Alex Robinson, Travel Journalist, Photographer and Travel Specialist

Specialist To: India • Brazil • Vietnam • Laos • Cambodia • Indonesia • Thailand • Malaysia • China • Philippines • Peru • Ecuador • Costa Rica •
Alex_Robinson - travel journalist, photographer and Destinations expert

Alex Robinson: Travel Journalist, Photographer and Travel Specialist

Alex Robinson is an award-winning travel journalist, photographer and guidebook author who specialises in Brazil, Latin America and South East Asia. He lived in Brazil for four years, has written several guidebooks to the country, and has been published by The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The New York Times, National Geographic and the Financial Times. He now creates bespoke holiday itineraries for Earth Trip (formerly The Earth Trip) and leads one or two group tours.

About Alex

Alex began his career as an investigative journalist on TV strands such as Dispatches and Equinox, then moved into writing and photographing travel books. His work has since appeared in The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The New York Times, National Geographic, Condé Nast Traveller, the Financial Times, Marie Claire, Departures and Wanderlust, among others. He has also worked with broadcasters including the BBC, Al Jazeera and the Discovery Channel.

His love of Latin America began in the 1990s, when he travelled overland across the Amazon during the Rondônia gold rush. He went on to travel through Central America and Mexico for Rough Guides and Cadogan, drove around the edge of Australia, and lived in Thailand for a year. He then moved to São Paulo, where he lived for four years and became Footprint’s Brazil correspondent and a columnist for the travel magazine Viagem e Turismo.

Guidebooks and writing

Alex has written guidebooks to Brazil, Belize, Spain and Portugal. His Brazil titles include:

He also wrote Bradt’s Alentejo, the first full guide to that region of southern Portugal, after more than twenty years of visiting, writing about and photographing the country. You can find all of his Bradt titles on his Bradt Guides author page, and his other work on Bucket List Travels and Flash Pack.

Photography

Alex is a photographer as well as a writer, and he illustrates most of his own articles and guides. He was runner-up in the Friends of the Earth International Photography Award in 2007 and has won the LATA Published Photo of the Year. You can see more of his work on Instagram, Facebook and X.

Awards

  • Editora Abril award (Brazil): Brazil’s top travel journalism award
  • US National Magazine Award: for his work on the Latin American edition of Departures
  • Croatian Golden Pen
  • Friends of the Earth International Photography Award: runner-up, 2007
  • LATA Published Photo of the Year
  • LATA Best Broadcast Award, 2023: for his Wanderlust: Off the Page podcast episode on exploring the Brazilian Amazon through Indigenous eyes
  • Runner-up, Guide Book of the Year

Brazil specialist

Alex has spent much of his career in Brazil. After living in São Paulo, he continued writing and guiding there, and he leads guided journeys in Brazil. His knowledge covers the Amazon, the Northeast, Bahia, São Paulo and much more. Explore our Brazil holidays.

Asia and Europe

Alex also writes about and leads journeys in Indochina, and has covered Vietnam by rail for Wanderlust. He lived in Thailand for a year and lectures on culture and travel in Asia. In Europe, he has written about Portugal and Croatia for more than a decade. See our holidays to Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. He is also a member of the British Guild of Tourist Guides and leads walking tours around London, Bath and Oxford.

Ethical and sustainable travel

Alex’s writing focuses on culture, history and the people behind the places he visits. His award-winning podcast episode on the Brazilian Amazon was told through Indigenous voices. His work with his wife Gardenia also has a sustainable tourism angle. Before co-writing their Brazil guide, Gardenia ran her own NGO working with sustainable tourism in local communities. His approach fits Earth Trip’s own, including our partnerships with Indigenous-owned businesses on Brazil’s Rio Negro. Read more about our responsible travel approach.

Working with Earth Trip

Alex now designs bespoke holiday itineraries for Earth Trip, drawing on decades of first-hand travel, reporting and guiding. He also leads one or two group tours each year. If you’d like a trip shaped by his knowledge, send us an enquiry and he’ll help plan it. Meet the rest of the Earth Trip team.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Alex Robinson?
Alex Robinson is an award-winning travel journalist, photographer and guidebook author who works with Earth Trip to design bespoke holidays and lead small group tours.

Where has Alex Robinson lived?
He lived in São Paulo, Brazil, for four years and in Thailand for a year, and is now based in the UK.

Which guidebooks has Alex Robinson written?
Guidebooks to Brazil, Belize, Spain and Portugal, including Bradt’s Brazil, Salvador & Bahia, Recife & Northeast Brazil, São Paulo and Alentejo.

What awards has Alex Robinson won?
They include Brazil’s Editora Abril travel journalism award, a US National Magazine Award, a Croatian Golden Pen, and LATA awards for photography and broadcasting.

Which countries does Alex Robinson specialise in?
Brazil, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand, Portugal, along with wider Latin America and South East Asia.

Meet The Rest Of The Team