Today's learning is about travel journalism. I kinda only just discovered it is a real thing people are actually paid to do in 2023, by notable newspapers. Obviously I knew it existed, but I had never actually read a travel article. The travel journalists of the FT published their favorite discoveries of 2023 recently, along with their biggest disappointments. The things that they reported on were novel and interesting, but I can't help but feel like I am not the audience:
William Dalrymple was a guest of Beit Michael and Wild Frontiers (wildfrontierstravel.com), a UK-based tour operator which arranged transport and an overnight at the Marriott Mena House in Cairo. Beit Michael sleeps 12 and costs from $3,000 per night; contact
Uh, $3,000 a night in the middle of the desert? I guess if you split it amongst 11 others, it is only $250 a night, but still, lmao. I think they may be simply a result of this being published in the FT. I think travel journalists choose the perspective they make. Being a high-brow advertisement is certainly profitable, but in my opinion, boring. I think there are journalists, who travel, who do a much cooler job of reporting on things that are actually pretty sick. Sometimes, it is unclear if it is "holding power to account." But it is still cool, like: "New Photos Renew Questions About a Deadly Expedition on Aconcagua."
Part of the "issue" here is that this is published by the Financial Times, one of the most premium papers that exists. While I get it for free from the University of Michigan, many others have to pay at least $39 per month. That doesn't give you the premium subscription, which I have — that brings your monthly cost to $75.
