Elaine’s News

Bookmarked is a series of interviews with women and nonbinary writers of color about their novels and memoirs of navigating lands, languages, and themselves—and most of all—about taking up space everywhere we go. Bani Amore interviewed Elaine for Bookmarked in October of 2017. What’s possible in literature, and therefore in our world, has been determined by …

Bani Amor interviews Elaine Lee about her pioneering travel writing legacy. Read More »

Griots Republic has recently published a colossal 300 page coffee table book (15″ x 12″) entitled, #Black Travel: The Anthology that includes a foreword by India.arie. The Anthology is an inclusive collection of travel photos and information on the hottest Black Travel Groups and Bloggers in the travelsphere. The breadth of editorials and essays run the gamut …

Griots Republic showcases Elaine Lee in their new travel anthology Read More »

GriotsRepublic.com, a popular black travel website, featured one of my stories in its recent Mother’s Day special edition. It showcases my favorite books about mothers. The url is:  http://www.griotsrepublic.com/mama-travel-writer-elaine-lees-mothers-day-recomendations/ I would appreciate it if you would check it out and leave a comment. ALL ABOUT MAMA: TRAVEL WRITER ELAINE LEE’S MOTHER’S DAY RECOMMENDATIONS As a writer, of course I …

GriotsRepublic.com features story by Lee Read More »

Noirguides.com, a leading African American travel website, is currently featuring a story I wrote entitled: Candomblé – The Dance of the Orixás – A Glimpse at Traditional African-Brazilian Religion in Modern Day Bahia. While on assignment in Brazil for Beyond Borders travel magazine, I had the golden opportunity to visit several traditional African-Brazilian religious ceremonies (Condomble) in Rio …

Noirguides.com is currently featuring a Brazil story by Elaine Lee Read More »

Good news,  for the second year in a row,  I was invited by the editor of Sunset Magazine to serve on the judges panel for their travel awards program. The Sunset Travel Awards honors excellence and innovation in the tourism industry across the 13 Western states, British Columbia, and Alberta. The awards recognize achievement in …

Elaine Lee selected to be one of the judges for Sunset Magazine’s travel awards program. Read More »

Good news!  It was an honor, privilege and delight to serve as the keynote speaker at the 2016  “Travel Professionals of Color” National Conference and serve as a speaker at the annual WITS- 2016 Women in Travel National Summit. Both events were held near Los Angeles, CA in the spring. I was thrilled to have been …

Lee was the keynote speaker at 2016 annual “Travel Professionals of Color” National Conference, a speaker at WIT 2016 and at Nomadness Travel Tribe Conference Read More »

Good news, an excerpt from an interview with me is featured in a recent Root 100 Black History Month article. Its a travel piece written by Tracey Hopkins. There is no such thing as a small victory. I love finding new and exciting ways to share my love for travel! The 5 Best Black History …

Root 100 magazine features Lee interview Read More »

Good news, I recently made a guest appearance  on San Francisco Bay Area television restaurant review show “Check Please”. The episode features my review of Oakland’s Kingston 11 restaurant. “Check Please” is an Emmy award winning and James Beard Foundation award winning  show on PBS station KQED. It is celebrating its 10th anniversary season. You …

Elaine Lee makes a guest appearance on “Check Please” restaurant review show Read More »

Good news, I am featured in the 2015 June edition of Prevention Magazine, in a story entitled “Outside Chance”. The article highlights the journeys of seven women adventure travelers. What a thrill to have my travel lifestyle showcased in this publication. Prevention is the nation’s leading healthy lifestyle magazine with an audience of 13 million …

Prevention Magazine’s June edition features Elaine Lee in a story about adventure travelers! Read More »

Good news, I recently got my DNA tested by AfricanAncestry.com and I discovered that I descended from the Bamileke people of Cameroon. After getting the test results, I was actually surprised at the profound emotional impact it had on me. What a powerful source of strength, pride and dignity it gives me to know from …

“African American Roots Quest: I wondered as I wandered”. Read More »

I am pleased to announce that I was the proud  recipient of the 2013 “Travel Writer of the Year” award from the African Diaspora World Tourism Association. What an honor to have my work celebrated by my peers. Their awards program was designed in appreciation of the service and dedication of travel leaders from around …

…and the “Travel Writer of the Year” award goes to Elaine Lee! Read More »

An old African proverb says, “Until the lions have their own historians, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunter.” Travel literature has long been a white-dominated arena in which people of color are often considered subjects, scenery or not at all. But the tradition of travel writing by people of color has been …

“Go Girl” is listed as one of the top ten black travel books Read More »