In travel writing, endings matter. They are the last words the audience will read and, when done well, they have a tendency to linger.\u00a0A good ending is\u00a0the feeling or image that survives, the thing that keeps the story alive and kicking in the reader\u2019s mind long after they\u2019ve finished the article.<\/p>\n

In our last writers\u2019 blog<\/a>, we dealt with the all-important opener. This time round, we\u2019re turning our attention to the equally important conclusion. It may come last, but the ending should never be an afterthought.<\/p>\n

Travel writing endings need to not only\u00a0alert readers to the fact that the story is over, but they also need to reinforce the main points of the article. The chronological end to your experience is usually not the best choice (embarking on a return flight does not make a good finale); you\u2019ll need to come up with something better.\u00a0Anyone who regularly reads travel content will be aware that the quote has become a fairly standard way of wrapping things up. And although a juicy end quote can be extremely effective, it\u2019s a trick that is fast becoming\u00a0overused.<\/p>\n

With that in mind, here are three other travel writing techniques that can help spice up your finale.<\/p>\n

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1. Reinforce your point with a memorable fact, a detail or an image<\/strong>
\nThe ending should reinforce what has gone before and reiterate the central point of your travel article, yet you shouldn’t just repeat what you’ve already said.\u00a0Instead, try using a memorable image, fact or anecdote that helps summarise and demonstrate all that has gone before it, while simultaneously hammering home the main point.<\/p>\n

In this Wall Street Journal article<\/a> on climbing Sri Pada in Sri Lanka, Henry Wismayer ends by conjuring up a striking image of grandfather and grandson \u2014\u00a0one that continues to resonate after reading: \u201cThe bell was still tolling as I headed back down the stairs. Rounding the first corner was the man from Galle, a grandson at each arm. Together they stood and breathed in the dawn.\u201d<\/p>\n

David Sedaris employs a similar trick in this\u00a0\u2018Journey Into the Night\u2019<\/a>\u00a0essay\u00a0for the New Yorker. Having told the story of a first-class passenger crying over the death of his mother, he wraps it up by accentuating a memorable situation: \u201cHere we were: two grown men in roomy seats, each blubbering in his own \u00e9lite puddle of light.\u201d<\/p>\n

2. End with a lesson, a discovery or a revelation<\/strong>
\nWhat have you learnt? Has your travelling experience given you any new insight? Has it changed the way you view something or the way you think about it? If so,\u00a0tell your audience and save it for the end. These discoveries are the things readers want to know.<\/p>\n

For example, in this travel piece on Fukuoka, Japan<\/a>,\u00a0\u00a0Pultizer Prize-winning author Junot D\u00edaz finishes up\u00a0by telling us what he has learnt about yatai (Japanese food stalls that serve home-style cooking): \u201cSit in a yatai, shoulder to shoulder with locals and, yes, with tourists, and what you will hear, smell, taste, and participate in will be nothing less and nothing more than the simple magic from which nations like ours are born.\u201d<\/p>\n

Writer Danielle Henderson also uses this technique in this article on Macau<\/a> for Afar magazine, which ends:\u00a0\u201cBack in my hotel room, I thought about my relationship with Macau, a misfit traveler\u00a0trying to cobble together an authentic experience in a city that keeps a poker face, and how the closed culture had guided me into quiet, reflective moments you rarely get when you travel. That, I thought, as I packed my bags and munched on another order of french fries, is a gift.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alternatively, you can end with a revelation. It can be shocking, surprising, humorous or amusing. In this chucklesome travel piece from Vice<\/a>, the writer makes sure the final words of the article\u00a0won’t be quickly forgotten. They read: \u201cAlthough, if you are really looking for a reason to leave an angry comment, I did eat a dog in Vietnam like three weeks later.\u201d<\/p>\n

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3. Return to the opening<\/strong>
\nAnother useful travel writing trick is to tie your ending to the opening. Return to the story you began with \u2014 a nice, neat circular narrative. In this article<\/a> for The Telegraph, Patrick Symmes goes searching for the mythical kingdom of Shambhala in central Asia. He opens with \u201cI won\u2019t tell you where it is,\u201d goes on to describe his lengthy quest to find the elusive and fabled paradise, then concludes with this gem: \u201cI tell you, I was there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ingrid K. Williams\u00a0also uses this method in this recent Frugal Traveler article<\/a> for the New York Times,\u00a0where she opens with the following: “White truffles from Alba and red wine from Barolo are not usually part of the frugal traveler\u2019s diet.” She then goes on to describe her frugal food travels around Piedmont and concludes by circling back to that\u00a0opening sentence:<\/p>\n

“In our kitchen that evening, Dave uncorked a bottle that I\u2019d purchased at Il Bacco: a barbera d\u2019Alba from G.D. Vajra, another small producer that Eric Asimov had recommended. It wasn\u2019t Barolo, but it was delicious to drink while preparing dinner: thin, ribbonlike egg pasta called tajarin that we buttered and topped with generous shavings of our white truffle. Surrounded by the wonderful aroma of truffles, we sat down to an indulgent meal that, before exploring Piedmont, this frugal traveler never imagined she could afford.”<\/p>\n

So next time you\u2019re fretting about how best to structure your travel content, try using the above techniques (for the ending) and these helpful tips from our previous blog<\/a> (for the beginning). We’re afraid the middle’s up to you!<\/p>\n

Do you have any other secrets for writing a captivating conclusion? We\u2019d love to hear them. Share them with us on Twitter<\/a>. To see some of our travel writers\u2019 own expertly-crafted endings, check out our latest projects<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Fireworks<\/a> CC image courtesy of baron valium\u00a0via Flickr; Shock-ed<\/a>\u00a0CC image courtesy of David Goehring<\/a> via Flickr<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In travel writing, endings matter. They are the last words the audience will read and, when done well, they have a tendency to linger.\u00a0A good ending is\u00a0the feeling or image that survives, the thing that keeps the story alive and … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[889],"tags":[924,957,981,983,1045,1084,149,1115,153,1158,896,1160,898,1221,900,1222,901,1223,903,904,913,918],"yoast_head":"\n