The Travel Channel of the 1990s

Before I start, I will make a clarification. I did not really see the Travel Channel until 1999, the tail end of the 1990s, but hey, it is part of the 1990s, so I figured it should be mentioned.

Being the geography nerd that I have always been, my 1990s was spent winning school geography bees. However, I’m not going to talk about that part. I am going to talk about the things that I saw in the Travel Channel. When I first saw the Travel Channel in 1999, for me it was a pick-me-up. I was recovering at home from osteomyelitis. I spent much of the time watching television. The Travel Channel was one of my favorites. I remember such amazing shows from back in 1999, such as Adventure Bound with Alby Mangels, Lonely Planet (now called Globe Trekker), Curiosities Around The World, and other programs.

One thing I remember is that so many of these shows felt relevant. The main idea was about traveling. There was nothing about chasing ghosts. It was about travel. So far, the best I have seen on The Travel Channel thus far is No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain, Man vs. Food, and Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern. The aforementioned shows are good decent shows. However, I feel like they belong on Food Network, Bizarre Foods and Man vs. Food at least.

The Travel Channel has not gone in a direction I want to see. I can put up with some of the vacation shows. However, the shows about ghost hunting and haunting are not things I want to see. There is less emphasis on traveling, and more about having a niche. Lonely Planet has lived another life as Globe Trekker, and I have found it on PBS. However, when Globe Trekker was Lonely Planet on The Travel Channel, it came on basically every day of the week, sometimes Sunday. I even remember it coming on twice in a day. There were other good shows. There were enough decent shows for me to spend a Saturday (or a Sunday) watching The Travel Channel. Now, I don’t even see the point of getting cable. I can go on the internet and find better shows. The Travel Channel I remember from the 1990s was that of substance, of a better quality, something that had so much to do with travel. You didn’t need a niche because traveling was the niche. It took you away to worlds unknown to you. That is the Travel Channel I knew.

I guess I’m just a relic of the 90s, someone who isn’t too open for certain changes. These new shows have found audiences among other people. However, it has not found much of an audience in me. I want to 1990s Travel Channel back. That Travel Channel was more about traveling.