pump to parts of India where diesel pumps were once used for irrigation farming, and the creation of the Mulan wind farm in China to generate electricity.

Contributing to local communities by using local produce or services is another easy way to promote RT. A responsible beach holiday is not out of the question! If the hotel sources local produce and towels and bedding, even furniture from the market down the road, sells local wares in its shop and organises trips and excursions in the immediate area – these are all the makings of an RT worthy trip. You have a wonderful opportunity to give something back simply by staying at this one hotel. After all, travel is a two way experience – you have a great holiday, see some amazing sights and meet some great people - and all the while you’re helping to support the town or village you’re staying in. What could be better than that!

However, be aware of tourist traps!
Dancing bears, dancing monkeys, riding ostriches for fun – whatever it may be – this is exploitation and should be avoided at all costs. Obviously there are touristy hotspots in every major city you pass through which are an essential part of your holiday or tour – and to not visit them would be criminal – but being aware of local people attempting to make a quick buck with mass produced souvenirs, and recognising the difference between a genuine performance and a performance simply to make money, are all ways to ensure you are not being taken for a ride. Search out the local markets or registered cooperatives where you can see the souvenirs being crafted right in front of your eyes. And then barter for a fair price with the person who made it. It makes all the difference in the world.

Respect and observe local customs at all times.
Did you know you could be unknowingly exploiting a person, a tribe or a village if you take a photo of them without asking permission? Sometimes we may feel it is our right to get that perfect snap for our holiday album back home, but these are people who are just like you and me – and we have to respect that. For example; if it is customary to ask the local chief of the village beforehand whether you can take photos, you should do this so as not to offend. Guide books such as Lonely Planet and Rough Guides are essential reading if you want to get a quick precise of local protocol before you travel. Licking your fingers after a meal or touching your mouth in Ethiopia is considered to be very rude, so don’t make that mistake and swot up before you leave!

And finally, feedback is essential especially if you have been travelling with a tour operator. If RT really is at the core of their company, they will appreciate and act on any suggestions you may have. So make sure you have your say and fill in a customer questionnaire. If the product reflects the hype, tell them, and if you feel it doesn’t, it’s probably even more important to tell them so they can get it right next time.

Rewards of travel

If you ever need a reason to shock yourself because things are too samey samey and you feel stuck in life, throw yourself into a travel experience. Dealing with getting from A to B to C to D and all that that entails will quickly absorb your attention, leaving the mundane and boring or whatever else you're trying to escape from to fester on its own for a while. Once you're on the road, you can relax and enjoy everything in the experience that dips, tickles and touches your senses - and watch the real you unfolding right before your very eyes.

Maybe you thought you were cool, calm and collected in the office - I know I certainly did. It was only when I missed the first of three flights to get me home after a trip to Tanzania and Zanzibar that my real temperament came racing to the surface. Panic set in and with panic came anger and frustration. My father had recently passed away. A day after the funeral I was flying to Africa for the first time and while the trip had been an experience of a lifetime, now, at the end all I wanted to do was get home and start my grieving - but I'd missed my charter off of Zanzibar Island. When I eventually boarded the final flight from Nairobi, I wept silently for a good portion of the journey. Luckily I didn't have anyone sitting next to me, otherwise I would've drowned them with my tears.

Now fast forward three years and I've just flown from Lalibela to Gondar in Ethiopia. I'm at Arrivals and there's no sign of my guide or driver. They didn't fly with me, they drove and I'm wondering if something happened. I'm also acutely aware we have a packed schedule ahead of us. Everybody leaves and I'm the last one in the hall. I surprise myself by taking a pew to figure out a plan. One of the porters comes over and we get chatting. He asks me what I'm waiting for and I tell him the situation. He asks around on my behalf and one of the other porters makes a phone call for me. The next I'm hearing, my driver and guide are just doing a spot of shopping for me in Gondar town and they'll be along shortly. Apologies for the delay.

I didn't panic. I didn't get angry. And it all worked out well in the end. So now, I make sure to keep my head.

And that's just one of the many things I've learned...

Whatever travel teaches you - seeing how the other half lives and putting your life in perspective, finding out that meeting new people isn't half as scary as you thought, experiencing new cultures is actually rather refreshing and fascinating, the wonderful sense of freedom is second to none, the stereotypes are rarely ever correct, you had better (or worse) instincts than you realised, or you never knew you could find such a peace within yourself - whatever it is, hang on to it because that's what you'll remember the most when you recount the stories over and over again.

What travel means to me

I'm going to be blogging a short series on Travel leading up to the launch of my free e-guide Safe Travels and my Travelling Dreams collection.

I think an apt way to start is to tell you what travel means to me and how it’s changed my life.

I think a world without travel would be like a world without people. There would be nothing to challenge you, inspire you or open your mind to. It’s really difficult to not be just another tourist when you’re visiting somewhere new and want to tick off those all important sites and excursions, but the way I’ve found to do it is simply to mingle. Get out there and talk to the locals, sample the food and explore your surroundings.

My confidence has soared since I started travelling regularly and I love the way it’s brought the world to my doorstep. I have friends everywhere now and my network continues to grow.

I recommend travel to anyone - and especially if you're stuck in a rut. Once bitten by the bug, you'll be smitten with the bug!