About Where Jess Travels

What you’ll find on this blog

A bit of context about the type of traveller I am, so you know what to expect from my posts. I’m not a budget traveller or a luxury traveller. I sit somewhere in the middle. 

When I’m planning a trip, I like to find hotels with character and style and restaurants with soul (I hate gimmicky Instagram restaurants where aesthetics are prioritised over food).

I write my posts as if one of my closest friends has asked for recommendations, and if I wouldn’t recommend something to a friend, I won’t recommend it to you.

Sometimes I travel solo, but I’m mostly with Conor or my friends, so this blog isn’t dedicated to a particular type of travel – if you’re after an expert in luxury travel or solo adventures, I won’t claim to be one.

But what you will find are detailed guides to the places I’ve been, honest reviews of the hotels I’ve stayed in, and tips and tricks to help you make the most of your holiday.

Travel itineraries 

Chosen your dream destination but struggling to put together an itinerary? I know it can feel super overwhelming trying to fit in everything there is to do in a way that makes sense. 

There’s nothing worse than getting home and realising you’ve missed something amazing, or spending your whole trip covering the same ground because you didn’t realise where everything was in relation to each other.

Luckily, I LOVE putting together itineraries for my trips, and I share them here so you can replicate them. 

Whether it’s 3 weeks in Sri Lanka or 3 days in The Dolomites, my itineraries include helpful travel tips, my accommodation recommendations, and a day by day breakdown of things to do and the best way to travel between each place. 

Honest hotel reviews

One of my favourite parts of travelling is getting to discover incredible spaces around the world. I always choose boutique hotels over larger chains; I love the stories behind them and the personal service you get when you stay there.

My hotel reviews are always honest, if there’s something I think needs improving, I’ll mention it. It’s important to me that you have an amazing time if you choose to stay somewhere I’ve recommended, so if I say somewhere is good, I promise it actually is.

It’s rare that I’ll find a hotel without fault, but this one came pretty close.

In depth guides 

I make it really easy for you to visit destinations I recommend, by putting together travel guides with everything you need to know about a place, including when to visit, where to stay, the best places to eat and drink, and what to do when you’re there.

My Barcelona travel guide is constantly being updated (I live there, after all).

Before the blog

Confession time, I haven’t always been a keen traveller. I was a shy kid who didn’t even like sleeping over at my best friend’s house because I missed my Mum too much. My best friend lived on the next street by the way. 

Fast forward a few years and I joined a different secondary school than all of my friends. I knew no one, and I was adamant it was the worst thing that could possibly happen to me. My parents asked me to give it 6 months, and if I still hated it, I could leave. 

6 months later, I was having the time of my life. I’d made new friends and that decision to join a new school ended up being one of the best things I did.

I went from a shy kid to an outgoing teenager, forced to push myself out of my comfort zone and try new things. 

Around the same time as me starting secondary school, my Dad was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. It made me realise just how quickly everything in life can change, and I vowed to prioritise experiences over anything material. 

I fell in love with travelling and begun exploring the world as much as possible.  I took loads of holidays with my friends, and realised I was really good at organising the trips.

I’d happily book hotels, find the restaurants, and research the best things to do, and I quickly became the dedicated holiday organiser.

My first solo trip

After secondary school, I studied Psychology at the University of Sheffield (my decision to study there may have been slightly influenced by my favourite band, Arctic Monkeys, being from there).

I had the most incredible 3 years in Sheffield, met more of my closest friends, and continued to take holidays with them around my studies. But I still hadn’t travelled on my own.

When I finished university at 21 years old, I had a job lined up for the end of summer, which gave me a few months off with zero responsibilities. 

My friends were all saving their pennies for their gap years, but I wanted to travel, so if they couldn’t come with me, I was going to go alone. I booked a trip to Australia, where I spent 1 month on the East Coast backpacker route, from Melbourne to Cairns.

I was dreaming of lying on beaches, cocktail in hand, without a worry in the world. But I hadn’t thought it through that well, because it was June, which is winter in Australia, and when I landed in Melbourne, it was cold, and definitely not beach weather. 

To make matters worse, I checked into a shared dorm in a hostel where I was hoping to make friends, only to find that no one was interested in making friends because they’d all been staying there for months and already knew each other. 

I was jet lagged, cold, and disappointed, but determined not to let it ruin my trip. After a good night’s sleep and a fresh perspective, I put on my big girl pants and headed out on a free walking tour (which is still one of my favourite ways to explore a city).

On the tour, I made a friend, and in just a day, my whole experience changed. From Melbourne, I headed up the East Coast, where the weather got warmer, and the hostels were much more backpacker friendly. 

That trip to Australia changed things for me. It made me realise just how capable I was of taking myself out of my comfort zone and solving problems myself. 

Since then, I’ve solo travelled around the world, and I’m a firm believer in not waiting for anyone to take a trip with you. I’ve been with my boyfriend, Conor, for 5 years now but I still take trips on my own. It’s energising and a huge source of my creativity. 

Starting my travel blog

After graduating University, I worked full time in marketing for 7 years. 

I loved my job, and I wasn’t desperately searching for a way out. My travel blog was a very happy accident.

When the UK went into lockdown in 2020, I was bored at home, so I decided to start posting old travel photos on Instagram.

I took my love of organising trips and begun sharing travel tips and recommendations from places I’d been.

I called my page “All Checked In”, as a nod to my absolute favourite part of travelling – the moment when you check into a hotel and see your room for the first time. 

I was posting old iPhone photos that I hadn’t taken with any intention of them being used in a travel blog. Most of them were candid snaps from holidays with my friends, including a photo of an Ibiza sunrise that I’d taken at 5am after a night at Hï. 

Gradually my page grew (largely thanks to reels), I switched my iPhone for a camera, and I began to think that this passion project of mine could turn into an actual job. 

I changed the name to Where Jess Travels, and started to work with some of my favourite brands in travel, like Small Luxury Hotels, The Hoxton, TUI and Sandals. 

I now have a community of over 220,000 people across my social media platforms, and last year, I left my 9-5 to run my blog full time, which still feels crazy to say out loud!

Since then, I’ve been lucky enough to travel to even more incredible places, including spending 3 months travelling around Asia, something which had been a dream of mine.

My aim when I started was the same as it is now – to share my honest travel experiences and help you plan your trip. I know how valuable your time and money is, so it means a lot that you put your trust in me.