About Marybeth, National Geographic Author, Writer

Curious Explorer. Award-winning author.

Gutsy Traveler: A woman, like travel expert Marybeth Bond, stands among purple flowers, raising her arms and smiling in front of a wooden building in bright sunlight.
Polar bear tracking and snorkeling with beluga whales in the northern Canadian Arctic.

Marybeth knows travel. She has hiked, biked, dived, danced and trekked across all seven continents – from the depths of the Flores Sea near Komodo Island to the summit of Kilimanjaro.

More recently, she tracked polar bears and snorkeled with beluga whales in the Canadian Arctic, then kayaked among icebergs in Antarctica.

Somewhere in between, four years of studying in Paris earned her two degrees – and a taste for good wine and strong cheeses.

Twelve books (three with National Geographic), countless travel articles, and numerous TV and radio appearances have built her devoted fanbase. She won the esteemed Lowell Thomas, Gold Award for the Best Travel Book of the Year from the Society of American Travel Writers Foundation.

Woman on cliff in front of a monastery in Bhutan
Yesterday’s Video below. A decade or more later. Is Marybeth still GUTSY? Here in Bhutan.
Marybeth in Antarctica with penguins, snowy mountains, and water—just the kind of moment travel expert Marybeth Bond would capture in a travel video.
Kayaking and camping near penguins in Antarctica.

Yesterday….

Airplane

While constant jet lag and waiting can be a challenging aspect of air travel, those precious hours spent in the sky are far from a hardship for me.

I value the time in the air when no one can get in touch with me. It’s a very rare thing. I listen to music, read a magazine, a book, watch a movie, but I am careful not to be busy the entire flight.

These quiet, reflective moments help me thrive despite the feeling I often have  at home of being overloaded. For me, it’s all about relaxation when traveling.

Cocooned in my seat,  I close my eyes, breathe deeply, relax, recharge and refuel. I think about my life. For me, time in the air is creative and meditative.

My top tip? Turn off the music, TV or laptop and give yourself the gift of quiet, unstructured time.

Marybeth Bond