Unfortunately, there are not nearly as many good travel magazines out there as there used to be,
at least for those not on a Rolex and Prada budget...
Outpost
Published in Toronto, with a Canadian perspective. Was always great, but is now has only Afar (see below)
in North America as true competition for thinking, independent travelers. Insightful and culturally sensitive writing, with
a view from the ground, not from the Four Seasons balcony. To subscribe, click here.
Started up during the worst ad slump on record for magazines, Afar gets kudos just for having
big cajones. Thankfully it's a great magazine too, with the kind of surprising, in-depth articles you seldom see in more seasoned
publications. Billed as something covering experiental travel, passions, and real experiences, it's a far cry from the surface-level
pretty pictures and text stuffed between perfume and diamond watch ads.
Budget Travel
This magazine gets better all the time. I've gone from grudgingly skimming through it (when it was Frommer's Budget
Travel) to actually looking forward to its arrival in the mail. In the past year or so they seem to have focused more
on independent travel on a budget and less on package tours. They're also not afraid to write about places that aren't filled
with huge resorts and spas--a welcome change from the norm. You can subscribe for next to nothing by checking the Web subscription
sites, so it's a cheap read for yourself or a relative. An especially good read for those who like to travel in relative comfort,
but don't want to be a number.
Wanderlust This UK magazine is a great find if you can get a Europe-bound friend to pick it up or you live near a magazine store
that carries imports. Literate travel articles, great travel book reviews, and beautiful photography, but all the while still
remembering that most travelers aren't living off $500 a day.
Abroad View Magazine
This unique magazine (founded by the now-editor of Transitions Abroad), is an impressive glossy that comes
out twice per year and focuses on real life and experience from the eyes of those who are studying and working abroad. Contributors share their life-changing travel and study abroad stories, document both experiential and cultural research,
and voice their views on important global and regionally focused cultural, environmental, political, and social issues and
ideas.
National Geographic Traveler
Yeah, this magazine is as glossy as the others, is filled with ads posing as editorial, and can be just
as superficial as the others at times. But at least most of its articles are about real travel instead of just showing off
and ticking off boxes. And it doesn't smell like a perfume ad.
Wend
Wend magazine, based in the northwest U.S., looks promising in its initial issues, covering adventure travel from
more of a punk and skateboard aesthetic than from a "look how cool my expensive gear is" perspective. Let's cheer
it on.
