I'm a freelance features writer and a professional photographer specialising in travel and food related work.

Feel free to make contact if you'd like to discuss projects or to commission work.

I know the Netherlands and Canada very well.

At the Netherlands Press Awards of 2020 I was presented with the Travel Writer of the Decade award. That event was previously known as Holland Press Awards and I was named Journalist of the Year in 2015, 2016 and 2019.

I was presented with the British Annual Canada Travel Award (BACTA) for Best Online Coverage in 2017.

I can also offer you expertise in Germany, India, Portugal and the United Kingdom — I've lived in each of them. I'm currently based in North East England.

At university I studied history and regularly write about aspects of it. As a post-graduate I studied urban history. Today I write regularly about city breaks and architecture. I also write features on subjects such as photography,  design, sports, food & drink, hotels and wildlife.

Award-winning travel writer and journalist

I was named Journalist of the Year at the Holland Press Awards of 2015, 2016 and 2019. The awards were presented for my work on aspects of the Netherlands and Dutch culture.

In 2017 I was presented with the Best City Article award for a feature on Rotterdam. In 2018 I was name the Digital Influencer of the Year at the Holland Press Awards.

During March 2017 I was invited to Canada House in London for the British Annual Canada Travel Awards (known as the BACTAs) and took home the glass polar trophy for Best Online Coverage.

At the UK's Travel Media Awards of 2021 I was shortlisted for the prestigious Travel Trade Writer of the Year award.

In 2019 I was shortlisted in two categories at the Travel Media Awards (Travel Blogger/Vlogger of the Year and Travel Trade Feature of the Year). I also had a double shortlisting in 2017, when I was a finalist in the Travel Trade Writer of the Year category and Travel Blogger of the Year:

In both 2015 and 2016, before the categories were split, I was shortlisted for the Blogger and Vlogger of the Year award at the Travel Media Awards.

In March 2016 I was invited to Canada House in London as a finalist in the Best Canada Online Coverage category during 2015 at the BACTAs.

I was also shortlisted for the Travel Trade Feature of the Year award at the 2015 Travel Media Awards.

Driving Holidays Across India was won the Excellence in Publishing (English Language) category at India’s National Tourism Awards (2010).

I was also shortlisted in the National Geographic Traveller Photographer of the Year Award (2013) and the German National Tourist Board's German Travel Writer of the Year Award (2010).

Contributor to books

My written work has been published in books including:

• The Irresponsible Traveller (Bradt)
• Secret Journeys of a Lifetime (National Geographic)
• Driving Holidays Across India (Outlook Traveller Getaways)
• 1001 Cars to Dream of Driving Before You Die (Cassell Illustrated)
• Bengaluru and Karnataka (Stark World Publishing)
• Kerala (Stark World Publishing)
• The Street: Arakkal Paints a Picture (Art Alive)

You can see my photographs in numerous books, such as:

• Rwanda (Bradt Guides)
• Slow Northumberland and Durham (Bradt Guides)
• Dresden (Bradt Guides)
• Population Explosion: Can the Earth Survive? (The Rosen Publishing Group)
• Food and Water (Evans Brothers)
• The Religion Toolkit: A Complete Guide to Religious Studies (Wiley- Blackwell)
• Stupendous Sports Stadiums (Bearport Publishing)
• Indien - Eine Bildreise (National Geographic)
• China - Eine Bildreise (National Geographic)
• Explorers: Great Tales of Adventure and Endurance (DK Publishing)

Public speaking and lecturing

I undertake public speaking roles and lecture on both travel writing and photography.

That included participating in a panel discussion, on 'the role of the search in selecting a vacation', at the inaugural World Travel Writers' Conference in the Maldives during September 2017.

Other roles have included being the master of ceremonies when Ben Fogle talked about the Azores at the Royal Geographic Society in London.

Languages

English is my mother tongue. I also speak fluent German and can translate from German into English.

Copywriting

I also undertake copywriting projects. Feel free to make contact if you represent a tourist boards, hotel chain, travel operator or any other sort of company seeking an experienced copywriter.

Blogging

I'm an experienced travel and food blogger. My personal blog is Go Eat Do.

In August 2015 Go Eat Do was named as one of the United Kingdom's top 50 food blogs to follow.

My work has been published on the National Geographic Traveller, Country By Country and Rough Guides, among others.

Professional credentials

I'm a member of the National Union of Journalists, British Guild of Travel Writers and British Guild of Beer Writers.

Social media

Follow me on Twitter where I tweet as @stuartforster.

If you're interested in keeping up to date with what I'm doing, please also follow the Go Eat Do Instagram, Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Professional photography

I'm an experienced professional photographer and can undertake shoots in the United Kingdom and internationally.

You can see some examples of my work on my Why Eye Photography website.

My work is represented by Robert Harding Picture Library, 4 Corners Images, Alamy and Rex Features.