It’s Quaint!

Travel Stories: World Hum continues its non-scientific and purely subjective inquiry into the most overused words in travel writing. Second in an occasional series.

07.24.03 | 9:50 PM ET

San Francisco VictorianPhoto by Michael Yessis.

If you read much travel writing, you know that writers tend to rely on certain words over and over and over again. Cities, for instance, are always “bustling.” Wherever they are, whatever their unique circumstances, they just bustle and bustle and bustle. That got us thinking, and last year we launched the first in a series of investigations into the most hackneyed words in travel journalism.  Our first installment was It’s Charming! We don’t want to overstate its impact on the travel-publishing world, but let’s just say that heads rolled. Now, we’re proud to bring you the second installment in this very important series.

In recent months, we have Googled often. We have read more than we wanted to. In so doing, we’ve assembled the top ten uses of that classic adjective that is now all but meaningless, “quaint.” Each of these examples appeared online or in print. Publication names have been withheld because we’re kind.

BEST USE THAT ATTEMPTS TO ABSOLVE THE WRITER OF ALL RESPONSIBILITY FOR ITS USE BY QUOTING OTHERS
“The most popular word to describe Cedar Key, used by other tourists trolling the few blocks in town was ‘quaint,’ perhaps old-style and definitely out of the past.”  - Southern U.S. newspaper

BEST USE FEATURING “MARVIN THE MARTIAN”
“Quaint houses dot the landscape; one displays a flag honoring Marvin the Martian.” - major Internet magazine

BEST USE INVOLVING “REAL” FISHING BOATS
“It’s quiet here and unpretentious. The quaint fishing boats parked on the beach are real.” - major Australian newspaper   BEST USE DESCRIBING AN OLD FISHING VILLAGE
“It’s also a quaint old fishing village of narrow lanes,  whitewashed houses and small workshops filled with artisans.”  - major British newspaper

BEST USE IN A SUB-HEADLINE THAT ALSO INCLUDES “QUIRKY”
“Connecticut region is filled with both the quaint and quirky”  - major East Coast U.S. newspaper

BEST USE TEAMED WITH THE OH-SO-ENTICING PHRASE “WAITING TO BE EXPERIENCED”
“From vibrant cities and quaint villages to the rugged wilderness and remote coastlines, Canada is waiting to be experienced.”  - medium-sized Midwestern U.S. magazine

BEST USE INVOKING TIME TRAVEL
“Travelling by one of these is like stepping back into the pages of history, in remembrance of those days of yore when these quaint trains were the most fashionable mode of transport.”  - Asian newspaper

BEST USE IN A SENTENCE THAT ALSO CONTAINS “SINISTER”
“The Polanski-style cage elevator that had seemed vaguely sinister the night before now seemed quirky and quaint.”  - Canadian newspaper

BEST USE THREE TIMES IN THE SAME STORY
“Great Prescott! It’s cool, it’s quaint, it’s lively and it’s close by.”

“Or take it easy and just drive around the town’s quaint neighborhoods, where the Victorian houses may remind you more of the Midwest than the Old West.”    “Prescott’s quaint town square is brimming with Americana.”  - mid-sized Southwestern U.S newspaper

BEST USE THREE TIMES IN THE SAME SENTENCE
“We found a good one in this quaint place, on a quaint street, in a quaint town.”  - Internet travel site

Tags: Humor, Travel Writing


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