Pauline Frommer is co-host of The Travel Show, a nationally syndicated call in radio show (130 stations around the US) which she helms with her father, travel legend Arthur Frommer. She’s the creator of the award-winning Pauline Frommer travel guides, 14 in all, which focus on budget travel. She pens an internationally syndicated newspaper column on travel, and writes regularly for Bing Travel and Weight Watchers. Her work has also appeared in Newsweek, Budget Travel Magazine, Nick Jr., Marie Claire, and the Dallas Morning News. Founding editor of Frommers.com, Pauline is the proud mother of two well-traveled daughters and is married to physical therapist Mahlon Stewart.
Cheapflights: When did you realize you wanted a career in travel – like your
father, Arthur Frommer?
Pauline Frommer: For a number of years I was an actor, touring the country with Les Miserables and doing shows in New York City and across the country. But I always was a closet scribbler and in between gigs, I worked with my father, first doing research work and then some writing. When the internet came along, I was between jobs and helped found Frommers.com. It was a terrific time to be entering the field because no one knew what they were doing. We just made it up as we went along. I realized that I enjoyed writing and editing more than acting. So I made the career switch at that time.
CF: What would be your ideal travel assignment?
PF: South Africa. I haven’t been yet, and would love to research and write about travel there.
CF: People think that ‘travel writer’ is the ultimate in glamorous jobs. Is it?
PF: I won’t lie: exploring the world is a stimulating, joyous way to make a living. But if you’re a guidebook writer, the job can be grueling. To give you an example: When I was working on my book on Las Vegas, which took three months of in-city research, I spent every other night in a different hotel (I created a make-shift chest of drawers in the trunk of my car and simply grabbed fresh clothing there each day, rather than lugging around my suitcase). Most days, I would head out the door at 8 a.m., so I could review breakfast places, then run around seeing more hotels (because Las Vegas has 3 percent of the hotel rooms in the US, I wasn’t able to stay in all of them). Then I would test out two restaurants for lunch (often feeling a bit sick at the second one) and spend the afternoon trying Vegas’ many attractions, doing side-trips from the city, or reviewing wedding chapels. In the evening, I’d usually head to two different restaurants for dinner, before seeing two evening shows in order to review the long-running ones for the book. Then I’d head to a couple of nightspots before getting back to my hotel room to get all my thoughts into the computer. I was usually in bed by about 4 a.m. The next day, I’d get up and do it again.
The key to being a good travel writer is to research thoroughly and meticulously, so that you can compare all the different options (restaurants, hotels, attractions, etc.) in a destination for your readers and do so from a basis of knowledge. You also have to do it quickly, and write quite quickly, because destinations change at lightning speed and you want to get the information to the public before it becomes out of date.
CF: Do you have a routine before you fly?
PF: The only routine I have before I fly is that I prepare my own food for the flight. I lost 30-plus pounds on Weight Watchers—guidebook writing can be a fattening pursuit!—so I try to control what I eat when I can (it can be difficult on the road). By cooking ahead, I’m able to avoid the highly processed foods that are the norm at most airports and on planes. If I’m going to splurge on calories, I’d rather do it in a place where the food will be worth it.
CF: How do you think our overall increase in connectedness (social
media, mobile apps, internet) has affected travel?
PF: The internet has transformed the way we travel, and prepare for travel, in dozens of ways. To cite just one, it’s opened up many opportunities for people to meet one another. Before I leave on a trip, I quiz my network of friends as to whether any of them have buddies in the destination I’ll be visiting. I then invite those friends of friends out to dinner. It’s a wonderful way to meet people in the destination, and it helps with my work as it’s difficult to review restaurants when you’re dining alone. (You have to eat too much!). You don’t have to be a travel writer to do this. Many folks look for tweet ups of like-minded folks in the places they’re going, if they want to avoid a one-on-one situation with a stranger.
CF: Who’s the most memorable seatmate (or what’s the most memorable
conversation) you’ve had on a plane?
PF: I once sat next to a government security expert. We had a frightening talk about what would happen if my home city of New York City were attacked again in some way. Suffice it to say, I’d be a goner.
CF: How do you recommend anxious travelers stretch their comfort zone?
PF: There’s nothing better for allaying anxiety than doing a bit of research before you travel. Though this will sound self-serving, having a resource like a good guidebook, one that’s written by an actual journalist and is candid about both the problems and the delights of a destination, can be a comforting resource because it will let you know, in detail, what to expect. Unlike material one will find randomly on the internet, a guidebook will be written by an expert in the destination (as opposed to someone who visited just once), and it will be thorough in covering all the basics: how to get in from the airport, good places to dine, top sightseeing attractions, etc. Having that information at your fingertips can sooth many a frayed nerve. And now you can get guidebook material in dozens of forms from apps to audible tours.
CF: As a travel expert who can identify true savings, what countries or
regions do you believe offer the best bang for your buck?
PF: Those areas where the cost of living is lower generally offer the best values to travelers. Those include many states in the American south. They include all of the Asian countries, with the exception of Japan and Korea (once you’re on the ground in Asia it’s usually quite affordable, though airfare to that region will be high this year). In the Caribbean, the least expensive islands to visit are the Dominican Republic and Jamaica. And for those going to Europe, Greece will offer travelers remarkable savings this year, thanks to its economic problems.
CF: Is there a destination that without fail (barring floods and famine) you visit regularly?
PF: I’ve written two editions of a book on Las Vegas, as well as articles on the city, so that’s one I return to quite a bit. It changes so rapidly, you have to visit often in order to keep up to date on it. I have family in Paris and London, and so head to those cities a lot. I also make yearly pilgrimages to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Philadelphia, Dallas and Chicago because I attend conferences and travel shows in those cities.
CF: Other than the Frommer’s website, where can we follow you?
PF: I co-host a nationally syndicated radio show. You can hear the podcasts of that at www.wor710.com.
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