Travel Stories
Mumbai Scene | Condenast Traveler US |
I am going to Bombay to become a movie star. Why not? Every country in the world, if it is lucky, has a city that allows people to create such gauzy fantasies unfettered by the grim shackles of reality. They thrive and inspire, catalyze personal transformations and fuel creativity, not through wide-open spaces but through vibrant congestion.
For British Airways Magazine on Chennai
Why it is best to land in Chennai at dawn.
For The National Abu Dhabi on the Indian Monsoon
Why the monsoon makes Indians mad with joy.
Whitewater Rafting Story for The National Abu Dhabi
Take Me to the River I am standing at the edge of the Nantahala River within the Great Smokey Mountains of North Carolina. Beside me, clutching my hand tightly, is my eight-year-old daughter, Malu. It [...]
For Destinasian on India
Mountain Magic: Chimagalur: Destinasian: August 2009 I am hiking up the lush Baba Budan Hills of Karnataka, carrying little more than a flask of freshly brewed coffee. It’s a bright February morning and the temperature [...]
For Destinasian Magazine on Coonoor India
A Higher Calling The cool Blue Mountains of Tamil Nadu may not be as sedate as they were a generation ago, but they’re still a very special place, as one returning devotee discovers By Shoba [...]
For The National in Abu Dhabi on sport fishing
The lure of sport fishing A man struggles under the weight of a mahseer caught in Karnataka. Courtesy Jungle Lodges & Resorts Ltd by Shoba Narayan Last Updated: June 18. 2009 5:35PM UAE / June [...]
For Washington Post on Indian Safaris
The wildlife you see on safari in North India
Goa | Condenast Traveler US |
Once a hippie haven where even India's tightly chaperoned teens could turn on, tune in, and drop out, Goa has lately gone upscale. Living in a trading port for the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, and Europeans meant that Goans were forced to interact with the outside world far earlier than the average Indian. This has made them friendly but not overly curious about foreigners.
Latest Articles
Hindustan Times: Buying happiness
This column got me thinking about happiness and whether it was possible to access it for cheap – specifically for under Rs.100. So here are some things that I have tried.
Hindustan Times: Best Pizza in Bangalore
The best pizza I have eaten in Bangalore is at my friend, Jay Bhow’s house. So when Jay, a VPN certified pizzaiolo, wondered if Bangalore was the artisanal pizza capital of India, we decided to go on a pizza crawl to find out.
WisdomCircle: Upskilling
Most couples retire without thinking about the fact that they may well be single soon either due to death or (these days) divorce. While death of a partner is an eventuality that most married couples face, “gray divorce” is becoming more prevalent these days, even in India.
Hindustan Times: Bangalore Hubba
Open the BLR Hubba homepage (https://blrhubba.in/) and I guarantee that you are going to get overwhelmed by the number of things on offer. Currently in its second edition with a budget of Rs. 8 crores, the Hubba runs from November 30 to December 14 at different venues across Bangalore.
WisdomCircle: Privilege & Intersectionality
If you are reading this, you are likely a high-functioning super-bright person, which means, at least according to your kids, that you are also “judgey” or judgemental.
Hindustan Times: Karnataka Rajyotsava
When I first moved to Bangalore nearly 20 years ago, I didn’t know that Karnataka as a state was only named in 1973. Karnataka Rajyotsava, celebrated each year on November 1st is a great time to be in Bangalore.
Nine features I wrote for Condenast Traveler (US edition) a while back
Interviews with His Holiness The Dalai Lama
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Shoba Narayan is an award-winning Indian author, journalist, and freelance travel writer based in India. She specialises in luxury travel, immersive journeys, and Indian culture with a focus on food, wine, culture, cities, and identity. With over two decades of experience, she has contributed travel features to Condé Nast Traveler (US edition), Travel & Leisure, DestinAsian, Mint Lounge, The National (Abu Dhabi), Taj Magazine, and Hindustan Times, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Telegraph UK, The Guardian UK, and Robb Report among others. Her awards include the James Beard food-writing award and a Pulitzer Travel Fellowship. Her travel writing spans India, Southeast Asia, Japan, China, the Maldives, Bhutan, Costa Rica, and beyond — always with a focus on the sensory, the cultural, and the deeply human. Based in Bangalore, India, Shoba is a leading voice on South Asian travel, reviewing luxury hotels in India and abroad, and writing immersive features on traditional Indian crafts, and contemporary Indian culture. As a freelance travel writer and memoirist, she writes evocative, deeply researched features on everything from birding in Costa Rica to spiritual tourism in Bhutan.
For editors: Shoba Narayan is an Indian travel writer and food writer, who contributes to assignments on travel, food, culture, and Indian cities. She has reported from across the world and writes narrative-driven features with a strong sense of place.
Key Expertise: India travel writer, freelance travel writer India, South Asia travel journalist, luxury travel India writer, food and travel writer India, Indian food writer, Bangalore travel writer, South India travel writing, cultural travel writer, narrative travel journalist, travel features India, heritage travel India, slow travel India, sustainability travel writer, hotel and destination features India, travel essays South Asia.