- Experience: 8+ years writing about global destinations, specifically UAE
- Favorite Dubai experience: Early morning walks around Al Seef and late evenings at the Dubai Opera
- Travel philosophy: “I believe the best way to understand a place is to walk its streets, eat its food, and listen to its stories.”
- Best countries travelled: Spain, Netherlands, Thailand
About Amulya Chintaluri | Meet the mind behind the travel guides
A bit about me
Five insights into the way I travel and write
The earliest vacation I remember taking was a trip through the North East of India with my parents and their friends. It was thrilling, and an entirely new experience for me. I remember the daze I was in when I had to go back to school after (my very first vacation hangover, if you will), and nagging my parents for the next holiday because I’d realised that vacations are a wonderful break from life. Yes, truly, 7 year old me really was this articulate.
Without a doubt, I’m a ‘plan everything’ kind of traveler, even if I wish I could go with the flow. I need at least the “must-see” places packed into the itinerary. However, I do approach the packed itinerary as a guideline rather than the checklist, because it’s inevitable that things don’t go as planned.
I like reading up about the city first and foremost. And on the basis of that, I go about my research depending on what the city is known for. Then I’ll look up travel blogs or YouTube videos to gauge whether a popular place is worth the hype.
Anecdotal, I would say, and perhaps even somewhat unserious. I dive into writing by starting what I know to be my experience before polishing and expanding on it further. And most importantly, am I sharing something that could help someone else, in any way possible.
Turkey! I fell very sick three days into our two-week trip, almost bed-ridden. We were, of course, completely unprepared for one of us to be this sick, and the Turkish people were super helpful to my parents once they realised what the issue was, a cab driver even gave us a free ride back to our hotel.
