ABOUT

• Best Hotel Review Platform, Travel Awards 2024—LUXLife Magazine 
• AITO Travel Blogger of the Year 2022—shortlisted

Founded by journalist and solo travel expert Lydia Swinscoe, who has visited parts of 63 countries, many on a restrictive budget (including living on just $25/£20 a day for a year), Lydia Travels offers travel advice for all types of traveler, comprehensive hotel reviews, and tips learned from over 20 years of wandering the globe. Skilled at discovering inspiring places to visit, incredible local restaurants, and luxe hotels that boast creative interiors, Lydia's work has been published in some of the world's top publications including The Sunday Times, Marie Claire, Conde Nast Traveller, BBC Travel, Harper's Bazaar, BBC Good Food, The Guardian, ELLE, woman&home, The London Standard and body+soul. Before its closure, some of her photography was featured in Lonely Planet Traveller.

Lydia in the Dominican Republic

Lydia prefers slow travel to really immerse herself into the soul of a place and will always take a bus or train journey over a short flight when possible, even if that means taking a 25-hour bus journey across the center of Brazil.

As a teenager, she spent her holidays working in a Latin-American handcraft store filled with nodding animals bought back from Peru, silver jewelry sourced in Brazil, and Day of the Dead papier-mâché skeletons from Mexico. Being surrounded by these items sparked her interest in travel, so after saving hard, she took her first solo trip, at 19, to Guatemala, Belize, and Mexico. Since then, she seem to have developed an obsession with Sri Lanka, Bolivia, Cambodia, India, and Guatemala—just a few of her favorite countries.

After graduating with a degree in Journalism from the London College of Communication, Lydia started her career working for magazines at the BBC before quitting office life for a year of travel—of the 15 countries she visited, most were explored overland. Some highlights from the trip include attending a teaching by the Dalai Lama in the foothills of the Himalayas, exploring the world's largest salt flat, Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia, and being completely overwhelmed by the magnificent power of Iguazu Falls on the Argentina/Brazil border.

Since returning, she's taken many more trips, thankfully swapping budget hostels for artfully designed luxury hotels, and continues to write about her adventures for Lydia Travels as well as a large range of global publications, in print and online.

Solo travel is her specialty, and she's happiest when hunting out local food while wearing flip-flops, preferably somewhere hot and tropical.

The team at Lydia Travels visits every hotel and restaurant recommended or reviewed. If you take action (eg, book a hotel, flight, or service) after clicking on one of the affiliate links, we may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Lydia Travels only recommends places or services that we love and want to share with fellow travelers.