Oneika Raymond
Oneika Raymond

Want to know how to travel in style, just like the pros? We check in with frequent fliers to find out how often they fly, their favorite destinations and what they never leave home without.

Name: Oneika Raymond

Occupation: Travel Journalist and Host 

Hometown: Toronto, Canada

Residence: New York City

College: University of Toronto, Université de Nice (France)

College major: French Literature and Education

Website: oneikathetraveller.com

Twitter: @oneikatraveller

Facebook: Oneika the Traveller

Instagram: oneikatraveller

Pinterest: Oneika the Traveller

YouTube: OneikaTraveller

Short bio: Explorer, media personality, and journalist Oneika Raymond is the host of two Travel Channel series: Big City, Little Budget and One Bag and You’re Out. She’s also the in-house travel expert on CTV Canada’s nationally broadcast news program Your Morning. A bona fide travel junkie, her adventures abroad have taken her to over 100 countries on six continents. A thrill-seeker who’s always in the midst of planning her next trip, Oneika has bungee-jumped over the Zambezi River, fished for piranhas in the Amazon, and climbed active volcanoes in Guatemala and Ecuador.

Oneika is also the voice behind Oneika the Traveller, an award-winning travel blog dedicated to inspiring, encouraging, and empowering women and people of color to see the world. She’s written for and been profiled on the BBC, Condé Nast Traveler, The Wall Street Journal, Ebony, National Geographic Traveler, BuzzFeed, and CNN. An aspiring polyglot and former foreign language educator, she speaks fluent English, French and Spanish, and is currently learning German.

How often do you fly? 3-4 times a month.

How many countries have you been to? 103

How many continents have you been to? 6

Earliest travel memory: Travelling to Kingston, Jamaica to visit family.

Favorite American city: Los Angeles. I love Venice Beach!

Favorite international city: So difficult to say! A three-way tie between Rio de Janeiro, Hong Kong, and Paris.

Least favorite country: None come to mind!

I have no desire to go to: I’ll go anywhere as long as it’s (relatively) safe.

Country with the meanest immigration officers: I hate to say it, but I’ve come across a lot of meanies at U.S. immigration. 

Favorite World Heritage Site: The rock-hewn churches in Lalibela, Ethiopia.

Favorite airline: Cathay Pacific!

Favorite aircraft type: A380.

Aisle or window: Aisle.

Favorite U.S. airport: Dallas-Fort Worth.

Favorite international airport: Doha, Qatar.

Favorite beach: Copacabana Beach in Rio.

Favorite hole-in-the-wall: I lived in Hong Kong for five years. There was a Japanese place near where I lived in Sai Ying Pun that had EXCELLENT takeout sushi. I ate there four to five times a week!

Favorite fruit: Dragonfruit.

Drink of choice (in the air and on the ground): Diet Coke with lemon.

Right now I am reading: “Homegoing” by Yaa Gyasi.

5 things you bring on a plane:

  1. A headscarf (my ears get cold!)
  2. A pair of socks
  3. Headphones
  4. My laptop (best place to get work done!)
  5. Something to read

What do you always seem to forget? My chargers/ batteries!

What do you like least about travel? Long flights. I get so bored!

Most embarrassing travel moment: I had terrible food poisoning in Yangshou, China and spent an hour on the floor of the airport clutching my stomach and moaning.

I’m embarrassed I haven’t been to: Many places in Canada. It’s my home country but I’ve barely travelled in it! 

Worst travel moment: Getting mugged in Egypt at the very beginning of my trip. What a bummer.

What’s your dream destination? Many places in Africa. Madagascar. Namibia. The Seychelles. The list goes on.

Best travel tip: Book the ticket now, worry about the details later!

 

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