The Frugal Traveler Speaks: Reveals Plans For Globe Domination On $100/Day

Last night the New York Occasions travel writer, Matt Gross (a/k/a The Frugal Traveler), stopped by Idlewild Bookstore, the new travel bookstore right here in New York, for a speak about his recently wrapped up “Grand Tour”
of Europe, his thoughts on the thought of travel writing, and his plans (or lack thereof) for subsequent summer time. Some highlights:

First of all, I’ve got to say, this new bookstore is a will have to-stop by for any traveler to New York. Just minutes from Union Square, the not too long ago opened Idlewild sits on the second floor of an old manufacturing creating and overlooks 19th Street. Inside, floor-to-ceiling windows substantially grace the front of the retailer, enabling in as significantly sunlight as doable from the cavernous-like side-streets of the Flatiron district. The hook is that the books, each travel and fiction, are grouped by country rather than author, permitting you to load-up on a nation’s literature along with the simple travel guides (subsequent to the Colombia Lonely Planet guide was Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s whole catalog, and 1 shelf down I located Cortázar and Borges mixed in with the Argentina and Patagonia guides).

I’m so jealous: this is the store I wanted to open a single day, except mine would’ve been in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and it would double as a coffee shop (and later on, right after its immense good results, I would install a vast array of security cameras and spend my later days as a recluse holed up in the penthouse suite above, watching my shoppers from a wall of digital screens and collecting my bodily fluids in glass jars).

Back to the talk. Matt spoke for about an hour, beginning with some anecdotes from his summer time trip. The notion of the Grand Tour was to try to recreate the tours the wealthy British would do in the 19th century, except his would be neither British nor wealthy. For instance, the British of the day would generally throw lavish parties in Paris and invite all of the city’s aristocrats so as to attempt to choose up the customs and manners of French high-culture. So Matt threw a party also, except his was pot-luck and was attended by friends and colleagues and was in all probability really fun to attend.

Matt also spoke about his beginnings as a travel writer, which began when he left for Vietnam after college to create a novel about living in Vietnam. Rather, just after a failed pitch to the NYT, Matt was contacted later on by them to write 3 articles about living in Vietnam. The NYT was in require for a replacement for their Frugal Traveler column, and a handful of months later he was it and he hasn’t looked back since.

Matt revealed that he’s now challenging at function on his first book, which is tentatively going to be named “The Frugal Traveler Guide To Travel,” and which will incorporate his sensible assistance for travel (use a Capitol One credit card — they don’t charge charges for foreign ATMs) to the not-so-sensible (don’t go to bars in Vietnam where the maître-de is a dwarf dressed in a tuxedo — duly noted).

Also, additional surprisingly, Matt told the audience that with the impending birth of his first kid he’s doubtful that he’ll be undertaking one more trip subsequent summer season for the NYT (trips in the previous have been an around-the-world voyage and a U.S. road trip).

So there you go travel writers, sharpen your pencils and break out your résumé, stop by Idlewild when you’re in NYC, and be confident to check out Matt’s weblog for some inspiration next summer.