Travel Muse Magazine

Check out the books below that I personally recommend to help you ignite your passion for travel. All of these books have place at the center of the story… so you can mentally take a vacation, even if you’re currently stuck in armchair-traveler mode. We’ve got them organized by region (and after the title we… Read more: Travel Inspo Books

I love to armchair travel through books. It can get you ready for a trip or keep you mentally holding on to that vacation state of mind. Ever since planning our first family vacation to Europe last year, I’ve been on the hunt for and reading books set in France. It had been 25 years… Read more: 11+ Books to Transport You to France

Óbidos, Portugal is a shiny gem in the middle of Portugal for anyone who loves books, writing and really cool things. You don’t have to take our word for it – UNESCO agrees and granted it elite “Literary City” status, one of only 53 across the whole world. Here are six points of interest, conveniently… Read more: Bookish Guide to Literary Óbidos

Bill Bryson has a humorous outlook on life. Much like David Sedaris, I have enjoyed his work especially by audiobook, a friend telling you a good tale from their latest adventure. But when I saw Bryson’s Notes From A Small Island for a dollar at the thrift shop, I decided it was time to read… Read more: Revisiting London

Maps have always been a way to share stories. They’re advice from one traveler to the next to go this way and see that there. We often take their storytelling purposes for granted as we rush to get from point A to B. When you think about it, a map can reveal a lot about… Read more: Book-Inspired Way to Map Your Travel Stories

Heading to Paris and just need to get your book fix? No problem. Here are two English book stores you need to visit… along with a few more bookish places to see while you’re enjoying this jewel of a city too. Shakespeare and Company If you love books, reading and or writing… or watched or… Read more: 2 English Bookshops You Need to Visit in Paris (& a few more bookish places to see too)

Books, bookish things, and literary places… with lots of reading to boot. These are the heart of what it takes to become designated as a City of Literature by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, better known as UNESCO. The unique places that earn UNESCO’s City of Lit label all recognize “past, present… Read more: UK’s UNESCO Literary Cities

I’ve only been to the northern Italy – the lakes district and Milan. But I dream of going back to visit the rest of this gorgeous (and delicious) country and finally getting to Florence, Rome, the Amalfi Coast, Naples, Capri, Pompeii, Venice, Pisa, Cinque Terra, Genoa… yep, everything else! While I wait, my mind’s been… Read more: Armchair Travel to Italy

Prague is the shining star The Secret of Secrets of Dan Brown’s latest novel starring beloved genius Professor Robert Langdon (brought famously to the screen in the adapted film The DaVinci Code, played by Tom Hanks). Long overdue to be the featured character in a modern novel, Prague is filled with beauty and appreciation of… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Prague Inspired by Dan Brown’s “The Secret of Secrets” Novel

Dan Brown revolutionized the historical thriller genre when his book The Da Vinci Code was published 22 years ago, in the process elevating literary tourism in the European locations featured in the novel. Now Prague is hoping his latest in the Professor Robert Langdon series, The Secret of Secrets (released just last month), can do… Read more: Review: Dan Brown’s The Secret of Secrets

From page one, I was smitten with Jean-Luc Bannalec’s Death in Brittany novel (2012). To be frank, I’d never heard of this book, much less this series starring French police commissaire Georges Dupin, until the day I laid eyes on it in my local library’s book sale. It’s like it was waiting for me, among… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Pont-Aven, France Inspired by Jean-Luc Bannalec’s “Death in Brittany” Novel

Low clouds hang over the damp night. A mist clings to the trees, particles of moisture illuminated as the castle’s roaming spotlights break through the darkness. This was the setting as I wandered the Greyfriars Kirkyard cemetery in Edinburgh in December on the hunt for the real Tom Riddle’s grave. Yes, I’m talking about the… Read more: Finding Tom Riddle’s Grave in Edinburgh (& Other Real Graveyards That Have Inspired Popular Books)

European vacationing. Island vibes. Summer sun. Beaches. YA meets adulting perspectives that understand the complexities of relationships at any age. Emma Straub’s The Vacationers novel has everything you want in a beach read. And it makes you want to visit Mallorca (Majorca in English) while you’re at it. Mallorca is the largest of the Spanish… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Mallorca, Spain Inspired by Emma Straub’s “The Vacationers” Novel

by Jeny Rizo-Perez and Zainab Husein London is no ordinary city. It’s a place you could visit as a tourist every day and never really run out of unique things to do. But sometimes you find yourself with only one day in England’s capital city thanks to a layover. And if that’s all you’ve got,… Read more: 5 Spots in London If You Only Have One Day

Creamy gelato, decadent pasta, and magical artistry and monuments. These three things come together to create the most beautiful place that I called home for 4 months last year. The novel Love & Gelato (2017) by Jenna Evans Welch captures some of those remarkable memories. I was recommended this book this year based on my… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Florence, Inspired by Jenna Evans Welch’s “Love and Gelato”

Picture a steamy summer romance. Rival surfers falling in love on the California coast, may come to mind. A destination wedding tale of a bridesmaid being swept off her feet on a tropical isle, perhaps. Now, picture the beaches of… Canada. Wait a second! Canada? Yep! (It’s not always covered by snow!) While America’s northern… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Barry’s Bay, Ontario, inspired by “One Golden Summer” by Carley Fortune

After returning from studying abroad last year in Paris, I felt as if a part of me had been left behind. I would constantly look through the thousands of photos I took, listen to the songs I played on my afternoon métro commutes to school, and catch up with the friends I made in France… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Paris, inspired by Ruth Reichl’s “The Paris Novel”

I’d like to live in a world where free Bible bins were replaced with copies of James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room — where Salvation Army shoppers are lured to an unassuming box of words and later recite lines like, “Perhaps home is not a place but simply an irrevocable condition” (p. 92) as they cross their… Read more: Literary Travel Guide To Paris Through Baldwin’s “Giovanni’s Room”

I’ve always been drawn to mystery novels. The kind that makes you double-check locked doors and reread sentences, searching for what you might have missed. So as I started preparing for my own trip to Lisbon, I picked up Two Nights in Lisbon, expecting nothing more than a suspenseful story to pass the time. Instead,… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Lisbon, Inspired by Chris Pavone’s “Two Nights in Lisbon”

“Why won’t you tell me about your past?”  That’s all it took to begin unraveling generations of history in The Island by Victoria Hislop (2005). At the heart of the Petrakis family’s secretive past is the Island of Spinalonga, off the coast of Plaka, Crete, which was once home to Greece’s leper colony. Made up… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Crete, inspired by Victoria Hislop’s The Island

After traveling to the winter wonderland of Sault Ste. Marie, Canada where frozen waterfalls and nordic ski trails pair with sticky, sweet maple syrup, I knew I had to read Angeline Boulley’s Firekeeper’s Daughter. The novel, which takes place on the U.S. side of Sault Ste. Marie – and in my home state of Michigan… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Michigan’s UP inspired by Angeline Boulley’s “Firekeeper’s Daughter” Novel

Iconic double-decker red buses pass by, the tube rattles the underground, and charming accents float into your ears. London is a city that steals your heart, and if you aren’t careful, you won’t even want it back. From the very first page, I was hooked on Elle Kennedy’s 432 page novel Girl Abroad (2024), and… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to London Inspired by Elle Kennedy’s “Girl Abroad” Novel

I still remember the first time I saw the Great Wall stretch across the mountains, like a giant stone dragon disappearing into the clouds. As a kid, I raced up the uneven steps, my legs aching, but my curiosity pushed me higher with every turn. Standing at the top, I felt both small and awestruck,… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to China Inspired by “Feeding the Dragon”

The first thing you see when you pick up Clarice Lispector’s Complete Stories are her all-knowing eyes; those made-up lashes and the piercing gaze that questions everything. It’s because of those eyes — how she envisioned Rio and the people that inhabit it —  that Lispector was able to see into the depths of her… Read more: Literary travel guide to Rio de Janeiro inspired by Clarice Lispector’s “Complete Stories”

It begins and ends on a ferry, surrounded by the hum of engines and the tang of ocean air, but everything that matters lives in between: in warm night breezes, the soft creak of porch swings, and home-cooked candlelit dinners. Set on the island of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts, Summer Reading (2023) by Jenn McKinlay… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Martha’s Vineyard Inspired by Jenn McKinlay’s “Summer Reading” Novel

“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.”  This is one of the many quotes by naturalist John Muir that inspired Suzanne… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to The John Muir Trail inspired by Suzanne Roberts’ Almost Somewhere

It would never have crossed my mind to bring a coworker as my fake boyfriend to my sister’s wedding. However, The Spanish Love Deception made this scenario feel oddly tempting, to see if my arrangement could also turn into something real. Elena Armas’s debut novel follows an enemies-to-lovers storyline across her home country of Spain,… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Spain Inspired by Elana Armas “The Spanish Love Deception” Novel

Even greater than the mystery of water is the mystery of the woman whose mother was taken by it. This sentiment is at the center of Emily St. John Mandel’s The Glass Hotel (2020). The intriguing title character of the novel is the (fictional) Caiette Hotel, made of glass walls that let the beauty of… Read more: Literary Travel Guide inspired by Emily St. John Mandel’s “The Glass Hotel” Novel 

Traveling to a new city can be overwhelming, but moving to a new city without telling anyone, ditching your roommate and cat in London, and turning into a compulsive liar is another! Meet Daphne Ferber, the protagonist in Bea Setton’s debut, Berlin: A Novel, who takes what we would call a leap of faith and… Read more: Literary travel guide to Berlin inspired by Bea Setton’s “Berlin: A Novel”

Some places feel deeply familiar before you ever set foot in them. For me, Baghdad was always one of those places. Having heard stories from family endlessly, I knew that visiting Baghdad for the first time wasn’t going to be like any other trip. It was vital for me to visit. It would be the… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Baghdad, Inspired by Sinan Antoon’s “The Baghdad Eucharist”

A study abroad romance. That’s exactly what I needed. After watching the new film adaptation of My Oxford Year (2025) on Netflix, I knew I had to dive further into the world crafted by Julia Whelan so I picked up her novel (2018). I’ve never been to Oxford, England, (though I have been lucky enough… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to England inspired by Julia Whelan’s “My Oxford Year”

Renowned for the emotional intensity and quiet brilliance of his paintings, Johannes Vermeer belongs to a world of soft light, still rooms, and unspoken feeling. In Girl with a Pearl Earring, Tracy Chevalier reimagines that world with such care that the city of Delft itself begins to feel alive, muted, intimate, and quietly tense beneath… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to The Netherlands, Inspired by Tracy Chevalier’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring” Novel 

There are some places you read about once and never forget, and for me, Egypt has always been one of them. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been fascinated by pyramids, pharaohs, and ancient civilizations. Egypt, especially Cairo and the Giza Plateau, is a place where history feels almost unreal, with ancient landmarks rising… Read more: Literary Travel Guide to Cairo and the Pyramids inspired by Paulo Coelho’s “The Alchemist”