About me

Hi! I’m Megan Singleton and I’ve been travel writing for 12 years and blogging for 6. It’s been a fantastic ride (as you can probably guess). I have over 400 posts here where you’ll find reviews, tips, itinerary ideas, recommendations for places to stay and things to do and all sorts of tidbits from my travels.

I’ve been chuffed to receive the US Travel Association Travel Writers Award in 2009 and 2011 and I’m on the list of NZs Top 50 Tweeters.

So, in case you were wondering, this is how it all began…

At the age of 17 I waved goodbye to my family in the tiny town of Hastings on the East Coast of New Zealand and set off to see the world as an exchange student. Well to see the US, to be precise. Rockville, Maryland to be exact. Little did I know that this 1 year abroad would bite me and leave a travel bug for the rest of my days.

Scroll down a few years and I embarked on a 5-year stint in London. Originally intending to “seek my fortune and be a nanny” I sadly didn’t achieve either. I was fired from my nanny job after 3 weeks (I couldn’t keep up with the cushion plumping and shag pile vacuuming) so went temping in London on the big bucks. £4.75 per hour. It was enough to pay a modest rent and use the rest to fritter on cheap flights to Europe where accommodation may or may not be pre-arranged.

I decided to take writing seriously in 1999 when I gained a Diploma of Freelance Journalism at the NZIBS and then “fell” into travel writing. My first travel story was published in Next in 2000 about visiting the (hilariously weird) Tate Modern in London.

Ahh, but blogging, you ask. Why blog? Well, in 2006 I was hired by a large travel agency in New Zealand as their full time blogger. For 3 years I blogged twice a day, 5 days a week and then they ditched it. But don’t cry! I launched this lofty site, Travel Blogger at Large in 2009 as an online travel magazine.

I also still freelance for the NZ Herald, Herald on Sunday, NineMSN and several supplements and magazines. You’ll hear me on Newstalk ZB and Radio Live from time to time and I’ve also forayed into the world of TV and speak at events about travel writing and blogging. I love speaking to young people about getting out and pursuing their dreams and making the most out of life.

But my proudest achievement? I co-founded Random Acts of Kindness Day in New Zealand on September 1^st 2005 and I love that RAK Day is now firmly established on New Zealand’s national calendar.

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Now what?

If you got this far and want to know where to go next, type a destination into the search bar on the top right or begin on these blogs – my personal faves!

Not for the ticklish: Foot torture at the fish foot spa in KL >>>

For tips on where to drink in LA: Five cool rooftop bars in Santa Monica >>>

The belching masseuse: My worst massage experience ever >>>

And come and join me on Facebook and Twitter, or subscribe to my RSS Feed to keep up to date when new blogs are posted or I see a special deal I think you’d want to hear about.

And right now if you click here and subscribe to my monthly newsletters, all New Zealand subscribers go in the draw to win a great piece of Antler luggage and a cabin bag from Voyager. My new online store is also selling Antler luggage for up to 20% below retail, so if you want quality luggage with a 10-year warranty, have a look here.

If you’d like to get in touch to discuss a famil or a speaking engagement, please shoot me an email to megan@bloggeratlarge.com

Happy reading,

Megan

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What others are saying about Travel Blogger at Large

Working with a number of travel destinations in New Zealand, there seemed to be very few digital publishers out there who truly provided a online experience that could be custom moulded to the clients needs.  Larger providers certainly have the ability to just run editorial, competitions or advertising.  But the opportunity to be seen to “own” the digital space they (the client) were occupying at the time, providing a more seamless and integrated solution was an expensive option, both in production of rich media and the online media costs.  Travel Blogger at Large offers a serious alternative working with the client to best obtain their desired outcomes and via serious credible editorial, that is reader-engaging.

- Jennifer Muirhead, IXIAN Client Services Director

 

Megan wrote a blog on my hotel over a year ago and we are still receiving traffic from her site on a daily basis and a percentage have converted to visits to our rooftop bar. I can thoroughly endorse her website, Blogger at Large, with her unique style and social media reach for long term activity.

- Jairo Torres, Director of Sales & Marketing, Hotel Erwin, a Joie de Vivre hotel