Dear Writers,

Despite the devastation of COVID, the travel industry is still around, and there are still opportunities for travel writers to publish — and get paid.

Keep in mind that there may be fewer opportunities, right now, but I do know of some travel writers who are still fully booked, so it is still possible to succeed in the niche.  Besides, the desire to travel has only increased for many people.

Our research indicates that pay for these publishers varies significantly, anywhere from $50 per article, to $5,000 or more.

Below is a list of 14 publications that pay for travel writing. Keep in mind, though, that you should also keep a keen eye out for local publications. These are often the best way to break into travel writing.

Another avenue to look at is outdoor publications, specifically related to camping, hiking, hunting, and fishing.

Also, if you’re able to provide quality photos, you can earn more.

— Jacob Jans

1. Lady Latitudes is a travel blogazine featuring kitsch, curios, and Canadiana. They pay $100 for features, $80 for short articles, blog posts or personal essays, and $50 for reviews. They prioritize emerging, unpublished, under-published and/or underrepresented voices. If interested, email your pitches or submissions to courtney@ladylatitudes.ca. For more information, refer to this page.
2. Scuba Diving Magazine is a publication that delivers cutting-edge scuba diving gear, travel, and training information. They are always accepting digital pitches. The stories that they publish generally fall into these categories: travel, news, animal encounters, training, gear, and conservation. According to their editor, their digital rate starts at $0.25 per word. If interested, send your pitches to edit@padi.com. For more pitching information, refer to this page.
3. Likemind builds brands that deliver educational and entertaining experiences to their subscribers’ inboxes. They are looking for freelance commerce writers to introduce great products to their subscribers across brands like “The Discoverer, Trivia Genius, Word Genius, and more.” Examples of work that they are looking for on a regular basis include “odes to your favorite products”, “actionable travel tips”, and “products from other parts of the world.” They pay $50 to $200 per piece. To learn more, refer to this page.
4. Passion Passport is a community-based travel website that features personal travel stories, travel guides, city guides, how-to guides, Instagrammer’s guides, and more. They pay $50 for pieces that start at 400 words. They pay $75 to $125 for pieces of 800 words and more. Read their submissions tips and guidelines here. Submit your work here.
5. Via Magazine is a magazine and website that serves AAA (American Automobile Association) members in nine western states. They offer travel tips and inspiration. They also offer practical life advice about managing your money, living well at home and away, and taking care of your house and car. They pay $200 to $500 per piece. To contact them, refer to this page.
6. TripSavvy is “a travel site written by real experts, not anonymous reviewers.” They are always seeking experienced and qualified digital travel writers. According to their editorial director, they pay $150 to $400 per story. They don’t accept unsolicited guest-authored articles. To learn more, visit this page.
7. Epic publishes extraordinary true stories. Their “writers travel the world searching for encounters with the unknown. Wartime romance, unlikely savants, deranged detectives, gentlemen thieves, and love struck killers: stories that tap into the thrill of being alive.” According to their deputy editor, they generally pay $1 to $2 per word. Most of their stories are at least 5,000 to 6,000 words long. To submit a story, visit this page.
8. Condé Nast Traveler is a travel magazine that offers travel news, reviews, ideas, guides, and tips. Their editor is looking for “UK pitches – guides to lesser-known areas, new hot spots, city guides, beautiful areas to visit, culture, new foodie spots.” According to payment reports, they pay up to $2.00 per word. Pitches should be sent to sonya.barber@condenast.co.uk. Read their editor’s Twitter post here and contact them here.
9. MyWorldAbroad offers “actual advice and commentary on every aspect of going abroad.” They are looking for story submissions. The stories can be of 2 formats: Q&A format (up to 2,400 words) and essay format (up to 2,400 words). They offer an honorarium of $50 per story. The honorarium is only offered to US and Canadian residents. For details, visit this page.
10. Daytripping is a magazine that promotes antique and craft shops, tearooms, stops, towns, events, and museums in Southwestern Ontario. They publish 5 times a year. They are particularly interested in “articles about traveling and discovering ‘small town’ Southern Ontario.” They prefer articles of 500 to 600 words. They pay $25 or $50 per article. Details here.
11. Hostelling International Canada is a not-for-profit network of hostels in Canada. They are seeking pitches for their online magazine. They publish 5 types of articles: travel stories, lists, opinion pieces, tips, and guides. They generally pay $70 to $200 CAD per article. For details, refer to this Twitter post and this page.

12. The Points Guy (TPG) is a travel website and blog that offers aviation news, travel advice, reviews, guides, deal alerts, and more. One payment report indicates payment of $300 for a 1,000-word blog post. To contact them, refer to this page.

13. Roadtrippers Magazine “celebrates road culture, Americana, and the great outdoors.” They are always looking for new contributors to tell stories from the North American road. They are currently only accepting pitches focused on the United States and Canada. They typically pay $250 to $1,000 based on word count. Learn more in this Tweet and on their submissions guidelines page.
14. MMM is “Britain’s best-selling motorhome magazine.” They pay £250 for owner reports (up to 1,700 words with 12 photos), £80 for my view/my travels articles (600 words with 2 photos), and £40 for campsite reviews (300 words with 4 to 8 photos). For details, refer to this page.