10 Top Travel Twitterers

By Johnny Jet

Given that Twitter (www.twitter.com) is now the go-to place for travelers, you can get the best travel updates by following some of the top travel tweeters. Though there are others who fly more miles, these 10 tweeters won't disappoint. They provide links to travel news, deals, and tips -- and most importantly, they share their experiences in real time along with pictures of their travels around the globe.

Who to Follow: @WheresAndrew

If you like following people who tease you with clues as to where they are or where they're going, then be sure to add Andrew Evans. Andrew started his Twitter adventures under the handle of @Bus2Antartica. Then he took buses and a couple of ships all the way from Washington, D.C., to Antarctica. Now he is traveling the world and is presently in Australia.

Sample tweet: "Sun keeps shining but water falling on my head. Melbourne weather = so weird."

Who to Follow: @WendyPerrin

Wendy Perrin, Condé Nast Traveler's advice columnist and consumer news editor, is regarded as one of the country's premier travel authorities. I first met Wendy on the set of Fox News Channel about seven years ago in New York for my very first national broadcast and boy, was I nervous. Wendy helped ease my fears, and since then, I have seen her at travel conferences all around the world. Wendy is in high demand these days since she's intertwining print with social media. Her tweets often link to her monthly column or daily blog posts.

Who to Follow: @ChrisGuillebeau

I got hooked on travel by becoming a frequent-flier mile junkie. These days, I'm not that loyal to one airline, and I travel not to accrue miles but for the experience. Now, I'd usually rather take the shortest and least expensive route to get from point A to point B. However, if one of the airlines has a sweet bonus deal, then I just might go the long way and/or spend the extra dollars to beef up my mileage account.

Instead of spending all my time scanning the FlyerTalk (www.flyertalk.com) message boards, I follow certain people on Twitter like @ChrisGuillebeau. This guy caught my attention big time when he posted a Tweet showing how he'd earned an 808,185 US Airways mileage bonus. Now that's insane! I checked out his website (www.chrisguillebeau.com) and kicked myself for not following him months ago, which was when he laid out detailed instructions on how anyone could do this. I'm too late for this promotion, but you better believe I'm following closely now so I won't miss the next one.

Who to Follow: @EverywhereTrip

Gary Arndt decided to do what most people only dream of. He quit his job and left his native Wisconsin to travel the world. That was back in 2007, and since then, he's been to over 80 countries and territories. He created a successful blog (www.everything-everywhere.com) and has more than 100,000 Twitter followers. For anyone who wants to live their travel dream, Gary provides great insight (and daily photos).

Who to Follow: @Brucepoontip

I haven't actually met many of the people I follow on Twitter -- although I'd really like to. At the top of that list is Bruce Poon. First of all, he has founded an amazing tour company called Gap Adventures (www.gapadventures.com). Secondly, he bounces around the globe, splitting his time between Toronto, London, and Melbourne. If you are interested in following entrepreneurs, adventurers, and/or sustainable travel advocates, then follow Bruce.

Who to Follow: @Heather_Poole

I recently logged on to TweetStats.com to learn about my Twitter behavior. Their graphs showed that the person I retweet the most is @Heather_Poole. She's a flight attendant for a major U.S. carrier and is always traveling somewhere. If you're interested to see what it's like to be a flight attendant, juggle a family, and write a book at the same time, then follow her. If her name sounds familiar, it's probably because she also writes a weekly column for Gadling.com called "Galley Gossip."

Who to Follow: @CjMcGinnis

One of the reasons I am in my position today is because of Chris McGinnis. When I first started learning travel secrets, I was obsessed with this man, who had written a couple of travel tip books and was a daily contributor to CNN. As fate would have it, the girl I was dating at the time had a good friend who turned out to be friends with him. The next thing you know, he took me under his wing and posted a link to JohnnyJet.com on his website. Because of that link, Laura Bly (who tweets at @laurably) from USA Today found my website and declared it Website of the Week in the newspaper's weekend travel section.

I'm eternally grateful to both of these people. I only bring it up now because Chris has taken to Twitter and has been posting the latest travel news, stories, and tips.

Who to Follow: @FlightBlogger

Jon Ostrower is Flight International Magazine's Aerospace Blogger. Based in Washington D.C., he travels a ton. In 2010 alone, he flew 165,070 miles on over 92 flights all over the world. If you are interested in aviation and airplanes, add him to your list.

Who to Follow: @JasCochran

Jason Cochran is an author, junior historian, travel writer, blogger, and your future best friend (so he claims). I've known about Jason for a long time, especially when he wrote for Budget Travel magazine. He travels a ton and his Twitter account spits out more than just his own articles, which would be good enough. Recently, he gave a play by play of his Virgin Atlantic snowstorm debacle -- if you weren't following him, you missed some great reporting.

Who to Follow: @GlobeTrotScott

Scott Mayerowitz is ABCNews.com's travel editor and is heading to the Associated Press in mid January to do big-picture stories on the airlines. He's a self-proclaimed travel junkie and I met him for the first time when I did a segment on ABC News. Since then, I've seen him at conferences in Aspen, New York, and Florida. He's a rising star in the travel industry and you should definitely follow him as his tweets and stories are both interesting and timely.

Who to Follow: @JohnnyJet

Don't get me wrong: I'm not trying to be a self-promoter, but I think I do a pretty good job on Twitter. I not only retweet good deals and travel news, but I share my travels from start to finish with a ton of Twitpics. You can also follow the experts at Frommers.com on the official account @FrommersTravel or through its individual editors @davitydave, @clampetfrommers, and @AmyChenWrites.

Please let me know if you agree or disagree with any of these choices. Feel free to recommend a friend or yourself for a future travel tweeter column. I know there are many more out there, and I'm always looking for the best of the best.