Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year!
I cannot believe it’s that time of the year again. When I started this blog way, way back in 2015, I never dreamt I would still be here a decade later.
Things have certainly changed in the travel writing world (and the world at large!), but I wouldn’t still be here today without my loyal readers; so thank you to everyone who’s been part of the Travel Tramp journey, in all its guises.
As is tradition, here’s my annual travel round-up to see in 2026! Oh, and this will be the last blog post (and newsletter, if you’re following on Substack) of 2025. After this, I’ll see you all again in January.
Table of Contents
I’m going to be a published author!
I started Travel Tramp a decade ago as a way to start travel writing, to document what was then an overland journey across Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia. I also needed a way to break into the travel writing world, and ten years later, that’s exactly what I’ve done, through my newspaper and travel journalism work.
I have bylines everywhere from National Geographic to BBC Travel. A dream come true, really, for any writer. But still, the ultimate goal was always to have a proper book published, and that’s exactly what, somehow, I’ve managed to achieve this year.
In case you missed it, I’ve spent the last two years or so writing a book about the United Kingdom’s borders. I travelled the length of Britain’s borders, exploring the River Tamar that divides Devon from Cornwall, the Danelaw that defined England, the Welsh Marches, the Anglo-Scottish border, the Kent coast and the Irish border.
Now, I’m so pleased to say that ‘Along the Borders: In search of what unites and divides the British Isles’ is due for publication by Penguin Random House on 30th April 2026. I still can’t quite believe it, but given that you can pre-order it from all major bookstores, it must be true.
Next year will see me promoting the book as I take it on tour across the United Kingdom, and hopefully manage to sell a few copies too.
You can pre-order your copy via the link below:
https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/462381/along-the-borders-by-collett-richard/9781529935882
Read more: Along the Borders: Pre-Order My First Book From Penguin Random House!
A year in travel
But where did I travel to in 2025, I hear you ask? While I was finishing off the edits to Along the Borders, I also launched a new venture. Borderlines ties into my book, and saw me travelling further afield searching for geopolitical oddities and unusual stories for my new Substack and YouTube ventures.
Here’s a quick round-up of the highlights from another packed year of travelling:
1. Following the Hejaz Railway through Jordan
The year really began in Jordan, where I set out to film the first videos for my YouTube channel, getting well out of my comfort zone as I found myself in front of the camera for the first time in my life.
Jordan was devoid of tourists, all because of the ongoing neighbouring conflicts in Israel and Palestine. The tourism industry was hit hard, and you can read more about that in an article I wrote for iNews.
The highlight, though, wasn’t Petra or even Wadi Rum, but tracing the route of the old Hejaz Railway through the desert. The Hejaz Railway was an ambitious work of engineering, originally designed by the Ottomans to connect Istanbul to Mecca. The railway was severed, though, after the First World War, as new international borders arose in the deserts following the Ottoman Empire’s collapse.
Large sections of the railway, and many of the stations, still lie abandoned in Jordan’s deserts, offering a compelling tale of an empire’s demise.
You can watch that video here:
Read more: The Hejaz Railway: A Plan to Unite the Middle East by Train
2. A nation-changing island
If you’ve been following my work and travels for any length of time, you’ll know I’m somewhat obsessed with geopolitical oddities. I’m fascinated by their history, how they came to be and what they teach us about nation-states and borders.
In March, after crossing the English Channel on one of Europe’s longest ferries, I had the chance to visit one of Europe’s most unusual geopolitical oddities, a little-known place named Pheasant Island.
Located in the middle of the Bidasoa River, the waterway dividing France from Spain, a few curious quirks of medieval history ensure that Pheasant Island changes nationalities every six months. As far as I’m aware, it’s the only island in the world with this unusual nation-changing status!
I wrote a feature for The Telegraph on Pheasant Island’s quirky history, or you can watch the full video on YouTube:
Read more: Why Pheasant Island Changes Nationalities Every Six Months
3. A country which doesn’t exist
One of 2025’s highlights was my trip to Iraqi Kurdistan. It’s a region I’ve been longing to reach for years, but due to various geopolitical setbacks (and COVID-19) never managed to visit.
This was the year, however, and in May, I was sent to Erbil on assignment for Wanderlust Magazine. My goal was to write a story about the new Zagros Mountain Trail, a multi-day hiking route (the first of its kind in Iraq or Kurdistan) following ancient pilgrimage paths and old shepherds’ tracks through the mountains.
The new trail has opened the Kurdish region up to tourism, providing new opportunities for locals to work as guides or to run homestays for hikers. More than this, the trail showcases the unique culture and history of a region divided by modern, international borders. Kurdistan is a country that flies its own flag, but it’s never been internationally recognised. Hike the trail, and you’ll soon understand, however, that the Kurdish dream of nationhood is very much alive.
You can read my feature in Wanderlust, or watch my video series here:
4. Border ceremonies and mangroves in Bangladesh
In October, I found myself in Dhaka, the chaotic capital of Bangladesh, and the world’s second-largest megacity. Bangladesh was certainly an eye-opener, and after exploring the shipbreaking yards and garment markets of Dhaka, I took a night train to the Indian border.
At a place called Benapole, I found a mad border ceremony to rival the well-known ceremony that takes place between Pakistan and India, a few thousand kilometres away. Claire and I were the only foreign tourists here, however, and we watched as a fierce display of nationalism played out between the Indian and Bangladeshi border guards.
From here, we ventured into The Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest and the last holdout of the rare Bengal Tiger. We didn’t see any tigers, but we did hear stories of climate change and pirates (yes, there are pirates in The Sundarbans). If you’ve ever thought of visiting Bangladesh but have been deterred by the often negative image we have of the country in the West, I’d say put those prejudices aside and get over there. I guarantee it will be one of the world’s top tourist destinations in a few years.
You can watch the video series from Bangladesh here:
Subscribe to my YouTube channel here!
2026 Travel Plans
Those were just the highlights! There was too much to fit into a quick roundup, but in early 2026, you can expect to see more videos from Bangladesh and Western Australia (which was my last destination of the year) hitting my YouTube channel.
My travel plans for next year are still developing, but they’ll certainly revolve around my book launch. Not only am I taking it on tour, but I’ll be producing a brand new YouTube series where I also explore Britain’s borders! Stay tuned for more on that.
That’s it for now, but once again, thank you for reading (and watching). I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, wherever you are in the world.
Richard Collett
December 2025
There we have it! That’s my 2025 roundup! Where did you travel to this year? Let me know in the comments below.
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