The Travelista

About Me

The Travelista is an award-winning UK blog about luxury travel and stylish living. Created by Jess Gibson in March 2013, The Travelista is now regarded as one of the most influential and established travel blogs in The UK. With a loyal and engaged audience of travel and style lovers, the blog has consecutively been listed as a Top 10 Luxury Travel Blog by Vuelio between 2015-2018.

Packed with city guides, stylish hotel reviews and travel shortlists, The Travelista aims to inspire your own trips and arm you with honest and trusted recommendations.  The recent re-design welcomes a new ‘stylish living’ theme to the blog, so as well as Jess’ worldwide adventures, you can also expect to see more content about her life at home in Yorkshire.

Featured in: The 30 Best Travel Instagram Accounts to Follow in 2018 by the Evening Standard

Listed in: The Top 10 Luxury Travel Blog by Vuelio from 2015-2018

Winner of: Highly Commended Travel Blog at the Cosmopolitan Blog Awards 2014

Editor's Letter

Hi guys! Welcome to The Travelista. My name is Jess Gibson and I am the Founder and Editor of The Travelista. I’m 28 years old and live in Leeds with my boyfriend Scott. After graduating with a 2.1 in Media, Communications and Cultural Studies, I started my career as an Editorial Assistant and later moved into various Digital Content roles. I created The Travelista in March 2013 and ran it alongside my full time job for 4 years. In July 2016 I made the leap to become a full time blogger and have never looked back.

As a blogger and content creator I wear many hats, but The Travelista was born from a passion for writing and travel. Creating The Travelista has transformed my life in ways I could have never imagined and it continues to evolve every day. The Travelista is an intrinsic part of my identity and I am so honoured that I get to share my life with a community of people who love travel just as much as me.

Thank you for taking the time to find out a little bit about me. I hope you enjoy this corner of the Internet and that my blog inspires you to dream big and travel in style.

Jess x

Comments

  1. Oh wow, Jess! I am so impressed by the amount of travelling you do. It was great meeting you yesterday and I am glad I’ve discovered your blog. Your trip to Tanzania sounds lie our dream holiday!

  4. Dear Jess,

    I really liked your story and how you ended up putting your dream together with this blog. Its people like you who give inspiration to others for making it big. I think most of us are too scared to leave our 9-5 jobs and just go for it!

    You have to have this believe in your self and only then you can make it big, like you did. I really have all the respect for you as an individual and would like to see you succeed more.

    Best of luck!

    Cheers,
    Zeb

  5. Hi TheTravelista!! I am so hopeful more now than ever that writing and traveling for living, both things that I love, is possible because of your blogging adventures. I know you have many people asking you for help, but if you can point me in the right direction to start with this particular field I would be so grateful! Thank you in advance. You are awesome!

    • Hi Nina, Thanks so much for your sweet comment. I do write and travel for a living, but it’s not all glamorous press trips. Lots of hours are spent in the office, chained to a desk like any other job. I don’t mean to send out an unrealistic message that people can travel around the world and get paid for it, even if that’s how it looks sometimes. If you want to get into travel writing, setting up a blog is the best place to start. It allows you to publish your work immediately and get your name out there. Try to build a following and a community and once you have this set up it demonstrates a pro active side to you and a passion for travel writing. If you go into any content / copywriting / journalistic job in the travel industry, an established travel blog would put you in great stead. Wishing you all the best in your career and your ventures 🙂 Can’t wait to see what you create!

      Jess x

    • So glad to hear you enjoy my blog – it’s comment’s like yours that make it all worthwhile. Thanks so much and hope you keep on reading 🙂

      Jess, The Travelista x

  10. It does inspire me! I’m a very visual person (the curse of having a short attention span) so all the bright beautiful photos really got my attention!

    Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it. It can be so daunting first starting out!

    I would definitely love to keep in touch, please let me know if you’re ever in Sydney!

    Chrissy x

  11. Jess, you are pretty much living my dream life!

    As an aspiring travel writer/blogger I’m ecstatic I’ve come across your blog 🙂 I’m currently in the process of saving and planning a RTW trip and hope to long term travel for as long as possible.

    Can’t wait to follow your journey!

    Chrissy
    Sydney, Australia
    x

    • Hi Chrissy! Thank you for your lovely comment. I’m so glad you like my blog and hope it inspires you for your RTW trip. I’ve just checked out your blog and think its a great start. I read you worry you don’t have enough blog worthy material but remember travel blogging can include past present and future travels – you could even include dream destinations! Believe in yourself and have confidence In your writing because it’s great! Keep up the good work. let’s stay in touch 🙂

      Jess, The Travelista x

  13. Hello. Thank you for following my Blog. Yours is top-notch; very informative. Thanks again. Ray.

    • Thanks for your comment Ray! Your blog is great too, I love your photos of Pulteney Bridge in Bath. My sister goes to University there, what a wonderful city! I shall be looking out for more. 🙂 Jess – The Travelista x

Follow on Instagram

  • Honestly is there anything better than a freshly bathed baby dressed all in white? 🛁🤍👼🏼 From this angelic face you’d have no idea that he has seriously tested me today by throwing approximately 98% of the food I’ve made him on the floor 🙃 How are you all doing? #StayHome #13monthscorrected
  • 🌿Maybe this was mother nature’s way of telling us to stop and think? 🌿. . Perhaps she’s trying to tell us all to slow down; to consume less, to pollute less, to put our health first, to be more present, to find new ways to be entertained, to appreciate loved ones, to know what it’s like to live without instant gratification. . We’re all so busy constantly chasing after the next thing that we think is going to bring us more happiness (that dreamy new bag, a new job, a new car?) but now all of that has been taken away from us, the one thing that everyone I know seems to be struggling with most (including me) is the lack of human contact. Laughing with a friend, a spontaneous chat to a nice stranger, seeing your kids play with others. We are missing these social elements of our day, and it’s hard. So hard. But when we get our humans back, we will appreciate them much more than the flat whites and the freedom. What do you think? . Just a few philosophical musings that I had on FaceTime this weekend after 3 glasses wine 🥴🤣 Trying to find some light in this dark situation 💕 (Shot by @korm87 back in Feb) #socialdistancing
  • No groundbreaking updates from me today. Just this video of Theo finding pure joy in a spinning bowl 🤣💕 Watch if you’re in need of a little lockdown laughter #StayHome
  • Today we built a soft play area in our living room which entertained Theo for ohh...a good 4 minutes 🤣. . It wasn’t the Mother’s Day we had planned but it was spent with my two favourite boys which is the most important bit. We are all healthy and right now that is all I can ask for. Being Theo’s mummy is the hardest but most rewarding job I’ve ever had 💗. Tonight we’re supporting a local business and ordering food from my favourite Turkish restaurant. What are you getting up to (at home)? . Please please all do your bit and follow the guidelines of social-distancing and self isolation. It’s incredibly frustrating to see people ignoring the advice when families like us are cancelling plans with loved ones and trying to entertain an almost toddler at home all day (NOT easy). The sooner we all stay at home the sooner this can all be over and the more lives will be saved. It’s pretty simple 🙏🏼. . Happy Mother’s Day to all the incredible mamas out there both on earth and in heaven 💕 Our amazing playmat was gifted from @munchkinandbearuk
  • What a testing week its been for the world. I hope you’re all staying safe and doing OK. I’m managing my anxiety a lot better this week by just trying to live in the moment and taking one day at a time. I’m not thinking past the next 24 hours. . I’m spending a lot less time on my phone, practising gratitude, exercising daily and avoiding unhelpful content and generally just focusing on Theo (bye bye childcare). I did however tune into @thenestingcoach IG live last night, which really resonated with me so thought I’d pass it on. . The message was this; over the next few months our worlds are going to become smaller and it may feel as if we are living in a bubble. But here’s the positive; we are in control of what we let in to that bubble. Do not let anything into that bubble that may bring it down e.g. anxiety-inducing platforms, negative influences. Make it a safe and happy place and remember this will NOT last forever. It’s an unprecedented in our lifetimes, but it is all temporary. Protect your bubble. Thank you so much Stacy for sharing this message! You can still view the live on her page. . Let’s just be kind to each other and help each other wherever we can. Look out for your neighbours. Call your grandparents. Hug your kids. DON’T bulk buy. We are all in this together. We can do this! I would usually say 'have a good weekend’ but I think ‘good luck’ is more appropriate. Now time for a glass of red! 🙃❤️🍷 Photo by @korm87
  • Hey guys. Time for some honesty. I decided to spend the weekend without going on any social media or news apps. I have been following the #coronavirus situation avidly and pretty much over dosed on news articles and unhelpful video content. . My anxiety peaked last week and I ended up in tears at the thought of my weekend plans. I was meant to be in Manchester for a 30th birthday weekend but I pulled out as the thought of going amidst the virus outbreak was way too much. I know this will sounds crazy to some, and sensible to others. . I am mostly anxious because I feel Theo is vulnerable given his prematurity. I’m sure other parents and especially #nicuparents will feel the same about their kids. I keep thinking of all the poor parents and tiny babies in NICUs across the world right now. As if they weren’t already dealing with enough. . We all need to stay informed and educated about the situation but I think there is so much unhelpful and unnecessary content online that can really fuel anxiety. It’s making it all feel like we’re in an episode of Black Mirror. . I really hope this post doesn’t make anyone feel worse or more worried. That is not my intention. Everything will be ok. But if you are feeling anxious, just know that you are not alone. I wanted to share that stepping away from social media and the news for a little while has actually really helped me. We’ve got to protect our mental health. . Curate your feeds to lift you up not bring you down. Watching @megan_rose_lane’s latest IGTV about anxiety really helped me and if you feel a similar way then definitely go and check it out. Hope everyone is OK during this weird and uncertain time 💕🌸. . Photo taken this weekend of the lovely pale Cherry blossom at the end of my road 🏡

Subscribe

Never miss a post! Subscribe for Travelista updates and newsletters

Latest Video