You guys are in for a treat with this weeks Globetrotter- Elizabeth from Digital Travel Guru.
I came across the Digital Travel Guru on their Facebook page earlier this year and have loved getting to know Elizabeth and her site. She is so supportive of other travel bloggers and even runs a travel blogging group to encourage interaction and collaboration between like minded bloggers. I love anyone that is building others up and helping get everyone working together. You would think by the layout that they have been around for years but the blog only started late 2016. The design is spot on and so easy to navigate. I’ll leave links below and I can’t recommend enough that you head over to check them out.
Elizabeth is like a kindred spirit in many ways! Passion for photography, travelling, visiting historic places and a huge desire to see and share so much of the world. Total #girlcrush. She also loves sharing stories and q&as with other travel bloggers on her blog. Similar to our Globetrotters series she has her featured blogger series and takes great pride in introducing her readers to other bloggers who will help give them inspirations on what to see and do when visiting places around the world. I’ve included some links below. We both love being inspired by others so it seemed only right that she got involved with our Globetrotters series. You may also see us pop up on their site shortly.
A couple of my favourite posts include 20 Amazing things to see around Bali and 25 Travel Blogging idea and 20 Inspirational travel bloggers. I think if I had stayed in Australia for my 20/30s then I would have made it to Bali but alas it remains on my bucket list and this post induces some serious wanderlust. The 25 Blogging ideas and 20 inspirational travel blogger is such a good post that I have it bookmarked for when the writer’s block creeps in we also feature on the list of inspiration travel bloggers so another reason this one is a fav.
Oh and if you are scared of snakes maybe skip over the travel misshap questions below.
Without further ado let me hand you over to Elizabeth the Digital Travel Guru.
Hi, I’m Elizabeth and I run and manage Digital Travel Guru, which I launched late last year in 2016, the blog is still very new as it has taken me some time to understand word press and various other things you need to know about running a blog. I was encouraged to document my travels and photography by friends and family, also because I was helping many people plan their trips and itineraries.
Digital Travel Guru is travel blogging site that focuses on 360 travel I cover all aspects of travel on it. To date, I have travelled to over 40 countries and still have a bucket list a mile long. I love historical places and tropical beaches. My big passion is writing and photography. I am also planning to start doing travel droning and developing my YouTube travel channel. I run a Travel Bloggers Club with a friend and fellow travel blogger from Creative Travel Guide, which aims to help Travel Bloggers network with each other and with engagement on their sites.
What do you enjoy most about travelling?
I have been travelling since I was a child with my parents and I have previously lived in Asia and Africa. Currently, I live and work in London UK, but I have plans to move to Asia later in the year. What I enjoy and have always enjoyed about travelling is seeing new countries, meeting people, experiencing cultures, trying out new foods and learning about how different people live. My favourite of them all is visiting historical sights such as temples and of course exploring and finding beautiful beaches. One of my passions is photography, so I love destinations that offer good photo opportunities such as (street photography, ancient building, portrait’s of people and scenic views).
Why do you think travelling is important?
I think travelling is important to understand people, which links to my profession in psychiatry, I just love finding out about people, their traditions, their cultures and ways of lives. I think travel has helped me do my job better as it involves working with people from many cultures and countries. Travelling is important to give you a greater insight and understanding of how life is lived in other places and to develop greater awareness and understanding of the world and people in it.
What is your favourite photograph from your travels?
Photography is my passion, and I am constantly learning and developing my photography skills. One of my favourite photographs is of Mount Batur in Bali, which is an active volcano and a sacred mountain according to Hindu beliefs. Mount Batur is located in Batur village, Kintamani District, Bali, Indonesia and it is 1717 m above sea level, the highest mountain in Bali.
Do you have a pre travel ritual? If so what?
Well, yes, I have a few LOL. Prior to booking my flight and before my actual flight.
Before booking a flight to a destination I do the following:
Plan and research the destination.
Putting together a rough outline of all the places and things I want to do.
Check the weather of the destination and what season it is.
Before my actual flight:
Check passports + copy of boarding pass and e-ticket
Check cards + money
Check I have all my gadgets (laptop, cameras, chargers)
Check my accommodation booking confirmations
Ensure I have things I need for my flight such as (warm cardigan, mini size toiletries, comfy socks, spare set of clothing, and a book)
Check I have my phone
Weigh all my luggage
Who do you usually travel with?
I have travelled solo and with friends and family, as well as with my partner. Mainly solo and with my partner at present and I usually meet friends and fellow travel bloggers if they are in the same place as me.
If you were to give one piece of travel advice what would it be?
Plan and research your trip as much as you can before you go, so you have some sort of idea what you want to do and see when you get there, it saves a lot of planning time once there, also check with the locals once you get there, for off the beaten track places. This I always feel maximises my time once in the destination and allows me to see and do more.
Tell us the funniest story or a miss hap from one of your adventures?
Having a SNAKE in my suitcase in Koh Samui, Thailand, that was definitely a big mishap as I am terrified of them. I was staying in a beautiful pool villa with views overlooking the jungle, and I went out one day and left a door open by accident. When I came back that evening, something said to me there was a snake or some sort of creature somewhere as I usually act on my instincts, so I started looking for snakes and creatures around the villa, as I realised I had left the door open.
Anyway, I didn’t find anything and I went to sleep. The following day I was checking out to move to another part of the island, as the villa owner was assisting me to put my suitcase in the car I rented, he said to me I have a story to tell you, he disclosed to me, he said as the cleaners were cleaning my villa the day I left the door open they saw a snake in my suitcase and had to carry my suitcase outside to take it out, while I was out, very scary.
Another funny story was I was in a rush one day in Bangkok and needed to book a flight to Koh Samui but instead, I booked a flight to Surat Thani (Koh Samui is also known as Surat Thai district) and I thought it was the same thing whilst rushing. When I was on the plane and about to land I thought hold on I can’t see the sea lol, then realised I had booked and taken a flight to the mainland this was many many years ago. I was still able to go to Koh Samui that day via a taxi and then a boat, it was actually a good experience in the end as I got to see, a different part of Thailand, however, it added 6 hours onto my journey. I still laugh about this till today.
Where is your favourite place that you’ve been to?
This a hard one to answer. I’ve been to some amazing and beautiful places, for me I have my favourite places in and around Asia, but in terms of a tropical paradise, with secluded beaches, crystal clear turquoise sea, and amazing scenery it has to be Seychelles. I spent two weeks here just driving around the island, exploring beaches, driving in the mountains, trying out local foods, and island hopping.
Where was one place that didn’t live up to the hype?
Difficult to answer, as I always try and find good things about a place, but once I booked a last minute trip to Sharm El Sheik In Egypt, and I really did not like the place and could not find much to do there. Some of the scenery was nice and the sea, but I’m more into cultural activities and experiences and it was one place that I could not find any historical places and sights to see. Plus I got an awful tummy bug there which just made me dislike the place even more, as this was something that is apparently very common there, so, all in all, I was not really impressed.
Tell us one place/experience on your bucket list?
I really want to go to the South Pacific Islands like Fiji. I love tropical destinations and the sea, these islands look spectacular and so beautiful. My bucket list seems to never end!!
One experience on my bucket list is to visit Machu Picchu in the Andes Mountains in Peru. Mainly due to my love of historic places, the views here look so beautiful and the history fascinating.
What is the one thing you wouldn’t travel without?
The one thing I need with me is my phone, at least you can still snap your memories or video them with your phone if you have nothing else or for emergencies and to keep connected with everyone also for maps and to checked saved notes of where I want to go as well as making my blogging notes on.
What can readers find on your blog?
You can find my blog at www.digitaltravelguru.com come and say hello. My blog focus on the 360 travel, so in essence, I cover everything from reviewing places abroad to doing interviews with bloggers for my featured blogger section, travel guides, travel resources and a lot of photography.
I am constantly changing and developing my blog site, so it’s work in progress, I am looking at adding travel videos to my site in the future and some other types of travel content such as drone videos.
Do you have a favourite blog post? What is it and why?
My favourite blog post is a recent one on Bali. Here is the link:
To find more from the Digital Travel Guru see below
Blog links to check out
https://digitaltravelguru.com/interview-jeremy-noronha-think-travel-lift-grow/
https://digitaltravelguru.com/interview-with-runwaymarina/
https://digitaltravelguru.com/history-of-koh-samui-island-Thailand/
Pinterest
Website
YouTube
Twitter
Instagram
Facebook
Travel Blog Club
Email- digitaltravelguruinfo@gmail.com (if you want to guest post or be interviewed for The Digital Travel Guru site please send Elizabeth over an email)
