Victoria Watts Kennedy's family travel blog, Bridges and Balloons, has twice won her prestigious awards. Last year, she picked up the Travel Blogger of the Year Trophy from the British Guild of Travel Writers, and just this week, she was named 2026 Travel Blogger of the Year at the TravMedia Awards in London. This success comes at a tumultuous time for bloggers as AI upends the playbook for how blog articles are not only discovered through search engines, but also how they are written. Victoria joined the Travel Writing Podcast to talk about her writing and blogging career, the joys and challenges of travel with kids, and how some bloggers, like her, are managing to ride through the AI storm with their audiences intact.

Learn more about Victoria:

https://www.instagram.com/bridgesandballoons

https://bridgesandballoons.com

https://www.victoriawattskennedy.com

If you've heard or used phrases like 'lateral thinking' or referenced the six thinking hats, you have been influenced by the work of Edward de Bono. The philosopher died in 2021, but not before Sarah Tucker had the chance to get to know him. Sarah's book, Edward De Bono: Love Laterally, came out in late 2024 with a foreword from Baroness Kennedy

This is just one chapter in Sarah's own exciting story. She has written numerous books, including novels, collections of essays and poetry, and guides to parenting on the road, including 'Have Toddler, Will Travel,' a subject very close to my heart for reasons listeners will be familiar with.

Sarah joined the Travel Writing Podcast to discuss how she got to know De Bono and the influence of his work, traveling as a parent, the concept of 'silent travel,' and her extraordinary life of adventure and literature.

GUEST BIO:

Sarah Tucker is an award-winning journalist, bestselling author, travel writer, lecturer and broadcaster. Amongst her works are Love Laterally, the biography of Edward de Bono, who invented the concept of lateral thinking, the bestselling audiobook Playground Mafia; and award winning The Last Year of Being Single. more recently, she has turned her attention to The Boardroom Bard.

Discover Sarah’s latest project at https://www.theboardroombard.com/

Her book on De Bono

https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/edward-de-bono-love-laterally-sarah-tucker/7761107?ean=9781913641481&next=t

https://www.amazon.com/Edward-Bono-Laterally-Sarah-Tucker/dp/1913641465

When Martin Hesp's father was working as a journalist in England's southwest, he would hand-deliver his copy every day to the local bus driver. Martin began his career as a travel writer and journalist in a world where colleagues would still have to wake before dawn to light coal fires in the offices. He is still writing today, 50 years on, and has embraced the worlds of blogging, podcasting, and even, with due caveats, generative AI.

Martin joined the Travel Writing Podcast to trace his journey. He tells the story of how he got 'the best journalism job in the world' as a feature writer for the Western Morning News, his extensive travels in Greece and beyond, how the audience for travel writing has changed, and how changing tech has transformed the journalist's life.

Learn more about Martin at https://www.martinhespfoodandtravel.com/

Risk and travel have always kept close company, but what if even the most innocent-seeming meal could threaten you with mortal peril? Allie Bahn's childhood revolved around two themes: watching her charismatic uncle travel the globe as a TV presenter, and battling severe food allergies that threatened to reduce her freedom significantly.

Allie was determined not to let this constraint prevent her from enjoying travel, and she has shared her experience in a blog, Miss Allergic Reactor, and an Instagram page that tens of thousands of travelers around the world have turned to for guidance. Communication is often the key, Allie explains, as you need to be certain about what you are being served. As rates of food allergies skyrocket in the Western world, Allie's advice will only become more sought-after.

Listen to Allie Bahn on the Travel Writing Podcast and learn how she carved out this niche as a travel writer and influencer, the challenges of traveling with a significant medical constraint, and her upcoming travel plans as a new mother.

https://missallergicreactor.com/

https://www.instagram.com/miss_allergic_reactor/?hl=en

Borders between countries may look so neat on a map, but when you're on the ground, the reality gets more interesting. Languages may shift long before your passport is stamped, and an ancient divide between cultures and worldviews may not even appear on a modern atlas.

Richard Collett became fascinated by unusual borders early in his travel writing journey. When he came across a 'micronation' hidden in outback Australia, he cold-pitched the story to the BBC. They took it, and would end up publishing many more of his pieces, launching a travel writing career that has taken him around the world, a journey he narrates at his blog, Travel Tramp.

It was closer to home, in Southwest England, that Richard's fascination with borders led him to unexpected discoveries. Cornwall, separated from the rest of Britain by the River Tamar, seemed to him just another English county until his girlfriend, who is from there, opened him up to the region's distinctive history. This led Richard on a quest to trace the forgotten borders that carve up the British Isles. The result is Along the Borders - In search of what divides and unites us. Richard discusses the origin of the book, as well as his publishing journey, in detail.

Links to explore more:

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/462381/along-the-borders-by-collett-richard/9781529935882

https://www.travel-tramp.com/

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20200811-a-tiny-nation-in-outback-australia

As an expat in Hong Kong, James Durston was part of the team that helped launch the brand that would eventually become CNN Travel. Rising from copy editor to senior producer, he would eventually own the home page, a role that meant he was responsible for ensuring the travel pieces he published consistently found an audience.

James shares how his experiences as an editor shaped his approach as a writer. He breaks down the specific headline and pitching styles and techniques that get results, and shares the attributes he looks for in the freelance writers he commissions.

James is also the creator of Travel Writing Skool; it's the perfect companion to our Craft of Travel Writing Certificate. Where Intrepid Times focuses mostly on the writing itself, James leans into the business side, helping you start sending pitches and getting published, fast. Inside your Skool student area, you will also find a lively community of travel writers at all stages.

https://www.skool.com/travel-writing/about?ref=bfd96d10548945ccb57d649b4328a632

Intrepid Times will earn a small commission on those who sign up with our link. Thank you for supporting narrative travel writing with heart.

In 2003, Sue Watt walked away from a career in law to become a travel writer. Over the last two decades, she has won or been nominated for a staggering number of awards, many of which celebrate her coverage of the continent that has fascinated her from the start: Africa.

In our conversation for the Travel Writing Podcast, Sue talks about luxury travel versus backpacking, why flight shaming may actually be hurting conversation efforts, the pitfalls and opportunities for travel writers in Africa today, and much more besides.

Learn more about Sue Watt and discover her writing at https://www.suewatt.co.uk/

In 2022, as the world creaked open after the COVID lockdown, Briana set out from her United States home and took a flight to Europe. Her destination was an unusual one. Instead of selfies in Italian cities or relaxing on Spanish beaches, her mission was to retrace the front lines of World War I (WWI).

Completing the 500-mile hike in just 36 days, Briana Gervat became the first recorded woman to hike the Western Front Way solo. Her memoir of the experience, There Will Come Soft Rains, recounts the way that travel interacts with memory and history. It is a journey about being in multiple places at once; a village in the present that is still saturated with the experiences of those who came before.

Briana Gervat joined the Travel Writing Podcast to talk history, how landscapes hold memory, and her writing and self-publishing journey.

In today's episode of the Travel Writing Podcast, we try and stitch together the threads of Holly Budge's epic life. Not only is she the first woman to skydive from the top of Mt Everest, Holly is also the founder of How Many Elephants, a charity that supports female rangers on the frontlines. She has risen at dawn to walk alongside the brave women who guard Africa's most vulnerable elephant populations from the guns and greed of poachers, and worked to advocate for their stories on the global stage. Holly is also a tour leader, inspiring wildlife-positive travel around the world, and you can join her this year in Slovenia. How do these various activities tie together? There is a story here, and you can listen to it right here.

Learn more about Holly with the links below.

Holly Budge

Website: https://www.hollybudge.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollybudge

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hollybudge/

Wildlife Positive Travel

Website: https://www.wildlifepositivetravel.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildlifepositivetravel/

How Many Elephants

Website: https://howmanyelephants.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/howmanyelephants

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/how-many-elephants

World Female Ranger Week

Website: https://www.worldfemalerangerweek.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/worldfemalerangerweek

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/world-female-ranger-wk

When Jen Ruiz was about to turn 30, she set herself an ambitious goal: She would visit 12 countries in 12 months. Working as a lawyer in the US with scant vacation days, she hustled to save money and take advantage of any opportunity to see the world.

Once she started traveling, she realized she never wanted to stop. Pivoting to writing, she educated herself about the ins and outs of self-publishing and launched a series of highly successful self-published travel advice books, including "The Affordable Flight Guide" and "The Solo Female Travel Book."

At the same time, Jen was acquiring a lifetime of experience on the road, with stories pertaining to her time of life that she knew other readers, particularly women in their thirties, would relate to. Using her self-publishing track record as a launching pad, she strategically applied herself to getting a traditional publishing contract. This resulted in the book "12 Trips in 12 Months", and the upcoming memoir "All You Need is Flights", both published by Blackstone.

Listen to Jen Ruiz on the Travel Writing Podcast for a wealth of advice on writing travel books that people want to read and confidently navigating the worlds of self-publishing and traditional publishing. You can also find the travel writing podcast on Spotify or iTunes.