Seventy Ways Travel Magazines Address the Economic Crisis

Tom Swick: Contemplating and celebrating the world of travel

12.15.08 | 12:18 AM ET

Tom SwickTravel inhabits the periphery. (A fact that doesn’t necessarily make it edgy.) People put aside vacation days with dreams of getting away from it all. Backpackers strike many as long-distance slackers. Bookstores stick travel books off in a corner.

What I’ve always loved and admired about World Hum is its refusal to accept this arrangement. Its all-inclusive approach—it was surely the only travel publication to note the passing of Rosa Parks—continually shows how travel and life are intertwined. 

So I’m delighted to become a regular contributor. To me, World Hum is like “The Daily Show,” for each has found a prism—travel here, humor there—through which to view the world. 

Not that there’s anything wrong with humor.

Recessioncation

(Travel Magazines Address the Economic Crisis)


Tom Swick

Tom Swick is the author of two books: a travel memoir, Unquiet Days: At Home in Poland, and a collection of travel stories, A Way to See the World: From Texas to Transylvania with a Maverick Traveler. He was the travel editor of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel for 19 years, and his work has been included in "The Best American Travel Writing" 2001, 2002, 2004 and 2008.


24 Comments for Seventy Ways Travel Magazines Address the Economic Crisis

Tim Patterson 12.15.08 | 10:22 AM ET

Got a few laughs from me.  Mind if we use some of those headlines at Matador?

Tim Patterson 12.15.08 | 10:26 AM ET

Actually, scratch that request - we’ve already published most of them. 

David Miller could handle this one -

Rice and Beans—Eating Your Way Through Latin America

http://matadortravel.com/travel-blog/united-states/david-miller/some-people-ive-been-and-why-every-writer-should-study-sherma

Herbert Siegel 12.15.08 | 10:56 AM ET

Glad to see Tom Swick here. South Florida’s loss is your gain. Swick is one of the best there is.
H.Siegel, Deerfield Beach, Florida.

Nancy D. Brown 12.15.08 | 12:41 PM ET

Hi Tom,
Welcome to World Hum.  We met briefly at the Book Passage Travel Writers Conference.  I enjoyed Seventy Ways Travel Magazines Address the Economic Crisis.  I look forward to reading your posts.
See you on Twitter?

http://twitter.com/Nancydbrown

Hallie Ephron 12.15.08 | 1:12 PM ET

Hey, Tom—

As a long time fan of your writing, I’ll now be a regular reader of World Hum! How nice to discover a new source of travel info.

Your list is a hoot…Remember when you COULD actually travel in Europe for $5 a day, as the book promised?

- Hallie
Hallie Ephron - http://www.hallieephron.com

Chris 12.15.08 | 4:13 PM ET

So happy to see you at World Hum.  Welcome to Cyberspace - a friendly place for travel writers.  World Hum is now on my bookmark bar.

charlotte safavi 12.15.08 | 5:01 PM ET

Hysterical, Tom! 

Wishing you the very best and looking forward to more.

Charlotte Safavi
Armchair traveller

Marie 12.15.08 | 5:40 PM ET

Glad to see your writings again. Miss your material each Sunday when I get the Sun Sentinel.
Best wishes, Marie

Donnette Donley 12.15.08 | 6:52 PM ET

Congrats on your new column.  I look forward to reading your thoughts on travel on a regular basis again.

Best wishes,
Donnette, Barrington, IL

Margaret Giraldo 12.15.08 | 8:48 PM ET

Rejoice!  Tom is here!  All is well in the world!

John M. Edwards 12.15.08 | 10:35 PM ET

Hello Tom:

If i may refer to you in the vainglorious third person, Mr. Swick is quick with the wit! I A Swiftean kick in the ass. I love top-ten lists, so I got a surplus of serendipity with your “70 ways.”  Hilarious.

Indeed, with the economic crisis in full sway, there will surely be a drop in tourism in expensive urban zones like Paris, London, and New York. Instead, we’ll awaken on faraway Thai beaches stuffed inside five-dollar huts, even though we’re paying through the nose at the adjoining restaurant for overpriced pad thai and Singha beers.

We welcome your guesses about how the globe goes. If the stock market doesn’t crash, maybe we can actually go on vacation again.

John M. Edwards

Charles M. Luther 12.15.08 | 10:46 PM ET

I was laughing like crazy when I finished your first column, then a horrible thought occurred to me.  Some of those sounded like titles straight out of a popular travel magazine I once made the mistake of subscribing to.
Please, please tell me they were meant to be funny.

cml

Jennifer 12.16.08 | 8:52 AM ET

Household pet safaris.  That’s a riot.!  I bet more than a few kids would actually find this quite amusing (not so sure about the pets?)!

Don’t knock rice and beans!  I spend 4 1/2 months in Madagascar and ate rice and beans almost everyday, sometimes twice a day and never got tired of it.  In fact, I wish I had a tasty, steaming bowl in front of me at this very moment! :-)  Aside from the occasional rock, they were also quite safe.  “Rice and Beans—Eating Your Way Through Latin America” sounds like heaven on earth!

Welcome to World Hum!

Sean O'Neill 12.16.08 | 10:41 AM ET

So glad to see you contributing to World Hum, Tom!

gail shepherd 12.16.08 | 11:41 AM ET

Tom Swick rules! So glad to see you’ve found a great forum and I love the first column—in fact, I’m pretty sure I’ve personally experienced many of these travel options—beach sleeping is a great way to extend the old vacay.

Mei Zhang 12.16.08 | 2:50 PM ET

Congtulations on the new appearance. Will look for your future uploads. Mei

Marilyn Terrell 12.17.08 | 1:34 AM ET

Hail Mr. Swick!  Nice score, World Hum!

How about:
The Ten Best Places to Watch Travelogues
DIY Spas
Forget China, Welcome to Chinatown!
Top Sleeping Bags for Street Sleeping
Making the Most of Your Coffee Break
Insiders Guide to Singing for Your Supper
Travel Secrets the Hobos Don’t Want You to Know
Great Eats in the 114th Arrondissement

CWolff 12.17.08 | 12:25 PM ET

Dear Tom,
Congratulations on your new column.  We mourn the absence of your column here in So Fla.  Keep alive the passion for travel!
I’m just back from Managua and Beaver Creek, two fascinating spots on the spectrum.

emma 12.19.08 | 5:14 PM ET

Moldova - Worse off than we are.
Indeed.
Nice to read your stuff again, Swick.

TambourineMan 12.22.08 | 3:46 PM ET

Good stuff, Mr Swick.

A couple more:
Jackpot Vegas—The Strip’s Loosest Penny Slots
Fishing for Euros—Trevi Fountain Secrets Revealed

Lola Akinmade 12.22.08 | 9:30 PM ET

Great stuff! Looking forward to your column here at Hum

Ann Lombardi 12.30.08 | 12:15 PM ET

Excellent columns, Tom. Thrilled to hear you are still globejotting away.  You should check out Twitter.com. All the best for a super 2009 and continued happy travels.

Ann & Wendy
Passport to Adventure, Inc.
“The Trip Chicks”
Atlanta, GA

All Inclusive Resorts Fan 01.08.09 | 8:30 PM ET

I guess one good thing is we should be seeing some discounted prices going forward.  People say this is one of the best times to buy a house or a car, but I think vacations should be included as well.  I’ve started to see some discounts and expect to see more as the economy worsens and resort rooms go vacant.

El Choxee 01.11.09 | 11:57 AM ET

Boring, boring, boring . Crank it up or call it a day.

Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.