http://www.studiesintravelwriting.com/
submitted by:
John Lamkin
Travel Journalist & Photographer
Board Member & Global Membership Chair of the
International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association
and member of NATJA, ISTW & ITWA
http://TravelWritingAndPhotography.com
Contact: Dan Austin, Director
Austin-Lehman Adventures
Top Travel Blogs: Austin-Lehman Adventures Announces Its First Official List of Best Travel Bloggers of 2011
Billings, MT, April 11, 2011 – Award-winning tour operator Austin-Lehman Adventures (ALA – http://www.austinlehman.com/), the active travel company setting adventure tours standards in The Americas, Europe, Africa and beyond, pays close attention to top travel blogs. The company recently announced their first annual top blogger list to honor deserving bloggers and to provide travelers with another resource when searching for advice and adventure.
On April 7 the company posted on its adventure travel blog its list of the Top 125 Best Travel Blog Semi-Finalists. From this list, the experts at Austin-Lehman Adventures picked their top 10 favorite blogs and awarded these bloggers with the honor of Top 10 Best Travel Blog Finalist. On April 8, the company announced this list on its adventure travel blog.
The travel company’s staff applied specific criteria while reading through hundreds of travel-related blogs to come up with 125 of the world’s best travel blogs. They looked for such things as readability, unique content, honesty, integrity, accompanying content such as video and photos, useful links and posting frequency.
As recognition for their excellence, the Top 125 bloggers will have the opportunity to present on their blogs a trip giveaway for two on any Austin-Lehman Adventure of their choice (at a capped credit of $5,000). Options include cycling tours, hiking trips, multi-sport adventures, family adventures and rafting trips (82 different itineraries spanning 28 countries worldwide).
Followers of these Top 125 blogs must go to the Austin-Lehman giveaway page, which only these select bloggers have access to, and enter their name, email address and the name or URL of the specific blog they read in order to enter the contest. The promotion will run from now through 11:59 p.m. on May 19, 2011. Winners will be announced on Austin-Lehman Adventures’ blog the next day.
“We’re excited to share these bloggers with the world,” said Dan Austin, founder and owner. “Each blog provides the most fascinating, up-to-date content on travel tips, destinations (such as Yellowstone tours), active travel, family adventures and the everyday life of a traveler. These blogs are imaginative, fun, original and poignant; reaching to the heart of what traveling is all about: discovery, adventure and finding yourself.”
The Top 125 Semi-Finalists and the Top 10 Finalists are also invited to place a custom-designed award badge on their blog.
“These bloggers are truly the best in the blogosphere, providing beautifully written travel posts that highlight their expert knowledge, undeniable passion, cultural insight and unique, personal experiences,” said Austin.
Austin-Lehman Adventures’ Top 10 blogs are (in random order):
http://wanderlustandlipstick.com/
http://www.jthetravelauthority.com/
http://www.amateurtraveler.com
http://www.motherofalltrips.com
To view the complete list of Top 125 Best Travel Blog Semi-Finalists, please go to Austin-Lehman Adventures’ Blog.
About Austin-Lehman Adventures
Austin-Lehman Adventures, with a 37-year legacy, provides adventure vacations on five continents, has built an international reputation for small group active travel to destinations in North, Central and South America, Europe, the Pacific Rim and Africa. The company specializes in adult and family multi-sport, hiking, biking vacations that emphasize history, culture and nature’s charms. Trips are limited to 12 guests (18 on family departures) and feature excellent regional dining, distinctive accommodations and all-inclusive rates and services. In addition to scheduled group departures, ALA offers customized trip planning. ALA offers each traveler a money-back satisfaction guarantee.
For free 2011 catalog call toll-free 1.800.575.1540, or e-mail info@austinlehman.com. To review current trips, schedules and itineraries log onto: http://www.austinlehman.com/.
For photos and/or more information on Austin-Lehman Adventures please contact:
Sara Widness / 802-234-6704 / sara@widnesspr.com
Dave Wiggins / 303-554-8821 / dave@travelnewssource.com
For a Portfolio of Past News Releases Visit: http://www.travelnewssource.com/
Follow Widness & Wiggins PR on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/BoulderDave
I hope you find it useful.
Get started by learning about this huge and widely varied genre by visiting Travel Writing Net: http://www.travelwriting.net//. Check all the links.
Talking Travel With Roy Lowey, http://www.ttrn.com/, may just have the most useful links for travel writers, as well as travelers. Begin your thorough exploration by clicking the entire list of links at the top of the National Association of Travel Journalists Association,http://www.natja.org/. Select Travel World Magazine,http://www.travelworldmagazine.com/. Keep exploring and learning all you can. You’ll be able to search for many excellent articles. Scroll down and click on Site Map.
Durant Imboden’s Writing.Org site,http://www.writing.org/index.html is good. Scroll his Articles Index to find Travel Writing, and read his article:http://www.writing.org/html/a_travel_writing_1.htm.
Lorry Pattons’ Travel tips ‘n’ Tales, http://lorrypatton.com/Browse, check out links, and especially the Terms of Use Copyright link at the bottom of the page. (TIP: Press Trips, when they appear, will be found under News, which is separated by topics. Sometimes none are listed.)
Check out Scott American Corporation at,http://www.scottamerican.com/. For free information, click the GoGo for travelers, and be zipped to, http://www.gogoinfo.com/where you’ll find a wealth of information. Click Site Map and surf the results, and grow your travel writing knowledge exponentially!
For example, at Cathay Pacific Airways, by surfing the links you can learn about baggage, in-flight health, airports, lounges, aviation logistics, and antenna farms, etc. Let each spark ideas to topic spoke.
Check Destinations at each airline to learn which cities to focus on when getting ideas for in-flight magazines. Don’t skip Travel Publications. Check each publication for submission guidelines.
*NOTE: Travel Publicity Leads is for travel writers with some experience, not beginners or students. The services offered should not be used until you have developed experience in the niche of travel writing. Study how other writers looking for press trips or press kits use the listing service.
Travel Press Kits
BootsnAll Press Kit is an excellent example of what may be included in a press kit:
http://press.bootsnall.com/.
Many companies, locations, media, etc., offer press kits. Get started by typing “travel press kit” into www.dogpile.com. The search will return different results, depending on what new information has reached the Internet. For example, I found links to:http://www.roadandtravel.com/company/marketing/presskit.htm;
http://www.wildernesstravel.com/ (search press kit).
Expect to find unexpected perks as you build your databases. For example, at http://www.alaskatia.org/, the official Alaskan Vacation Planner, although the site didn’t look impressive, when I scrolled I found a link to a calendar of events, and at the very bottom, two excellent resource links, the Industry Glossary, and the Site map.
Travel guides
Do lots of homework online by checking the multitude of online travel guides for destinations, accommodations, etc. Pamela Lanier hosts several websites you can link to from her interesting site:http://www.pamelalanier.com/. Roll your mouse over her site carefully so you don’t miss any links.
Lanier Travel Guides, http://www.travelguides.com/ is one example. On the http://www.lanierbb.com/ page, Check the destinations link to find thumbnail sketches of destinations. It offers a site map where you can select from their database of destination information. Great for gathering data and generating dozens of ideas to topic spoke! ALWAYS check her Site Map on each page.
Travel writers association
International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association,http://www.ifwtwa.org/.You can spend days surfing this site and not get to all of the information you can glean, free!
Graduated memberships are available. The online application(s) give the fee(s). Memberships include newsletter, Press Pass, that lists press trips, conferences, markets, etc. Click Magazine, to view it online. Spend some time exploring this excellent site, because you don’t know what freebies you’ll find unless you do!
Locate Chambers of Commerce at:http://www.2chambers.com/
Currency exchange calculators:
XE.com, http://www.xe.com/
http://tinyurl.com/5adhd
Yahoo Finance, http://tinyurl.com/4oqxy
X-rates.com, http://www.x-rates.com// provides rates of exchange and alphabetical list of countries.
Rec.Travel Library: http://www.travel-library.com/. Personal travelogues and worldwide travel and tourism information. Has important link to Airline Ticket Consolidators. The travelogues listed in the Library sometimes contain links to personal home pages. People put their travel stories online in the Travel-Library and include their personal web sites for a variety of reasons. Almost none of these writers are making any money from writing their travelogue. HOWEVER, with persistent surfing, you can also locate interesting sites such as places for working and volunteering. Maybe you’ll discover someone interesting, and write a profile article.
Other information sites and press packets
Check out state websites, too. For example, see Montana information here: http://travel.state.mt.us/ (TIP: Click Search and Helpnear bottom page to get a VERY comprehensive alphabetical list of what’s in Montana! (quick link:http://travel.state.mt.us/searchhelp/siteindex/.) Sign up for a newsletter, if you’re interested in state that has a certain mystique popular with readers.
InterNetAdventures.net has recently launched a new Web site for journalists and editors researching adventure travel stories in the Rocky Mountain states, http://www.internetadventures.net/The site offers journalists complete online press kits for adventure travel companies. Go to:. *For information, email,info@internetadventures.net.
Airline websites can lead to a wealth of travel information, too. For example, from Northwest Airlines site map athttp://www.nwa.com/index/index.html, I located Frommers, an excellent international itinerary guide resource:http://www.frommers.com/.
FreeTrip(R) (Freetrip.com, Inc.) http://www.freetrip.com/ has a quick and dirty calculator for best route between two points– and, importantly, gives you approximate driving time. It allows you to constrain the trip to or away from certain highways if all you’re looking for are the text descriptions of how to get somewhere.
Centers for Disease and Control, Traveler’s Health, http://www.cdc.gov/travel/travel.htm, provides international travelers with current information on disease outbreaks and health issues. Includes information on recommended vaccinations, and links to CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program for sanitation inspections on international cruise ships.
Travel writing isn’t only about making trips or visiting destinations; let topic spoking lead your writing in many directions. This venue can be challenging, but the rewards are many. Give traveling a try, if you have a strong constitution and itchy feet.
End
By Carol
Time was when those who walked by wheelchair or scooter rarely ventured beyond their homes. Not so today. The world has changed. Folks who travel in wheelchairs and scooters are commonplace throughout the world. Sidewalks in many countries are wide, with ramps to crosswalks; many cruise lines are proud of their cabins and their ships that say welcome to the less-able, and hotels are becoming better and better in this respect. From our travels of more than twenty years, with both a wheelchair and a scooter, my husband Jim and I have developed tips that might be useful to many of you.
1. Planning ahead cannot be overemphasized. Disabled cruise ship cabins are usually reserved way before the cruise you desire sets sail. The same is true of high quality accessible hotel accommodations. Travel agents who specialize in disabled travel can be useful, but it is often beneficial to take the effort to make your own reservations, if for no other reason than personal contact — so you have no unwelcome surprises upon your arrival. Confirm and reconfirm before leaving home. Our cruise lines of choice are
2. When reserving, be certain to specify exactly what you need, whether it be a lowered bed, a wheelchair accessible shower, a shower chair, or equipment for deafness of blindness. If an outside cabin or a hotel room with a view is important, make that very clear. If you rent a vehicle, state your necessity, if need be, for one equipped with hand controls and a wheelchair lift. Often, you will be referred to personnel whose goal is to be certain you receive what you need.
3. If air travel is involved, make all airlines aware of your disabilities and let airline personnel know your specific needs and the type of help you’d like. We have always found the airlines to be more than accommodating — providing help before boarding, while in the air, and upon landing. If you are traveling economy, request reserved bulkhead seating for more leg room. This may sometimes be difficult, but persistence usually pays off.
4. Many first-class trains around the globe offer quality accessible accommodations, including appropriate restroom facilities–some of them private–making rail travel a pleasurable way to see the world.
5. In many
6. Keep a fully charged cell phone with you at all times. Be certain it gives you the capability of calling your home from whatever region your travels encompass.
7. Allow extra time before and between plane or train transfers, even if it means extra waiting time. This avoids rushing, which can be nerve-racking.
8. It is beneficial to learn a few important phrases in the languages of the countries you will visit, or carry with you a booklet of word translations. In
9. If you are not certain where you want your travels to take you, spend time researching the web to learn of spots user friendly for your capabilities. For instance, the
10. For success, when traveling outside your own country, be sure to register with the appropriate consulates, tip generously for extra help, schedule light tour days, allowing yourself the luxury of lots of down time for resting and pondering your next adventure, and consume food considered healthy and safe But wherever you go and whatever you do, do not leave home without that important safety net — trip insurance. With it, you will have no worries. Without it, your bank account could be depleted.
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It’s a wonderful world. Enjoy its pleasures for as long as you’re able,
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