For my last event before leaving Dubai, I was invited by the Arts Club for a conversation about my career as a travel journalist. It was an engaging chat, covering…
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Recent Work
The April/May Islands issue marks my final issue as Editor in Chief of Condé Nast Traveller Middle East — and I marked this milestone by reporting one of my favorite…
I closed out the latest issue of Condé Nast Traveller UK with a look at AlUla, Saudi Arabia—and in particular, the striking figure of the Maraya concert hall, rising from the…
I sat down with Condé Nast Traveler‘s Lale Arikoglu, Meredith Carey, and Jessica Puckett to share my travel priorities for 2022. Listen to our conversation here.
I had the honor of moderating a panel with Intelligence Squared and Singapore Tourism at Expo 2020 Dubai's Terra Sustainability Pavilion, discussing ways cities can leverage urban design and technology...
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My visit to Malta last year to report a feature for Condé Nast Traveller Middle East was a revelation: the beautiful landscapes and Michelin-starred cuisine were wonderful, but I was most…
Wondering what it takes to make a good travel story? I sat down with travel journalist Yulia Denisyuk—whose work I appreciate as a fellow writer and whom I’ve commissioned as…
Welcome to the Gold List: Condé Nast Traveller‘s list of our editors’ favorite hotels around the world. I introduced our February/March issue with this editor’s letter, rhapsodizing about some of my…
Along with my colleagues at Condé Nast Traveller Middle East, I contributed to this guide on the latest in Dubai, my new home, for the US edition of Condé Nast…
Awards & Books
Awards
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2021: Honorable mention for the Grand Award, Travel Journalist of the Year
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2021: Outstanding Arts and Culture Reporting for “Zanzibar in the Rain,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2020: Bronze in Short Work on Travel for “Raise the Roof,” Condé Nast Traveler
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2019: Outstanding Arts, Culture, and Lifestyle Reporting about South Asia for “Force of Nature,” Surface magazine
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2018: Gold award in US/Canada Travel for “A Muslim American’s Homecoming: Cowboys, Country Music, Chapatis,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2018: Bronze in Service-Oriented Consumer Work for “My Town,” Virtuoso Life
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2017: Gold in Culinary-Related Travel for “Eating Bunny Chow in Durban,” Saveur
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2017: Outstanding Arts and Culture Reporting for “Eating Bunny Chow in Durban,” Saveur
- North American Travel Journalists Association Awards, 2016: Two Silver awards in Destination Travel and Adventure Travel for “7 Days, 1500 Miles in Namibia,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2016: Gold in Foreign Travel for “7 Days, 1500 Miles in Namibia,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2015: Gold in Personal Comment for “Returning to Hyderabad, Once a Land of Princes and Palaces,” New York Times
- Solas Awards for Best Travel Writing, 2013: Silver in Most Unforgettable Character for “Spitting Distance in Jodhpur,” Wall Street Journal
Books
- New York Times Cultured Traveler: Contributed a feature on Bosnia & Herzegovina to this upcoming anthology
- Best American Travel Writing 2021: “City of Saints” from Travel + Leisure was selected for the 2021 edition of this anthology, edited by Padma Lakshmi and Jason Wilson
- New York Times 36 Hours World: 150 Cities from Abu Dhabi to Zurich: Contributed 36 Hours guides to Johannesburg and Mumbai for this anthology
- My Life Abroad: A Selection of Expat Stories: Contributed to this compilation of expat stories from around the globe, recounting my experience as an American in South Africa, in the chapter “From New York City to Cape Town.”
- The Places We’ve Been: Field Reports from Travelers Under 35: Contributed my essay “When Coconuts Attack” to this travel anthology.