TravelAge West
Search Sponsored by

Explore TravelAge West

Destinations

Back
  • Africa & Middle East
  • Asia & South Pacific
  • Caribbean
  • Central & South America
  • Europe
  • Hawaii
  • Mexico
  • USA & Canada

Travel Types

Back
  • Family
  • Adventure
  • Cruise
  • River Cruise
  • Tour Operators
  • Luxury
  • Hotels
  • Culinary
  • Romance
  • Wellness
  • Sustainability

Directories

Back
  • Hotels
  • Cruise
  • Job Seeker Center

Interactive

Back
  • Click & Win
  • Geo Quiz
  • Slideshows & Video

Professional Development

Back

Industry Insight

  • Business Features
  • Interviews
  • Events
  • Opinion
  • Tech
  • Podcasts
  • Coronavirus and Travel
  • Need to Know Research

Education

  • Certifications
  • Digital Guides
  • Fams
  • Thought Leadership
  • Advertiser Spotlight
  • Webinars
  • Immersive Family Experiences

Events

  • Global Travel Marketplace
  • GTM West
  • WAVE Awards
  • Future Leaders in Travel Retreat

Get Us in Your Inbox

I accept the T&C and Privacy Policy.

Search TravelAge West

Clear Field
Emma Weissmann
Emma WeissmannDigital Managing Editor

Share

  1. Home
  2. Podcasts
  3. Humans of Travel

Journalist Mark Chesnut on Using Travel as an Escape and Life as a Freelance Writer

Mar 15, 2021
Journalist Mark Chesnut on Using Travel as an Escape and Life as a Freelance Writer
Travel journalist Mark Chesnut
Credit: 2021 Mark Chesnut

Subscribe now using your favorite service:


Get Us in Your Inbox

I accept the T&C and Privacy Policy.

As a child, travel journalist Mark Chesnut often dodged discomfort by hopping on the nearest plane, train or bus. Raised by a single mother in New York State and navigating the world as a young gay boy in the 1970s, he is the first to admit that he often turned to travel as both a physical — and figurative — escape.

From creating imaginary airlines to “gate raiding” at local airports and posing as a female travel agent to get free airplane posters, Chesnut has long used his enthusiasm about travel to tap into his creativity — a skill that he puts to daily use while working as an award-winning freelance travel writer for publications such as HuffPost (formerly The Huffington Post), Forbes Travel Guide, Travel Weekly and TravelAge West, among others.  

Travel journalist Mark Chesnut
Travel journalist Mark Chesnut
Credit: 2021 Mark Chesnut

In this episode of Humans of Travel, Chesnut takes listeners along on his journey toward radical self-acceptance. He describes the challenges of coming out to his traditional-but-supportive mother, his transformative trips across the globe and how, through persistence, he was able to turn his passions into a career. We’ll also hear about how Chesnut’s role as a travel writer has shifted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and how he has dealt with the rise of “travel shaming.”  

Note: Chesnut’s memoir, tentatively titled “Prepare for Departure: A Travel Writer’s Notes on Life, Death and Growing Up Different,” will be published by Vine Leaves Press. It will be available for pre-order in May 2022. 

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

Instagram: @mundera  

Twitter: @MunderaMedia 

Latin Flyer Travel Blog: www.LatinFlyer.com  

Youtube: www.YouTube.com/LatinFlyerTV

About Your Host

Emma Weissmann is Senior Editor of TravelAge West, a print and online magazine for travel advisors based in the Western U.S. She is also the co-host of Trade Secrets, a podcast created with sister publication Travel Weekly.

TravelAge West also produces national trade publications Explorer and Family Getaways, as well as events including the Future Leaders in Travel Retreat, Global Travel Marketplace West, the WAVE Awards gala and the Napa Valley Leadership Forum. 

About the Show

TravelAge West’s podcast, “Humans of Travel,” features conversations with exceptional people who have compelling stories to tell. Listeners will hear from the travel industry’s notable authorities, high-profile executives, travel advisors and rising stars as they share the experiences — the highs and the lows — that make them human. 

Tell Us What You Think! forum

Related Content

Family Travel Association Founder Rainer Jenss on the Healing Power of Travel and Inspiring Families to Discover What's Possible

Family Travel Association Founder Rainer Jenss on the Healing Power of Travel and Inspiring Families to Discover What's Possible

  • Most Read
  • Most Shared
  1. Which Cruise Lines Require COVID-19 Vaccinations?
  2. The New Change to Mexico’s Tourist Visa That You Probably Don't Know About
  3. The Best Hidden Breakfast Spots in Maui
  4. How American Travelers Can Receive Compensation for Flight Delays, Cancellations and Other Air Transport Issues
  5. 6 Delicious Hawaiian Desserts and Where on the Islands to Find Them
  1. Which Cruise Lines Require COVID-19 Vaccinations?
  2. The New Change to Mexico’s Tourist Visa That You Probably Don't Know About
  3. The U.S. Will No Longer Enforce a Mask Mandate for Travel
  4. How American Travelers Can Receive Compensation for Flight Delays, Cancellations and Other Air Transport Issues
  5. Global Travel Marketplace West Draws a Record Number of Attendees

From Our Partners

More Stories Like This

Humans of Travel Podcast-Cover-Adam Sachs

Culinary Journalist Adam Sachs on Storytelling Through Food and Directing Silversea Cruises' S.A.L.T. Program

Host Agency Expert Stephanie Lee on Life Before Travel and the Diagnosis That Changed Everything

Host Agency Expert Stephanie Lee on Life Before Travel and the Diagnosis That Changed Everything

Charlie Clifford, Co-Founder of Tumi and ROAM, on Revolutionizing the Luggage Industry

Charlie Clifford, Co-Founder of Tumi and ROAM, on Revolutionizing the Luggage Industry

Entrepreneur Stephanie M. Jones on Rising Above Discrimination and Leveling the Travel Industry Playing Field

Entrepreneur Stephanie M. Jones on Rising Above Discrimination and Leveling the Travel Industry Playing Field

Humans of Travel_MarkEdwardHarris_HERO

Award-Winning Travel Photographer Mark Edward Harris on Life Behind the Lens

Erika Richter Humans of Travel2

ASTA's Erika Richter on How Personal Tragedy Led Her to Fight for Change

Princess Cruises' John Chernesky on Parenthood, 'The Love Boat' and MedallionClass Technology (Sponsored Content)

Princess Cruises' John Chernesky on Parenthood, 'The Love Boat' and MedallionClass Technology (Sponsored Content)

Humans of Travel_Podcast-Cover-Sarah Groen

Travel Advisor Sarah Groen on Female Entrepreneurship and Surviving Burnout

MMGY Global's Danny Guerrero on Self-Acceptance and Profiling the Traveler of Tomorrow

MMGY Global's Danny Guerrero on Self-Acceptance and Profiling the Traveler of Tomorrow

Asta Lassesen, Hurtigruten Expeditions' New Groundbreaking CEO (Sponsored Content)

Asta Lassesen, Hurtigruten Expeditions' New Groundbreaking CEO (Sponsored Content)

TravelAge West

About TravelAge West

  • About Us
  • Contributors
  • Sales Team
  • Contact Us
  • My Profile

Advertise

  • Advertise With Us
  • Media Kit
  • Upload Ad Material
  • Digital Ad Specifications
  • Reprints
  • Subscribe to Print

Stay Connected to TravelAge West

Get Us in Your Inbox

I accept the T&C and Privacy Policy.


Northstar Travel Group

Northstar Travel Group

  • Travel Weekly
  • Travel Weekly Asia
  • Travel Weekly China
  • TravelPulse
  • TravelPulse Canada
  • TravelPulse Quebec
  • Meetings & Incentives
  • Travel Technology
  • Corporate Travel
  • Hotel Investment
  • Data Products
  • AGENTatHOME
Copyright © 2022 by Northstar Travel Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. 100 Lighting Way, Secaucus, NJ 07094-3626 USA | Telephone: (201) 902-2000
Load Carousel Here
Load Video Here