Amateur Traveler

The Amateur Traveler is an online travel show that focuses primarily on travel destinations and the best places to travel to. It covers everything from knowing what to put on your Chicago dog when you go to the Windy City to swimming with whales in Tonga. It includes a weekly audio podcast, a video podcast and a blog with quite a lot of travel photography. The audio podcast is more over 9 years old and was downloaded around 3,000 times a day last year or over a million times. Amateur Traveler won a Lowell Thomas travel journalism award this year and also earned me a SMITTY award from Travel+Leisure magazine as the “best independent travel journalist / blogger”. Amateur Traveler is also used to teach English at Oxford University and is part of the English proficiency exam for the Thailand State department. I also do This Week in Travel with Gary Arndt and Jen Leo. This Week in Travel has won three North America Travel Journalism awards.

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Played a game of random notes https://www.instagram.com/p/CqOg0XjpDMn/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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The art at the Spirit of the West Museum in Scottsdale was more participatory than I expected #travel #scottsdale #arizona #scottsdaleaz🌵 (at Old Town Scottsdale) https://www.instagram.com/p/Co3R6lwPfiz/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Loving the people watching in downtown Scottsdale #travel #arizona🌵 #arizona #scottsdale #scottsdalearizona #AbsolutelyScottsdale (at Old Town Scottsdale) https://www.instagram.com/p/Co0nEX_PbZD/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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I’m thinking of getting one of these for my yard @meow__wolf @visitsantafenewmexico #travel #santafe #newmexico (at Meow Wolf Santa Fe) https://www.instagram.com/p/CofTQD2L7Hq/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Old Sacramento #travel #sacramento (at Old Sacramento) https://www.instagram.com/p/CoAjVOxPl8L/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Surest at Santa Cruz with a lone surfer #travel #santacruz #surf #sunset #california (at The Lighthouse-West Cliff Drive) https://www.instagram.com/p/CmiGe0XJZPb/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Enchant at PayPal Park in San Jose @visitsanjose @VisitCA #enchant (at Enchant San Jose) https://www.instagram.com/p/CmDUGP7L9MK/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Finally visited Castello Di Amorosa near Calistoga, really actually feels like a European castle. I am surprised. We were there for a college alumni event. #napa #wine #travel @thecastello (at Castello di Amorosa) https://www.instagram.com/p/CjygOAYPn0S/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Great food tour yesterday with Marjorie from Flavors Food Tours. Thanks to Discover Puerto Rico for sponsoring me. This was supposed to be the first thing I did on my trip but… Fiona. We had locally produced coffee, fried pork and plantains. We made our own mofongo and had gelato. We cross-crossed Old San Juan as Marjorie told us the history and recommended restaurants and bars. @flavorsfoodtours #fiona #sanjuanpuertorico #sanjuan #oldsanjuan #puertorico🇵🇷 #puertorico #travelblogger #travel @discoverpuertorico (at En el viejo San Juan,PR) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ci7vn6Dr9hZ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Time to go home but thanks for a great trip Puerto Rico and good luck on the recovery #fiona #sanjuanpuertorico #sanjuan #oldsanjuan #puertorico🇵🇷 #puertorico #travelblogger #travel @discoverpuertorico (at En el viejo San Juan,PR) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ci7Zj-bOVjY/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Enough blue skies to eat outside tonight in Old San Juan but had to change my reservations for the rest of the week because the Ocean Park neighborhood doesn’t have power, or at least did not have last night #fiona #sanjuanpuertorico #sanjuan #oldsanjuan #puertorico🇵🇷 #puertorico #travelblogger #travel @discoverpuertorico (at En el viejo San Juan,PR) https://www.instagram.com/p/CivptoKpL5R/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Old San Juan was much more fortunate than southern and eastern Puerto Rico. Street lights are on and many buildings lit up. Most restaurants still closed, but more than half a dozen open tonight. Saw at least half a dozen shops open. Shopped at the Super Max, at least 3 pharmacies open. No food trucks open by cruise terminal because not cruise ships. The rain is tapering off with the occasional downpour. #fiona #sanjuanpuertorico #sanjuan #oldsanjuan #puertorico🇵🇷 #puertorico #travelblogger #travel @discoverpuertorico (at En el viejo San Juan,PR) https://www.instagram.com/p/CitFFIaLwAj/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Old San Juan… the calm before Tropical Storm Fiona #fiona #sanjuanpuertorico #sanjuan #oldsanjuan #puertorico🇵🇷 #puertorico #travelblogger #travel @discoverpuertorico (at Hotel El Convento) https://www.instagram.com/p/CipU-8DuekB/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Enjoying wine tasting at Coterie Winery 🍷 in San Jose… I need to update my article on San Jose wineries #travel #wine #sanjose @sanjose.city (at Friends of Coterie Winery) https://www.instagram.com/p/CgX3gvTPGeV/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Enjoying hanging out in Stowe Vermont for a work retreat. Very affordable in the off season #travel #vermont (at Tälta Lodge Bluebird) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cdy_lQtrRT0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Howards Lick Trail in Lost River State Park - West Virginia #travel #westvirginia #lostriverstatepark @wvtourism https://www.instagram.com/p/CX2H-dILTNd/?utm_medium=tumblr

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First trip to Monticello, fun for a history nerd #travel #virginia #loveva (at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello) https://www.instagram.com/p/CXzibEsrk-g/?utm_medium=tumblr