Travel Writing about Slovenia: A Conversation with Alex Crevar, the Ambassador of Slovenian Tourism 2022

FEEL Slovenia Podcast

Writing about Slovenia is particularly rewarding, as it so often feels like your articles open up a hidden doorway for readers with limited or no preconceptions about a country they will inevitably love. Readers have an idea about what travel to, say, Italy or Spain, Thailand or Costa Rica might be like. But while most will have heard of Slovenia—and heard good things about it—it does not have the immediate recognition of other potential travel destinations. That means that each article can have a significant positive effect in encouraging people to visit.
Dr Noah Charney should know. He has been writing about Slovenia for more than a decade, regularly covering it for The Guardian newspaper’s travel section, but also writing about it everywhere from Lonely Planet to National Geographic, from the Washington Post to Atlas Obscura.
His guest in this episode is perhaps the most prominent of all travel writers who write regularly about Slovenia: Alex Crevar. The American expat has written about Slovenia for The New York Times, Lonely Planet and National Geographic. What is more, he was also involved in the development of the Slovenia Green Gourmet Cycling Route, which attracted international attention. He also works as an editor and consultant on responsible tourism, though he's not sure he likes the term responsible tourism or consultant either.

He currently lives in Škofja Loka, Slovenia and was named Ambassador of Slovenian Tourism in 2022. Dr Noah caught up with him on the sun-drenched terrace of Hotel Plesnik in the Logar Valley, while attending the Transformational Travel Conference, which is the subject of its own episode.
Here are some of the most inspiring quotes from the conversation:
"Long story short, I am, for lack of a better term, a sustainable journalist because I actually care about the place that I cover. "
"I'm not the arbiter of whether or not the place has reached its limit. I know stories that I will cover and that I won't cover. "
"I think it makes more sense to replace it with responsible from the perspective of you know what you have, and in your heart, you know what you should be doing. You have a responsibility to balance the compromises that it's necessary to get there. Sustainable tends to be too much of an empty label."
"Would you do it if there was no money in it?"

Feel Slovenia the Podcast is brought to you by the Slovenian Tourist Board and hosted by Dr Noah Charney.
Sound Production: Urska Charney

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