7 Publications That Will Pay You for Travel Writing
Get paid for your travel writing! Fund your adventure, literally, writing about what you love doing the most. If you are already a travel blogger, you’ll be used to writing just for the fun of it. We do it because we love blogging, creating content, and every blog post we write can support a career we believe in.
If you love writing about travel, you can also get paid for it. Below are current, contributor-friendly outlets with what they want, who they serve, and how to pitch them, based on their latest public guidance.
Updated on 31 October 2025: refreshed outlets, current pay guidance, and direct pitch links. Rates and terms change. Always confirm before submitting.
1) International Living
**Focus
**Living and retiring overseas. Practical, first person advice and insider guidance on places to move, cost of living, healthcare, visas, property, and day-to-day life.
**Best for
**Writers with on-the-ground experience. Profiles of people who have moved, actionable how-to advice, practical solutions, and healthcare stories grounded in real use.
What to pitch
- Magazine features that help readers live better for less abroad.
- “Solutions” pieces that answer specific questions with steps readers can act on.
- Profiles with strong quotes and a clear takeaway.
- Website pieces such as expat advice, listicles, itineraries, and step-by-step guides.
- US or Canadian expats abroad sharing a vivid slice of life.
**Pay and rights
**Payment is upon publication. The magazine buys all rights. If a photo of yours is used, they pay one-time use while you retain photo rights. Website and Postcards pay a one-time rate based on word count.
How to pitch
- Magazine: submissions@internationalliving.com
- Daily Postcards: postcards@internationalliving.com
- Website: digitaleditor@internationalliving.com
- Pitch page: https://internationalliving.com/about-il/write-for-il/
Quick tips
They are not a general travel magazine. Avoid broad sightseeing pieces. Be original, opinionated, and useful. Start with the most interesting moment, pack in actionable detail, and use direct quotes in profiles. Proofread before sending.
2. Verge Magazine
Focus
Purposeful travel. Living, working, studying, or volunteering abroad. Stories that help socially aware readers make meaningful choices overseas.
Best for
Writers with experience in international education, volunteering, work abroad, or community projects, and photographers with documentary sensibility.
What to pitch
Service pieces, features with a clear purpose angle, and reported guides that inform decisions. They also recruit “Bloggers in the Field” to document time abroad.
Pay and rights
They pay a small flat fee for accepted contributions. Exact rates are not listed on their public page.
How to pitch
- Read the contributor guidelines, then email contributing@vergemagazine.com
- Pitch page: https://www.vergemagazine.com/about/contributing.html
Quick tips
Pitch a focused idea with a defined reader outcome. Avoid self promotion and single organisation advertorial angles.
3. Horizon Guides
**Focus
**Extraordinary, experience led travel. Two main commission types: in depth activity guides and reported features for The Journal.
**Best for
**In destination experts, veteran travel journalists, and writers with several years of recent experience in a place or niche activity.
What to pitch
- Guides: Exhaustive, definitive coverage of a single activity within a destination, with concrete routes, places, logistics, and practical detail
- Journal features: Reported stories with people, stakes, and payoff. Not straight first person travelogues
Pay and rights
Guideline rates start at £200+ for features and £400+ for guides, adjusted by brief. Payment up to 30 days after acceptance.
How to pitch
- Email the editor with pitch headline and destination in the subject line
- Include your background and links to previous work
- Pitch page: https://horizonguides.com/journalists
**Quick tips
**Check what they have already covered. Bring a contrarian or under reported angle. Make the place or issue the protagonist, not you.
4. Go World Travel
Focus
Destination features and richly described stories that help readers experience a place. Also evergreen trend and tips reporting with an international perspective.
Best for
Clear, descriptive writers who can move beyond “how to get there” and into the smells, tastes, people, and local customs that define a destination.
What to pitch
Completed submissions in first person with professional tone. New angles on popular places, lesser known destinations, or unique adventures.
Pay and rights
Non exclusive online rights. Payment of 30 to 40 US dollars per accepted story or photo essay, on publication.
How to pitch
- submissions@goworldtravel.com
with story title and destination in the subject - Include your name, address, email, short bio, and links to previous work
- Pitch page: https://www.goworldtravel.com/submissions/
Quick tips
Avoid laundry list itineraries. Aim for vivid description, lively anecdotes, and straightforward language with curiosity.
5. Matador Network
Focus
Stories with a strong, specific angle across Travel, Culture, Outdoor, Food and Drink, Lifestyle, and Entertainment. Serviceable information readers can use, plus distinctive features with a clear why now.
Best for
Writers with original, specific ideas, and experience based pieces that deliver planning value or a new way of seeing a topic.
What to pitch
Pitch stories, not places. Each pitch should have a tight headline, audience relevance, and an angle that is not widely covered elsewhere. Current editorial needs are posted on the Matador Creators page.
Not seeking
Photo essays unless requested, profiles, bloggy or promotional copy, family travel, hotel roundups, destination guides done in house, pre trip pitches, or diary style narratives without broader takeaway.
Pay and rights
They commission paid editorial pieces. Rates vary by brief and are handled through the editorial team. Press trip disclosures are required.
How to pitch
- Use the pitch form or Matador Creators portal
- Pitch page: https://creators.matadornetwork.com/matador-network-pitch-guide/
Quick tips
Make the reader the focus. Include actionable elements that let readers experience what you wrote about. Disclose any conflicts and press trips.
6. Listverse
Focus
Listicles on unusual or fascinating topics. Offbeat, novel angles, hidden knowledge, misconceptions, unsolved mysteries, and surprising general knowledge.
Best for
Writers who can research and write tight, engaging entries with reliable sources. Native level English is required.
What to pitch
A completed list with a minimum of 10 items. Each item is one or two paragraphs and must include reputable sources.
Pay and rights
100 US dollars per accepted list, paid via PayPal only.
How to pitch
Submit via their online form: https://listverse.com/write-get-paid/
Editor tips
Originality is essential.
7. Intrepid Times
Focus
Narrative travel writing with heart. Authentic, human stories that capture the essence of a place, moment, or journey. They publish both veteran and first time authors.
Best for
Writers who can tell a crafted literary story grounded in real experience, with scene, reflection, and a clear emotional arc.
What to pitch
A complete narrative travel story that feels personal yet resonates beyond the writer. Submissions are open to subscribers of their free newsletter.
Pay and rights
They pay all accepted writers. Specific rates are not listed publicly.
How to pitch
- Subscribe to their free travel writing newsletter, then submit per their instructions
- Pitch page: https://intrepidtimes.com/get-published/
Quick tips
Read recent pieces to calibrate tone and pacing. They try to respond to sincere submissions, but volume can affect response times.
Note: Updated on 31 October 2025. Removed publications that no longer accept freelance submissions and added current, paying outlets.
Pre-pitch checklist
- Read three recent posts from the websites above, make sure their theme is right for you.
- Define a single angle.
- Note any section fit and typical length.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Pitching just place, not telling a story.
- Sending diary entries without reader value.
- Ignoring previously covered angles.
- Missing basic facts that a quick check would fix.
