The Best Travel and Adventure Books of All Time

Are you looking for the best travel and adventure books of all time? Whether you want a remote beach destination or a lively city getaway, this page contains a list of the best travel books to inspire your dream trip.

I’m Hazel 👋 a British travel blogger living near London in the UK. I have read and loved every book on this list!

Most of these titles are available in paperback, hardback, Kindle, and audiobook formats. Some of these travel books are fictional novels, some are autobiographical, and some are based on true stories.

So without further ado, here are 20 of the best travel books of all time. Most are New York Times bestsellers.

1. “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail” by Cheryl Strayed.

Wild is a brutally honest account of Cheryl Strayed’s journey across the West Coast United States, as she treks 1,100 miles with only a few possessions and a determined spirit.

Strayed courageously captures her experience through mental and physical agonies alike. We see her journey at its lowest ebb as well as its highest tide.

This stirring memoir speaks to survival, grief, and, ultimately, hope for all of us.

Wild has also been made into a film starring Reese Witherspoon; you can watch it on Amazon Prime here (sign up for free trial first).

2. “Eat Pray Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything” by Elizabeth Gilbert.

This bestseller follows Gilbert’s transformative journey from New York City to Italy, India, and Indonesia in search of pleasure, spirituality, and balance.

Eat Pray Love is a voyage of self-discovery in search of enlightenment and contentment.

If you have already read and loved Eat Pray Love, you may be interested in Eat Pray Love Made me Do It: Life Journeys Inspired By The Best Selling Memoir. Published by the same author, this is a collection of short stories inspired by the original book.

Eat Pray Love is one of the world’s best-selling travel books. It has also been made into a film with Julia Roberts (the DVD cover is at the bottom of this post).

3. “On the Road” by Jack Kerouac.

One of the best travel books about road trips, Kerouac’s novel On The Road recounts a cross-country road trip taken in search of carefree abandon.

Originally published in 1957, this classic novel follows two friends on their travels across America on a quest for freedom and adventure. It’s a true test of the limits of the American Dream and an exploration of personal freedom.

4. “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho.

Many travel books follow a spiritual theme, and this one is no exception.

The Alchemist: A Fable About Following Your Dream is an allegorical journey about following personal dreams and destiny.

Our protagonist, Santiago, embarks on a quest through Egypt and the Middle East to pursue his dream life. What starts out as a journey to find worldly goods, turns into a meditation on the treasures found within.

6. “Into Thin Air” by Jon Krakauer.

This is the first of two travel books by Jon Krakauer on my list.

Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of The Everest Disaster is a true story that recounts Krakauer’s own experience as he climbs Mount Everest and is caught in a deadly storm that leaves him struggling for survival.

This thought-provoking book explores the depths of human endurance under extreme conditions, amidst tragedy and heroism.

7. “Turn Right at Machu Picchu: Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time” by Mark Adams.

A narrative recounting Adam’s own adventures trekking through Peru to trace Hiram Bingham III’s original expedition to Machu Picchu in 1912.

Turn Right at Machu Picchu is a must-read for anyone trekking to Machu Picchu. Be sure to read all the way to the end, as the author later questions or disproves some of the ideas set out in earlier chapters.

8. “Blue Highways: A Journey into America” by William Least Heat Moon.

Another travel memoir based on a road trip, this one explores the backroads of the United States of America. It is filled with colourful characters who share their stories about vanishing ways of life in small towns across the country.

Blue Highways has been hailed as a masterpiece of American travel writing, an unforgettable journey along the nation’s back roads.

10. “The Tao Of Travel: Enlightenments From Lives On The Road” By Paul Theroux.

Based on stories collected over three decades as a traveller himself, Theroux shares insight into why we travel and how it changes us. From South America to the Middle East, these stories are great to dip in and out of.

The Tao of Travel is an assembly of the most influential writing from the most beloved travel books that shaped the author, both as a reader and traveller.

11. “A Walk In The Woods” By Bill Bryson.

In this memoir, Bryson recaptures his sense of adventure while reacquainting himself with nature after years away from hiking trails.

A Walk in The Woods is an account of an arduous journey along the world’s longest continuous footpath in the Appalachian Trail.

Bryson traverses through some of the United States’ most breathtaking scenery across fourteen states and spanning over two thousand miles.

A Walk in the Woods has also been made into a film starring Robert Redford and Emma Thompson. You can watch it on Amazon Prime here (remember your free trial) or get the DVD here.

12. “The Sun Also Rises” by Ernest Hemingway.

This novel is one of the classic travel books, set in Europe during the 1920s.

We follow a group of expatriates as they travel from Paris to Pamplona and experience the excitement of the annual running of the bulls.

The Sun Also Rises combines tragedy and romance. It tells the story of a group of American expatriates who struggle to find fulfilment in post-war Europe. They spend their time drinking, dancing, and pursuing their dreams.

I have also found an old 1957 DVD based on this book, which you can buy here (or see the bottom of the post for the DVD cover).

13. “Sailing Alone Around the World” by Joshua Slocum.

This book has to be the best travel book about sailing around the world.

An autobiographical narrative detailing the first solo circumnavigation of the world, which began in 1895 and lasted three years. Sailing Alone Around The World is a must-read for all wanderers, sailors and adventure lovers.

14. “The Lost City Of Z” by David Grann.

Based on a true story, Lost City of Z is a thrilling adventure based on the disappearance of British explorer Percy Fawcett.

The intrepid explorer was searching for a mysterious lost city in the Amazon jungle in South America in the 1920s. For the next 80 years, hundreds of explorers ventured into the Amazon to find any trace of Fawcett or the Lost City of Z.

This is a captivating tale that follows the footsteps of many adventurers who attempted to solve one of exploration history’s most enduring mysteries.

The Lost City of Z has also been made into a major film starring Charlie Hunnan, Robert Pattinson, Tom Holland and Sienna Miller. You can watch it on Amazon Prime here (sign up for a free trial first) or purchase the DVD here.

15. “Notes From A Small Island” by Bill Bryson.

This is Bill Bryson’s third entry! Written after twenty years spent living in the UK, this book captures Bryson’s love-hate relationship with England as he visits each region one final time before returning home to America.

Bryson says Notes From a Small Island is a mission to highlight the extraordinarily loveable parts of the UK, including place names like Farleigh Wallop, Titsey and Shellow Bowells.

As a British person myself, I have to say I don’t always agree with Bryson’s exaggerated narratives about the UK, but I have to admit his anecdotes are still funny, even if not entirely true!

16. “Into The Wild” by Jon Krakauer.

The second Krakauer entry in my travel adventure books list, and another true story.

This is the thought-provoking tale of Christopher McCandless, who gave away his entire life savings and journeyed into the wild in search of a deeper understanding of himself and life.

He ventured deep into Alaska’s wilderness in 1992, only to be found four months later as an emaciated corpse with an SOS note.

The international bestseller Into the Wild explores an obsession which leads some people to explore the outer limits of self.

Into the Wild was made into a film in 2007 starring Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch and Kristen Stewart. You can watch on Prime here or buy the DVD here.

17. “Around The World In Eighty Days” by Jules Verne.

No list of travel and adventure reads would be complete without this classic title.

The well-known adventure novel tells the story of Phileas Fogg, who attempts to circumnavigate the world in just eighty days while wagering his life’s fortune on the bet.

From the Indian jungle to the Trans-Siberian railway, Around the World in Eighty Days is an unforgettable tale of daring and adventure.

Around the World in 80 Days is also a film with David Tennant. You can watch it on Amazon Prime here or purchase the DVD here. Don’t forget your free trials linked at the top and bottom of this page.

18. “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain.

The second of Mark Twain’s highly acclaimed travel adventure books, this beloved classic follows the journeys of Huckleberry Finn and Jim.

The boy and his dog travel down the Mississippi river, seeking freedom and a better life along the way. This story picks up where Mark Twain left off in his previous book, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a story told in the time of slavery with language that embodies the regional dialects that are common to Twain’s work and the Mississippi River Valley in which Twain grew up.

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