Hi! I'm Elena! Welcome to my travel blog Creativelena.com.
For me, it is all about “life-seeing instead of sightseeing”: Join me as I create, eat & live my way around the world. Curious?
*Check out my book, “The Creative Traveler’s Handbook”, for learning more about what we mean by creative travel. Travelling means the world to me, makes me fit for everday life and sometimes, I trust, also calmer on the inside. Read this blog with a smile, share what you love and remember to check back regularly: After all, when was the last time you did something for the first time?
Table of Contents
In 2015, I have written and published the first-ever guide book on creative travel worldwide, called “The Creative Traveler’s Handbook“. Chock full of inspiratinal stories, travel tips and advice, it offers everything you need for planning and managing your next creative escape, addressing beginners and experienced travelers alike. It has appeared as the ninth in a series of books called “The Traveler’s Handbooks” and provides you with:
My book’s journey, so to speak, started somewhat parallel to this blog back in the year 2012, when my dear friends Sarah & Terry Lee, who had just written and published “The Luxury Traveler’s Handbook”, said those magic words to me: “Well Elena … For you, it’s easy. One day, you are going to write The Creative Traveler’s Handbook.”
And so it has been.
The chronicles of my journeys in the lead-up to the book’s publication (including my creative round the world research trip #CreativElenaRTW in 2014/2015) are all detailed here, including a recap of my book launch events at the London World Travel Market & ITB Berlin.
“Traveling for us means delving deeply into a culture and a different way of life. We always try to look beyond widespread clichés about a country and its people when traveling. Creative traveling provides us with exactly this. There is no better way to travel than by actively participating in the life and culture of the people you visit. Elena impressively explains this in The Creative Traveler”s Handbook. Her book is a great guide on how to plan your own creative travels.” (Monika Fuchs, Travel Blogger & Travel Journalist at TravelWorldOnline.de)
“The Creative Traveler’s Handbook is just as passionately written as Elena is about creative travel on her blog creativelena.com. The Handbook gives you a unique angle of traveling around the world and being creative and should be added as a travel necessity when you go abroad and you are looking for something new, inspiring and creative.” (Erik van Erp, AroundTheGlobe.nl)
“Even though I have only recently got to know Elena, I can vouch for her commitment to the ‘creative travel cause’. She is a larger than life persona and this passion is translated into the way she writes her book. I hope you can enjoy it as much as I did.” (Nelson Carvalheiro, NelsonCarvalheiro.com)
As a travel writer, I am naturally on the move. Watch out for when & where you will see me next: I always carry at least some copies of the book myself, ready to be personally signed & handed over to you!
Besides, “The Creative Traveler’s Handbook” is available for sale through the following (online) retailers:
The eBook version is out now, too, working with all current formats and readers. Click here to order yours now!
It might be an actual book in your hands, but like me, the #CreativeTravelersHandbook is naturally on the move. Follow our happy faces, book signing events & more on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or else for a better idea of who reads and loves “The Creative Traveler’s Handbook”.
In addition, the following information and reviews have already been shared:
To further trace all the emotions, inspiration & feedback I have received from YOU, my dear readers, I have started curating a new series of blog posts called the #StoriesOfMyReaders. Read more about what each and everyone of you have to say about “The Creative Traveler’s Handbook” here:
I wish you a happy reading & lots more creative travels!
Olá Querida Elena,
Gostava muito de ter o teu livro com uma dedicatória mas andamos sempre com os caminhos cruzados.
Alguma hipótese de me enviares um pelo correio? Eu pago os portes. Só tens de me dizer o IBAN e o Swift code da tua conta. E o valor claro !
Até lá… FELIZ NATAL…..
Beijinhos.
Paulo
Bom dia Paulo,
Muito obrigada por contactares comigo aqui !! E claro que sim, tenho todo o gosto de lhe enviar o meu livro pelo correio, e ainda antes de Natal.! Por favor, manda-me um email a ‘reachme@creativelena.com’ com o seu endereço e depois trocamos mais informações !
Até lá, obrigada
Elena
wow! what a love letter to the Costa Brava! I am completely with you on that ! Hope to see you soon here again!
big hug
Nicole
Dear Nicole,
It is a message straight from the heart, as with literally all things #inCostaBrava. Glad you picked it all up, and for sure, understand how much this part of the world has a capacity to make you fall in love with it. Times and times over !!!
Fins molt aviat i una abraçada,
Elena 😀
Hello Mrs. Elena, my name is Eduardo Camino.
I’m a spanish guy studying Tourism in Porto (ISCET University) and I attended the Conference about Creative Tourism in Esposende in March, 2017.
After being there I was thinking to make my final project about the Creative Tourism in the North of Portugal and I would love to know what is your opinion about this. Does the Creative Tourism generate issues or all are advantages for the local community?
I can assure you that your point of view will be index in my project.
Thanks you so much for your attention, best regards.
Dear Eduardo,
Hola y gracias por tu mensaje en mi blog ! You should definitely network, and link up with Nelson Azevedo: https://www.facebook.com/moncaonasmaos/, as well as Rita Branco in Porto directly: http://www.oportoencanta.com. Both are experts in local area, creative cultural tourism and definitely helpful for your research and work. I would love to also meet and support you in your final project; let me know if you need help on the formulation of a research question, an expert interview, or anything else. Always love helping students !
Best wishes from Austria,
Elena
Thanks you so much for your help dear Elena, it was nice to listen you in the Congress.
I really appreciate your help and i will contact you among the process.
Best regards, from Portugal 😉