Frommer

I was saddened to hear that Arthur Frommer, the travel writing legend who penned “Europe on 5 Dollars a Day” in 1957, died yesterday at age 95. He not only started the budget travel movement across the globe, but launched many travel writing careers including mine. I first met Arthur in 1991, when my brother, Jim, was his lecture agent at ICM. I had just returned from a 4-month backpacking trip through the South Pacific, New Zealand, and Australia and had the glimmer of an idea of becoming a travel writer. At the urging of my brother, he met me in his office and told me of the newsletter he founded called “Frommer’s Trips and Travels.” If I really had the desire to write, put together a 1000-word story on one of my recent travel destinations. So I went back to my apartment and typed on my trusty typewriter a story about traversing the largest sand island in the world, Fraser Island, off the central coast of Australia. He accepted the manuscript and never stopped accepting my story ideas for the next decade

I would write stories on canoeing under the midnight sun in Finnish Lapland, attending a festive Hindu funeral in Bali, and scuba diving with hammerhead sharks in Rangiroa, French Polynesia. He knew my love of adventure, so when Frommer’s joined forces with Outside Magazine in 1994, he gave me my first big break, a book deal titled “Outside Magazine’s Adventure Guide to New England.” I would spend the entirety of 1995 crisscrossing the six states of New England in all seasons via mountain bike, canoe, cross-country skis, or more than likely, my own two legs, hiking up countless peaks.

The book jump-started my career, as I soon became columnist at a new publication created by National Geographic, National Geographic Adventure, and contributor at many other publications including Outside, Men’s Journal, Yankee Magazine, Boston Globe, and Arthur’s own fledgling publication, Arthur Frommer’s Budget Travel Magazine.

I used to love coming into Arthur’s office in Manhattan with my long list of story ideas for the magazine. He would listen patiently and then come up with his own brilliant topics like, “Steve, you know Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao hasn’t had a hurricane hit them in over a century. Why don’t you head there this summer and tell me about all the adventures.” I would always walk out of his office with at least one assignment, if not more, making my trip to New York a success.

While I’ve had the good fortune to run into Arthur’s daughter, Pauline, over the years speaking at various travel shows, I honestly can’t remember the last time I saw Arthur. But I remain eternally grateful for the opportunity he gave this one young writer with a sparkle in his eye. He made his dream come true.