In between trips you can read about traveling! Perhaps you need some inspiration for your next vacation? Maybe you just want to get lost in someone else’s epic adventures? Fortunately, there are lots of travel books to keep you occupied while you plan your next journey. Here are some titles to get you started:
- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy, has a recurring dream about finding treasure at the Egyptian pyramids. His treasure hunt takes him across North Africa, but it ends up being a journey of self-discovery.
- Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
After a failed relationship, Elizabeth Gilbert travels from Italy to India to Indonesia. On her trip she finds pleasure, spiritual devotion, and ultimately the secret to a balanced, happy life.
- Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel by Rolf Potts
This travel guide encourages you to take long-term, immersive trips rather than simply collecting stamps in your passport. It is full of great advice for all stages of a trip, and teaches readers how to experience the world without breaking the bank.
- The Beach by Alex Garland
Richard, a European backpacker travels through Thailand to find an isolated beach untouched by tourism. However, the island is not as idyllic as it seems.
- On the Road by Jack Kerouac
This novel (loosely based on Kerouac’s life) follows young writer Sal Paradise as he and his friends travel across America and Mexico. He learns about himself and the world as he visits cities such as New York City, Denver, San Francisco, and New Orleans.
- Love with a Chance of Drowning by Torre DeRoche
A city girl terrified of water falls for a handsome Argentinean man she met in a bar. She joins him on his leaky sailboat for a year-long adventure across the Pacific Ocean.
- Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne
In this classic adventure novel, a wealthy British gentleman named Phileas Fogg makes a bet that he can circumnavigate the globe in eighty days. He faces countless obstacles in places such as Egypt, India, Hong Kong, Japan, and America, as he races to get home in time.
- Without Reservations: The Travels of an Independent Woman by Alice Steinbach
American journalist Alice Steinbach’s memoir details her year-long solo travels throughout Europe. She rediscovers how it feels to be an independent woman as she explores Paris, Venice, Milan, London, and more.
- The Art of Travel by Alain de Botton
This book takes a philosophical approach to travel. Button examines the connection between travelling and experiencing personal growth. He encourages readers to acknowledge both the transformative power of travel and the challenges that come with it.
- Into the Wild by John Krakauer
This non-fiction book examines the travels, and eventual death, of a young man named Chris McCandless. He rejects his parents and money and journeys into the Alaskan wilderness in search of nature and solitude.
- The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner
A humorous travel memoir chronicling the search for the happiest countries in the world. Weiner compares cultural differences and tries to determine what it is about certain countries that makes their citizens so happy.
- The Motorcycle Diaries by Ernesto Che Guevara
The Motorcycle Diaries is the memoir of Marxist revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara. The story follows two young Argentinian men on their road trip across South America. On their journey, they witness poverty and social class struggles that change their way of thinking.
- Turn Right at Machu Picchu: Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time by Mark Adams
Adams discusses Hiram Bingham III’s controversial “discovery” of the “lost” Incan city of Machu Picchu, as he re-traces the explorer’s steps a hundred years later. It is a combination of Bingham’s historical accounts and anecdotes from Adam’s own travels in Peru.
- The Great Railway Bazaar: By Train Through Asia by Paul Theroux
This travelogue recounts American novelist Paul Theroux’s epic train journey in 1973. He spent four-months traveling through Europe, the Middle East, and Asia on famous trains such as the Orient Express and the Trans-Siberian.
- Unlikely Destinations: The Lonely Planet Story by Tony & Maureen Wheeler
Part autobiography, part travel guide, this literary work focuses on the Wheeler’s personal story, as well as the evolution of their successful travel publishing company, Lonely Planet.
- The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann
Grann’s book explores the life of British explorer Percy Fawcett and his obsession with finding the fabled ancient city of Z. It chronicles his adventures in the deadly, previously unexplored, Amazon rainforest.
- Lost on Planet China: One Man’s Attempt to Understand the World’s Most Mystifying Nation by J. Maarten Troost
This hilarious narrative describes Troost’s journey across China. He shares anecdotes about unique foods, epic hikes, and strange attractions as he visits the megalopolises of Beijing and Shanghai as well as off the beaten track locales.
- The Caliph’s House: A Year in Casablanca by Tahir Shah
This is the comical true story of the time Shah moved his family from Britain to Morocco. He buys a dilapidated mansion in Casablanca that was once owned by the city’s spiritual leader. He has lots of trouble trying to renovate the fixer-upper.
- My Paris Dream: An Education in Style, Slang, and Seduction in the Great City on the Seine by Kate Betts
Former Vogue editor Kate Betts describes her transformative years in Paris in the 1980s. Her coming of age story touches on cultural clashes and provides an inside view of the fashion industry.
- Destinations of a Lifetime: 225 of the World’s Most Amazing Places by National Geographic
Enjoy a photographic tour of the planet’s most spectacular travel destinations. The book contains images of natural and man-made wonders. It also includes commentary about when to visit, where to eat, and what to see in each place.
We want to make a special mention of author Bill Bryson. He has written an extensive collection of travel books, all of which are great reads. A few of his popular titles include: A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail, In A Sunburned Country (about Australia), and Neither Here Nor There: Travels in Europe.
The foregoing are just a few books to read if you are looking for travel inspiration. Feel free to mention your personal favorites in the comments below.
When you want to keep the travel bug alive while you are at home, we also recommend watching travel-themed films, including the ones in our article Movies That’ll Make You Want to Travel.