Our Three Cents: 'Cast Away
Photo by Caty Dioguadi

With podcasts proliferating like backpackers on the Champs-Elysées, Jen Leo directs you to the best of audio travel.

Lonely Planet, the favorite guidebook publisher with independent travelers, is fast becoming a leader in audio travel as well. They are doing it the same way they paved the road in print—by covering the most popular routes for backpackers. Host Scott McNeely interviews Lonely Planet’s travel writers about the countries they know best, often while they’re in the middle of “research.” Eat Thai curries with Joe Cummings in Southeast Asia, walk through Istanbul with Verity Campbell and

Virginia Maxwel, discover why Ryan Ver Berkmoes thinks Bali remains hot despite the bombings, and hear about the best festivals in Central Mexico from Andrew Dean Nystrom. In the course of 10 to 20 minutes, McNeely gets the writers to talk about how to venture off the beaten path, gives listeners tips on transportation, addresses safety concerns, and good spots to bunk down, and tempts us with regional meals not to be missed. LP has more than 20 travel-casts, including Dublin, Spain, New Zealand, Ethiopia, Bolivia, Columbia, Nigeria, and New Orleans.

Nick and Opal are a refreshing breath of pure Brit spunkiness. Experienced travelers eager to give you an insider’s tour of cities all over Europe, practical Nick and free-spirited Opal give the scoop on cheap airfare and where to party in Berlin, gossip about the hot sex scene in Latvia, and what to do with 24 hours in Copenhagen. Sometimes they report straight “on location,” like when they took the Eurostar from London to Paris. At one point on that trip, Opal asks a fellow traveler how to say, in French, “I have lost my stupid cohost,” and later laments that she couldn’t find any real humpbacks at Notre Dame. It’s a perfect mix of useful travel advice and British sarcasm. The five most recent podcasts, including some video, are free on iTunes, and back archives are only a few dollars each.

Wilderness lovers, eat your hearts out. Host Steve Sergeant takes the class outside for field trips they’re not going to forget. More of an audio documentary than your typical podcast, “The Wilde Beat” is a news magazine for outdoor enthusiasts of all skill levels. If you’re interested in camping, hiking, backpacking, horseback riding, rafting, kayaking, canoeing, climbing, skiing, or snowshoeing, then you’ll want to follow Sergeant to Sheep Hole Valley Wilderness in the southern Mojave Desert, discover the problems caused by a five-acre marijuana plantation in the Big Basin Redwoods, or get in on a training exercise with the Bay Area Mountain Rescue Unit. Many ’casts focus on improving your outdoor survival skills, like avoiding avalanches and overcoming common ailments on a backcountry trip. Plus, you don’t have to scramble to jot down notes—each episode comes with its own script.