Top Books for Armchair Travelers: Travel the World from Anywhere

What is an armchair traveler?

An armchair traveler is someone who experiences travel from the comfort of their own home. They explore the world vicariously through various means, such as:

• Reading travel books and memoirs: Immersing themselves in the stories and experiences of others who have traveled.

• Watching travel documentaries and shows: Gaining a visual perspective on different cultures and landscapes.

• Browsing travel websites and blogs: Researching destinations, learning about local customs, and planning hypothetical trips.

• Listening to travel podcasts: Engaging with travel experts and hearing firsthand accounts from adventurers.

• Using virtual tours and online maps: Exploring places virtually, getting a sense of the layout and atmosphere.
  

Armchair travelers are often passionate about exploring the world, but due to various reasons (budget, time constraints, physical limitations) they might not be able to travel frequently. However, their passion for discovery remains strong, and they use these alternative methods to satisfy their wanderlust.

Do you ever close your eyes and dream of windswept deserts, bustling foreign markets, or the exhilarating thrill of conquering a mountain peak? Does the mere thought of exploring uncharted territory set your soul on fire? Sometimes, circumstances hold us back, leaving travel dreams unfulfilled and passports tucked away.

I, too, was an armchair traveler. While the world was locked down during the pandemic, I embarked on a different kind of adventure – a literary odyssey through travel memoirs. I read over 49 captivating travel memoirs that transported me across continents, immersed me in diverse cultures and landscapes. I summited Everest with Jon Krakauer, cycled through South America with Anna McNuff, and laughed alongside Bill Bryson on the Appalachian Trail.

Travel memoirs are more than just stories; they're portals to ignite your wanderlust and propel you on a transformative journey – without ever leaving your favorite reading nook. They're invitations to witness the awe-inspiring beauty of the world, to feel the grit of determination on the faces of real-life explorers, and to share in their moments of triumph and despair. They are the fuel that ignites the fire within, the spark that whispers, "The world awaits. Go explore it."

The world is a vast, magnificent tapestry waiting to be unfurled. Travel memoirs are your invitation to explore it, even when unforeseen detours leave us yearning for adventure. So, grab a steaming mug of your favorite tea, settle into your coziest corner, and prepare to embark on a literary odyssey. Listed below are 21 captivating travel memoirs that will transport you across continents and ignite your wanderlust!

For the Adventurers:

Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer: When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn't made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated. Tales of a Female Nomad: Living at Large in the World by Rita Golden Gelman: At the age of forty-eight, on the verge of a divorce, Rita Golden Gelman sold her possessions and became a nomad, living in a Zapotec village in Mexico, sleeping with sea lions on the Galapagos Islands, and residing everywhere from thatched huts to regal palaces. She has observed orangutans in the rain forest of Borneo, visited trance healers and dens of black magic, and cooked with women on fires all over the world.

Llama Drama: A two-woman, 5,500-mile cycling adventure through South America by Anna McNuff: Armed with a limited grasp of Spanish and determined to meet as many llamas as possible, Anna and her friend Faye set off on a 6-month journey along the spine of the largest mountain range in the world – the Andes. Beginning in the bustling city of La Paz, the duo pedal south – through dense jungle, across pristine white salt flats and past towering volcanoes, following the path of thundering glacial rivers to the snow-tipped peaks of Patagonia.

Love with a Chance of Drowning by Torre DeRoche: A city girl with a morbid fear of deep water, Torre DeRoche is not someone you would ordinarily find adrift in the middle of the stormy Pacific aboard a leaky sailboat – total crew of two – struggling to keep an old boat, a new relationship and her floundering sanity afloat.

Tracks: A Woman's Solo Trek Across 1700 Miles of Australian Outback by Robyn Davidson: Enduring sweltering heat, fending off poisonous snakes and lecherous men, chasing her camels when they get skittish and nursing them when they are injured, Davidson emerges as an extraordinarily courageous heroine driven by a love of Australia's landscape, an empathy for its indigenous people, and a willingness to cast away the trappings of her former identity.

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed: At twenty-two, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother’s death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life. With no experience or training, driven only by blind will, she would hike more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State — and she would do it alone.

Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer: In April, 1992, a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless. He had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself. Four months later, a party of moose hunters found his decomposed body. How McCandless came to die is the unforgettable story of Into the Wild.

For the Budget Travelers: 

How to Travel the World on $50 a Day: Travel Cheaper, Longer, Smarter by Matt Kepnes: Whether it's a two-week, two-month, or two-year trip, Nomadic Matt shows you how to stretch your money further so you can travel cheaper, smarter, and longer.

The Lost Girls: Three Friends. Four Continents. One Unconventional Detour Around the World by Jennifer Baggett, Holly Corbett and Amanda Pressner: Three friends, each on the brink of a quarter-life crisis, make a pact to quit their high pressure New York City media jobs and leave behind their friends, boyfriends, and everything familiar to embark on a year-long backpacking adventure around the world.

The Good Girl's Guide to Getting Lost: A Memoir of Three Continents, Two Friends, and One Unexpected Adventure by Rachel Friedman: Rachel has always been the girl who plays it safe. On a whim (and in an effort to escape impending life decisions), she buys a ticket to Ireland. A chance encounter with a free-spirited Aussie sends her on a yearlong global adventure, forging friendships and igniting a newfound love for the unknown.

Braver Than You Think by Maggie Downs: Newly married and established in her career as an award–winning newspaper journalist, Maggie Downs quits her job, sells her belongings, and embarks on the solo trip of a lifetime

 Inspiring Adventures for the Seasoned Soul:

The Wander Year: One Couple's Journey Around the World by Mike McIntyre: Mike McIntyre and his longtime girlfriend, Andrea, are in their early 40s and itching for a break. So they rent out their San Diego home—dog, cat and furniture included—and embark on a yearlong journey around the world.

A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson: Back in America after twenty years in Britain, Bill Bryson decided to reacquaint himself with his native country by walking the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine. The AT offers an astonishing landscape of silent forests and sparkling lakes—and to a writer with the comic genius of Bill Bryson, it also provides endless opportunities to witness the majestic silliness of his fellow human beings.

Without Reservations by Alice Steinbach: Alice takes a leave of absence from the Baltimore Sun newspaper she works for in January of 1993. Her sons are all grown up- she’s been an independent woman for years and the only “person” who currently relies on her is her cat. This revealing and witty book will transport readers instantly into a fascinating journey of self discovery.

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert: Around the time Elizabeth Gilbert turned thirty, she went through an early-onslaught midlife crisis. She had everything an educated, ambitious American woman was supposed to want—a husband, a house, a successful career. But instead of feeling happy and fulfilled, she was consumed with panic, grief, and confusion. So Gilbert took a radical step. In order to give herself the time and space to find out who she really was and what she really wanted, she got rid of her belongings, quit her job, and undertook a yearlong journey around the world—alone.

Gap-Year Adventures with Kids:

360 Degrees Longitude, One Family's Journey Around the World by John Higham: After more than a decade of planning, John Higham and his wife September bid their high-tech jobs and suburban lives good-bye, packed up their home and set out with two children, ages eight and eleven, to travel around the world. In the course of the next 52 weeks they crossed 24 time zones, visited 28 countries and experienced a lifetime of

adventures.

We Came, We Saw, We Left: A Family Gap Year by Charles Wheelan: What would happen if you quit your life for a year? In a pre–COVID-19 world, the Wheelan family decided to find out; leaving behind work, school, and even the family dogs to travel the world on a modest budget. Equal parts "how-to" and "how-not-to"—and with an eye toward a world emerging from a pandemic—We Came, We Saw, We Left is the insightful and often hilarious account of one family’s gap-year experiment.

The Buddha Sat Right Here: A Family Odyssey Through India and Nepal by Dena Moes: Dena was a busy midwife trapped on the hamster wheel of working motherhood. Adam was an eccentric Buddhist yogi passing as a hard-working dad. Bella was fourteen and wanted to be normal. Sophia was up for anything that involved skipping school. Together, they shouldered backpacks, walked away from their California life of all-night births, carpool schedules, and Cal Skate, and criss-crossed India and Nepal for eight months.

And More! For the Wanderers and Dreamers:

A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway: Hemingway's memories of his life as an unknown writer living in Paris in the twenties are deeply personal, warmly affectionate, and full of wit. Looking back not only at his own much younger self, but also at the other writers who shared Paris with him - James Joyce, Wyndham Lewis, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald - he recalls the time when, poor, happy, and writing in cafes, he discovered his vocation. Written during the last years of Hemingway's life, his memoir is a lively and powerful reflection of his genius that scintillates with the romance of the city.

On the Road by Jack Kerouac: A quintessential novel of America & the Beat Generation On the Road chronicles Jack Kerouac's years traveling the N. American continent with his friend Neal Cassady, "a sideburned hero of the snowy West." As "Sal Paradise" & "Dean Moriarty," the two roam the country in a quest for self-knowledge & experience. Kerouac's love of America, compassion for humanity & sense of language as jazz combine to make On the Road an inspirational work of lasting importance. This classic novel of freedom & longing defined what it meant to be "Beat" & has inspired every generation since its initial publication.

Dark Star Safari: Overland from Cairo to Cape Town by Paul Theroux: Paul Theroux takes readers the length of Africa by rattletrap bus, dugout canoe, cattle truck, armed convoy, ferry, and train. In the course of his epic and enlightening journey, he endures danger, delay, and dismaying circumstances.

But the journey doesn't end there. Here's how you can take your literary adventures a step further:

Connect with Your Tribe:

Join online communities (www.goodreads.com) dedicated to literature and swap recommendations with fellow armchair explorers. Building a community around your reading experience fosters connection and ignites a collective spirit of adventure. 

As you delve deeper into these online communities, you'll discover countless book recommendations waiting to be devoured. And the best part? With a Kindle, you can download them instantly, expanding your literary travelogue without adding any weight to your luggage.

Let Inspiration Bloom into Action:

Travel memoirs are more than just captivating stories; they're powerful motivators. As you read about the triumphs and tribulations of others, a seed is planted within you – a yearning to experience the world firsthand. Use these accounts as fuel for your own adventure. Perhaps Bill Bryson's mishaps on the Appalachian Trail spark a desire to conquer your own section of the iconic path, or Robyn Davidson's camel trek across the Outback ignites a dream of your own desert odyssey.

Have you read any travel books that ignited your wanderlust? Share your recommendations in the comments below and lets build a community of inspired explorers!