The first time some travel writer tossed off each of these words and phrases, they might have sounded fresh and clever. But we’ve seen them too many times, and now they sound tired, strained, and cheesy—and at Matador, that’s definitely not what we’re about.
Photo: E-magic
1. Best-kept secret
Really? Are you sure The Purple Dinosaur Bar is Denver’s best-kept secret? You found it, after all, and now you’re publishing its location, so it’s a bit of a stretch to call it a secret, much less a well-kept one.
2. Et cetera
Whether it’s “et cetera” (fancy! Latin!) or plain old “etc.”, you’re really saying this: “There’s more, but I’m too lazy to tell you about it.”
Photo: Mikety28
3. sun-dappled/sun-speckled/sun-splashed
We get it. It’s sunny. Tell us about it in a way that doesn’t involve the word “dappled.” Please.
4. don’t-miss/ must-see
A bit of a bully, are you? What are you going to do to us if we miss it, huh?
Just give us your experience. Let us decide for ourselves if South Dakota’s Corn Palace is a must-see or a see-maybe-if-I-happen-to-be-driving-through-South-Dakota-someday-and-need-to-use-the-bathroom.
5. exotic
“Exotic” is relative—it just means “different” or “foreign”, and depending who your reader is, that could mean ao dai, guayaberas, or blue jeans—so focus on describing your experience, and let your readers murmur, “oooh—how exotic!” if they so choose.
Photo: Leo Chuoi
6. gem/jewel
A beach is not a gem, and a restaurant is not a jewel, and yes, we know what a metaphor is, but you can come up with a better one than that, can’t you?
7. oasis/paradise
If you’ve traveled to an actual oasis, as in “a small fertile or green area in a desert region, usually having a spring or well,” feel free to tell it like it is. But describing anything but an actual oasis as an oasis is another case of a threadbare metaphor.
And throwing “paradise” around just makes you sound clueless. Have you seriously found a place with zero problems, conflicts, threats, dangers? Or are you just, you know, on vacation?
8. treasure trove
If you’ve stumbled upon a previously undiscovered royal Egyptian burial chamber, or a forgotten cache of pirate’s booty, fine. Otherwise, leave “treasure trove” alone.
Photo: Riza
9. breathtaking
Was your breath literally taken away by the beauty of that sunset? Probably not, so this word is overkill. Unless you’re blue in the face and suffering from awe-induced oxygen deprivation, look for another word.
10. boast
Why must places “boast” fine dining, colonial architecture, unspoiled beaches, or symphony orchestras? Can’t they just have them? “Have” is a perfectly good word. The citizens may well boast about their city’s marvelous offerings, but that’s another story.
Community Connection
What are your least-favorite travel writing words? Call ‘em out in the comments.
You’ve avoided these cheesy words–now avoid sounding ridiculous when using quotes.
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111 Comments... join the discussion!
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I confess. I have used those words/phrases. More than once. But I’m trying to stop. Honest.
Currently my LEAST favorite travel writing words that I’m using the most are:
nestled
perched
stunning
absolute-must
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Seriously?
Found in the links at the bottom of the article.
“Western Australia: 10 Places You Don’t Want to Miss”
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good catch Gary. we put that one in there just to see if people were paying attention.
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That’s a gem of a save David.
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thanks man.
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I thought that sounded harsh. To each his own, no?
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Wow, thanks for pointing these out. The grasp some people have of language is less than stellar when they have to resort to these phrases. I hope I write well enough to avoid them in my posts!
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Any thoughts on ‘Indiana Jones’ sense of adventure in an article about ‘The Lost City’ Colombia?!
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please send reference url of the article.
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“Nestling” and “pristine” make me rage inwardly.
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“Blade-Runner-esque” or “like a scene from blade runner”, used by the lonely planet to describe any large city in asia (Seoul and Osaka in particular).
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This is right on
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Words make no difference. If the writing is good, I don’t notice words, only ideas. If the writing is bad, no correct use of accepted adjectives will save it.
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That’s a great point Somchai. A fantastic writer with unique ideas could get away with a few tired old words, but they can make mediocre writing worse and bad writing disasterous.
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Okay I’m guilty. I just used “etc.” in a comment! Guess I’m very lazy.
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there should be a travel-writing license that is taken away for using those words…
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This one is the crutch of almost every young “up-and-coming” destination PR person: “World-class.”
Whenever I read it, I know the p.r. person is fresh out of college, and cannot think beyond the collection of cliches he or she has leaned on for four years. So many of these public relations folks are a real…well, world-class pain in the ass!
Bob S. Hale
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If I hear another person claim to have been “bit by the travel bug”, I might just lose my dinner (which would truly be unfortunate as it was very tasty Chinese street food). The Travel Channel picked it up as their “new” campaign, but it’s so overdone….
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“World-Class” has become the leading crutch for PR and ad folks. Everything is now “world-class.” Well, it ain’t!
“world-Class” refers to international athletic competition…and only international athletic competition!!! A ship, a house, a car, a person, a building, and raod…whatever…CANNOT BE “WORLD-CLASS”!
Anyone using that term in any context other than international athletic events is a HACK! A World-Class HACK!
Signed:
Hale↵ -
Oops…I see I responded twice.
SORRY!
A World-Class mistake, to be sure!
Hale
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‘Hustle and bustle’
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I haven’t got a problem with some of those words and phrases, I think they work perfectly well depending on the context you use them. In fact I will continue to use them, I wont let you bully me into submission………..!
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Does any propositional statement function as the mirror image of the structure of the thing (that is, what it essential to it) or could it be that even the sturcture of the thing as thus envisaged is a projection of the framework of the sentence? No travel writing is ever going to resemble experience, so assigning degrees of “goodness” is like evaluating mad libs for a cohesive narrative. Then, should we all be Wittgensteinian mutes? Travel writing is by nature sub-par and should only be evaluated on the information it is able to impart to the reader. Writers who excel at travel writing, as it is commonly practiced today, and not much more in the realm of writing probably do so because their only ability is with hackneyed metaphors. Throw out your Lonely Planets and guidebooks. It only makes the worst sort of travelers – those with plans.
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“Travel writing is by nature sub-par and should only be evaluated on the information it is able to impart to the reader.” Au contraire mon frere! Travel writing is another form of literature, or the good stuff is anyway. The stories in travel writing should be written as well as any fiction story, but they’re even better than fiction because they’re true! From Twain to Dalrymple the story is about place, people and adventure and if well done makes for engaging reading. I would suggest reading some good travel writing, here’s a list of a few to get you started: http://www.bravenewtraveler.com/2008/01/03/the-50-greatest-travel-books-of-all-time/ Happy reading!
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Okay, allow me to rephrase as it would seem I cornered myself in a sweeping generalization. The travel writing I am speaking of, and I think this article for the most part addresses, is that of travel magazines, blogs, etc. (and etc. is fine to use; I use it academically and when brevity is a factor – listing all of the sources would be inconvenient as well as silly as etc. is used to indicate more but of what is common knowledge and can be infered). And I said by nature. Everything can transcend its nature just as humans. I am not speaking of travel literature. I would likewise differentiate there.
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Oh come on. The Corn Palace is South Dakota is a total must see!
Kudos for the advice.
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“Itchy feet” – not a fan of this at all
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I have an idea– have a writing contest, object as follows:
Show a picture of Thira, Santorini–you all know the classic hackneyed photo
the charming,picturesque village nestled or perched on the cliffside, with breath-taking views, local color, world-class cuisine and a must-see for any trip through the Greek Isles. With its pristine white buildings and sun-dappled, cobblestone streets, this jewel in the Helenic crown must be described without using any of these cliches or tired adjectives. Let’s see what travel-writing could be without leaning on these pithy crutches and instead of substituting new exotic locations for fresh prose, let’s use new words to describe the same old places.↵ -
that’s a great idea.
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locals.
fanny pack.
cozy or quaint.
well-preserved (unless you’re talking mummies)↵ -
sweet.
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Okay so if we all get honest here and have been in the position of having to write descriptive travel content, than we are all guilty of using some of these expressions and words. Though I disagree that you just up and forget these words and move on to new ones, this article has brought me to at least be more aware of how I use adjectives in the travel industry.
I think the point the author is making is that some descriptive travel terminology simply got over-used, not that they were necessarily wrong terms or improper.
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what about ‘ubiquitous’? annoyingly popping up in all lonely planets
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From my sun-dappled deck, I write you a comment boasting, a treasure trove of must-see exotic words, phrases, paragraphs, et cetera. The oasis of adjectives doting this gem, just might be its best kept secret.
Great Post
Jurnii
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I totally agree. This reminds me of the habit of futebol announcers yelling “Goooooooaaaaallllll!” One Mexican sportscaster did this several years ago and from that day to this, not one announcer has been able to think of anything else to do when points are scored. Not even “Scooooorrrrrreeeee!” or “Poooooooiiiinnnnttttt!”.
Is this just being intellectually lazy or evidence of obvious stupidity in all sports announcers?
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” World-Class”!
Please, please…I beg of you… NO MORE “World-Class” anything, except international athletic competitors!
Good grief, we once had a coupon for a “world-class” oil change!!!
…and we had “world-class” taxi service; “world-class” swimming pool ( no, it was NOT used for the Olympics, either!); “world-class” scenery (what the ^%$%^& is that?)
Well, the list goes on. Kill that phrase, except every two years for the Winter and Summer Games!
Bob S. Hale
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You can’t take the word oasis away from me, I will continue to use in almost everything I write.
Lucky I live on the Arabian Peninsula, where the term is actually appropriate. Tomorrow I head to a lush green crescent shaped oasis on one side of the world’s largest sand desert.
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Interesting list, and I must admit that you made some valid points, however, if you strip away all the colourful nouns and adjectives away from a travel article it can make for pretty dull reading.
The term ‘breathtaking’ for example is never actually used to describe respitory failure…but it’s frequently used to describe an invoked emotion. There’s nothing wrong with using terms like this in moderation.
I must admit that I do find the term ‘boast’ very irritating however. I’ve never heard of sun-dappled!
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Yes, absolutely… but only if you are being forced to drive through South Dakota.
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Teresa,
Now that you brought it up, how about giving “cheesy” a rest? It’s also a cliche, as well as slightly vulgar, and I bet you can’t even explain why the food item cheese came to represent the meaning you’re trying to convey.
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In defence of the odd cliche in travel magazines / websites: they perform the role of sign-post or marker, sending a reassuring message to the reader that says “you are reading about a place more interesting and desirabe than where you are right now”. Consider sports writing / teen girl magazines, business pages of newspapers, etc. To rigorously omit cliche from these genres would be plain odd. What’s more, over-zealous cliche substitution can be really jarring.
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Unacceptable in any type of writing but common in beginning travel writing: “unique” and variations thereof (“truly” unique,” “very” unique, “uniquely situated,” and my pet peeve, “somewhat” unique). “Unique” means “the only one or the sole example.” There are no degrees of uniqueness, and only one thing of its kind can be unique. It is or it isn’t, and if it IS, nothing else can be.
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‘A rich culture’, or any of its various permutations, really makes me facepalm. It’s utterly meaningless.
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