In an undergraduate journalism class, I learned about content curation; it meant becoming an expert on a topic, find important info on it and share with others. With my lifelong love of seeing the world, I decided that travel would be perfect for me to curate.
While I haven’t explored many places, I follow a great deal of news related to the overall subject of travel and have interest in many sub-categories. A few examples include both natural wonders and historically significant destinations. Others are film locations, literary sites, have stunning architectural works and offer unique
ways to tour cities and towns. Offbeat places or those with legends and lore also draw my curiosity. I also have a growing hunger in the
culinary aspect of travel, since there’s always an amazing place to grab a bite to eat and food is a big part of a destination’s culture. Every so often, I see articles about restaurants that are worthy on their own merit to plan a trip.
Famous landmarks around the world are another reason for choosing travel as my curation topic. Many include the ancient sites; others are modern, such as the Golden Gate Bridge and the Eiffel Tower. Well-known natural places on my “must-see” list are the great national parks out west, Ayers Rock in Australia, Niagara Falls and Ireland’s Cliffs of Moher – just to name a few.
Later, I enrolled in a three-credit introduction to tourism class to build on my love of travel with formal education. I hope to use the knowledge I gained and my communication background toward marketing at a tourism company or as a travel editor / writer for an online publication. Here are a number of aspects I learned about an industry which has long held my interest.
– History of tourism
– Traveler world maps
– Market segments
– Industry challenges
– Consumer characteristics
– Travel motivations
– Special interest trips
– Tourism-related services
– Consumer satisfaction
– Distribution channels
– Roles of travel agents
– Types of travel agencies
– Tourism packaging
– Technology in tourism
– Service Suppliers
– Transportation
– Types of accommodations
– Hotel terminology
– Food and beverage
– Heritage and commercial attractions
– Types of destinations
– Types of cruise ships
– Economic / political impacts
– Sustainable / ecotourism
– Social / cultural impacts
– Future of travel
– Emerging markets
– Tourism research
Photo Journey 