Thank you for your interest in working with Sand In My Suitcase…
We’re Janice and George Mucalov, once practising lawyers, now award-winning travel writers and blog publishers.
Passionate travelers, we started as travel journalists writing for leading print magazines and newspapers like USA Today, Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, South China Morning Post, Vancouver Sun, TravelAge West and AAA Carolinas GO.
In 2012, we launched our luxury adventure travel blog.
Today, as the Internet shapes the way we consume media, Sand In My Suitcase is a top-ranked source of travel content that informs and inspires.
High-traffic travel blog
We know the power of the written word, and we craft our posts with care. We spend time on the quality of writing and the photography.
Posts (most 2,500+ words) are well-researched, detailed and SEO-optimized to attract the maximum traffic.
Most readers initially find our high-traffic blog via organic searches on Google. This means they find us because Sand In My Suitcase both answers their travel questions and fuels their dreams.
We like to think, however, that readers return as much for the beauty of our travel stories as for the practical content we provide.
Our readers
Our blog receives nearly 300,000 unique visitors a month.
80% are from the U.S. and Canada.
Sand In My Suitcase appeals to affluent, well-traveled and intellectually curious travel lovers.
We write for the 30+ reader who likes to spice up their luxury trips with a little adventurous fun – and who enjoys a good travel tale.
Thousands of loyal subscribers read our regular newsletters.
About Sand In My Suitcase
Our niche is luxury travel.
Our posts focus on bespoke tours and soft adventure, cultural explorations (meet Athens), good food (with wine, of course!), hotel reviews and cruise stories.
We have a special love for Hawaii, Mexico, Europe and Canada.
But we’ve written about everything from exploring Sri Lanka and an African river safari to famous art you must see at the Met Musuem in NYC.
We also take many of the photos that illustrate our posts. Readers often comment that the photos are beautiful (and we’re always delighted when magazines publish our travel photos).
On our blog, readers can find excerpts and travel stories adapted from our magazine and newspaper articles, as well as travel posts written just for this site.
Top-ranking luxury travel blog
Dozens of posts are #1 in Google searches!
Sand In My Suitcase ranks on #1 for searches like:
“best honeymoon hotels in Maui” (#1)
“things to do in Old San Juan” (#1)
“USA hotels with private pools” (#1)
“best hotels in Victoria, BC” (#1)
“where to stay in Mallorca” (#1)
“Maui vs Kauai” (#1)
“is Porto worth visiting?” (#1)
“overwater bungalows in Bora Bora” (#1)
“Cancun vs Cozumel” (#1)
“planning a trip to St. Maarten” (#1)
“Emirates Economy class review” (#1)
“boutique Puerto Vallarta hotels” (#1)
“is Athens worth visiting?” (#1)
“colonial cities in Mexico” (#1)
“best travel sandals” (#1)
“romantic hotels in Venice” (#1)
“wine clubs in Canada” (#1)
“things to do in Mallorca” (#1)
“popular Indian dishes” (#1)
Sand In My Suitcase ranks on Page 1 (top 5) for searches like:
“things to do in Mexico” (#2)
“unique places to visit in Greece” (#2)
“hammams in Istanbul” (#2)
“Mexico resorts with private pools” (#2)
“2 weeks in Turkey” (#2)
“best hotels in Kauai” (#2)
“Ponant Cruises review” (#2)
“things to do in Cabo San Lucas” (#2)
“northern California coastal towns” (#2)
“things to do in Maui for couples” (#2)
“best beach towns in Mexico” (#2)
“beautiful gardens in the world” (#2)
“Canada bucket list” (#3)
“EVA Air economy review” (#3)
“best river cruises” (#4)
We offer a unique skill set to hoteliers, destinations, cruise lines and other brands interested in reaching an engaged target audience of luxury adventure travel enthusiasts.
“Best travel blog” and other honors
Sand In My Suitcase won “1st Place” for Best Travel Blog in the 2017 Society of American Travel Writers (SATW), Canadian chapter awards.
We also won a Finalist award for “Best Travel Column/Blog” in the 2018 Travel Media Association of Canada awards.
Oh, and we have to mention that our site took home the Silver award for “Best Travel Blog” in the 2015 North American Travel Journalists Association (NATJA) annual competition.
One last plug! Sand In My Suitcase is one of the “Top 100 Couple Travel Blogs” too.
Shameless self-promotion
See all our travel writing and blogging awards.
Social media reach
We promote our posts and travels on social media.
We have 35,000+ social media fans.
(We’re choosy about who we follow, so we don’t follow everyone back.)
Twitter
@SandInSuitcase
7,400+
Pinterest
SandInSuitcase
17,700+
(1.1 million monthly views)
Facebook
SandInMySuitcase
3,150+
Facebook
Janice.Mucalov
4,500+
Instagram
sandinmysuitcase
3,660+
We have some very real influence.
Readers use our blog to make their travel decisions
Some examples?
- The Mexico holiday-goers who ask us which Pueblo Bonito resort in Cabo to book.
- The frequent fliers keen to know whether they should fly on EVA Air. (This post ranges in rank from #1 to #3 on Google searches for “Eva Air review” and “Eva Air Economy review”.)
- The cruise travelers interested in the world’s best new cruise ship and those who book a luxury Seabourn cruise after reading our Seabourn Odyssey review.
- Couples visiting Bora Bora who ask which of the overwater bungalow resorts in Bora Bora is best for them (#1 on Google).
Read the comments on these posts, and you’ll get an idea.
Hundreds of luxury hotel nights booked!
Readers have booked hundreds of hotel nights through Sand In My Suitcase after reading our reviews of luxury hotels in destinations like:
Hawaii | 10 Beautiful Hotels in Kauai
Greece | Mykonos Beach Hotels and Travel Guide
Dubai | Transit Hotel in Dubai Airport (Brilliant For a Layover)
Istanbul | 5 Hip and Historic Boutique Hotels in Istanbul
Mallorca | 15 Enchanting Places to Stay in Mallorca
How we can work with you
- Blog content covering trip reports and reviews (sometimes magazine/newspaper coverage too)
- Sponsored posts
- Other? Let’s be creative and see how we can work together!
Travel writing ethics
We’re both members of the Travel Media Association of Canada (TMAC).
Janice is also a member of the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) and the North American Travel Journalists Association (NATJA).
We never agree to write positive stories in exchange for a hosted travel experience.
Sponsored content includes a disclosure notice.
Get in touch
If you’d like more information or wish to work with us, let’s talk! Please see our disclosure policy and contact us.
Rachel
Tuesday 15th of March 2016
Hello Janice and George I am in the process of launching a luxurious 3 bedroomed medieval townhouse in the Liguria region of Italy and I am looking for an experienced travel blogger to write me a review/blog etc in return for 3 free nights accommodation. I am particularly interested in working with people who have an established blog, engaged audience and social media presence! The preferred dates of travel would be end of June/July although this is flexible. If you are interested and likely to be available at that time I would love to hear from you. Best Wishes Rachel
Janice and George
Wednesday 16th of March 2016
We'll respond to you privately. Thanks for reaching out to us :-).
Anahita Guha
Monday 30th of November 2015
Hi Janice and George,
We'd like to connect with you for a PR travel opportunity. Can you please email me about where you guys are based out of and will you be interested in pursuing such an opp?
Thanks, Anahita
Janice and George
Monday 30th of November 2015
We're based out of Vancouver, Canada - you can email us via our contact page :-).