Erin's Belize Travels
From the moment Erin set foot in Belize back in 2005, she instantly fell in love with the country. She knew one day she'd eventually live there, and after years as a tourist making annual visits, she was able to fulfill her dream. For nearly 10 years, Erin called Ambergris Caye, Belize, her part time home. Until 2019, she was spending an average of six months per year on the island and specializes in content related to Belize.
In 2013, Erin authored the majority of Belize's official visitor magazine, Destination Belize.
She is AFAR Travel Magazine's local Belize Expert and authored the AFAR Guide to Belize. Erin has worked with the Belize Tourism Board (BTB) and the Belize Tourism Industry Association (BTIA), even representing the country at a Crisis Management Tourism Media Workshop in Guatemala in 2013.
Utilizing her expertise gained while working on other tourism projects around the world, Erin has partnered with major Belize tourism brands and local media to help promote travel to Belize. She has spoken several times as an expert on blogging in Belize, including at Belize's First Tourism and Marketing Summit and TBEX Cancun, the world's largest conference for travel bloggers and new media specialists. Erin was also the keynote speaker for the Belize Hotel Association's Annual General Meeting in 2017. She has been cited as one of the "Top Belizean Brands to Follow on Twitter."
Lobsterfest Judge
Erin was invited to be a judge at Belize's biggest Lobsterfest celebration in San Pedro for numerous years. She has been involved in charity work on the island, including coordinating a "soup kitchen" event to benefit needy families in San Pedro, Belize.
Published Belize Work
Some of Erin's published works on Belize include:
Trivago Magazine
Feature on six of the best private islands and eco-tourism lodges in Belize for Trivago.
Read now: 6 Luxury Eco-Lodges and Private Island Resorts in Belize
- AFAR Travel Magazine: Official Online Guide to Belize
- BootsNAll (Belizelogue): Itinerary for 10 Days in Belize
- BootsNAll (Belizelogue): What to Eat in Belize: Famous Belizean Foods
- Roam Right Travel Insurance: 5 Not-To-Miss Outdoor Activities in Belize
- Art of Adventuring: Going Slow in Central America: Exploring Caye Caulker's "The Split" in Belize
- No Checked Bags: Belize's BETEX Tourism Conference: Gaining a New Respect for Travel Agents
- Our Tasty Travels Dining in Belize: Casa Picasso Offers Caye Coffee Experience
- Examiner: Red Carpet Premiere of Belize's First Telenovela
- Trivago: 6 Luxury Eco-Lodges and Private Island Resorts in Belize
In addition to her regular writing, look for Erin's new Belize website, Caye To Belize, to launch later this year.
Erin's Asia Travels
If you are in need of New Media content on destinations within Asia, Erin De Santiago was an expat for nearly four years in Taiwan. During her time abroad, she fell deeply in love with Taiwan and the Taiwanese culture. She also visited a number of other countries and established herself as an expert in areas like Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan. On average, Erin visited both Japan and Hong Kong 6-8 times each every year.
Despite no longer living in Asia, Erin still returns several times a year and writes for various publications on her favorite haunts. She was the English language editor for renowned international Taipei-based chef, Daniel Negreira's second cookbook, Discovering the Modern Chef. Chef Negreira hails from Spain where he trained under some of the culinary masters like Ferran Adria and now owns one of Taiwan's top restaurants, D.N. Innovacion. In addition, Erin is the expert for both Viator. com's Hong Kong and Taiwan "Things To Do" websites.
Erin's Asia photography from Taiwan and Thailand has been used multiple times by CNN. A photo from Taroko Gorge in Taiwan won Honorable Mention and 3rd place in the Readers Choice Awards for Islands Magazine in 2011. It was also later included in their round up of Islands Magazine 101 Best Reader Photos of All Time.
Examples of Erin's published works on Asia include:
- Art of Adventuring: Taiwanese Shaved Ice Desserts: Bao Bing and Xue Hua Bing
- Gadling (AOL Travel Blog): Coming Face to Face with History in Hiroshima
- Shangri-La Hotels Inner Circle Magazine: Tastes of Taipei
- Viator.com Things to Do Hong Kong: Mongkok District
- Viator.com Things to Do Taiwan: Taipei's Night Markets
Destinations in Asia that Erin has visited include:
- China
- Hong Kong
- Indonesia
- Japan
- Macau
- Malaysia
- North Korea
- Palau
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Vietnam
Erin's Europe Travels
After leaving Taiwan in 2012, Erin relocated to a small village in the Netherlands. Shortly thereafter Erin had the opportunity to finally live in Belize -- a destination she had hoped to move to for years -- and she now currently splits her time between Belize and the Netherlands. Erin has traveled extensively through parts of Europe and is especially fond of seeking out Michelin-starred restaurants and Old World wines. Some of her regular destinations include France, Germany, and Italy. She was invited to work on a special blogging project with Emilia Romagna Tourism in Italy wherein she traveled to the region multiple times and was even media for World Ducati Week in 2012. Erin writes for Roam Right Travel Insurance and some of her specialty areas include France and Germany. Some of her recent Europe travel pieces are:
- Roam Right Travel Insurance: Secret Parisian Hotels
- Art of Adventuring: Traditional Foods in Belgium: Liege versus Brussels Style Waffles
- Roam Right Travel Insurance: Beer Lover's Guide to Europe
Erin's Europe travels include:
- Albania
- Andorra
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Ireland
- Italy
- Kosovo
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Macedonia
- Monaco
- Montenegro
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- San Marino
- Serbia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Turkey
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom
- Vatican City