History of Black Travel

The History Of Black Travel timeline was created by the Black Travel Alliance in partnership with Tourism RESET

Learn about the pioneers, groundbreakers, and the History Of Black Travel, including major migration movements and leisure travel developments. Also, major judicial and legislative events, as well as cultural and historical events, have inspired Black travel.

Included in the initial launch of the History Of Black Travel timeline are 130+ entries from the Americas, focusing mostly on the United States. The plan is to continue building out the timeline to add Black leisure travel stories from all continents and countries across the globe.

All

United States – National Museum of African American Music

National Museum of African American Music.
2021

The National Museum of African American Music is the premier global destination for music lovers of all generations, and inspires, educates, and transforms appreciation of American music. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, this museum’s mission is to educate the world, preserve the legacy, and celebrate the central role African.. Read More...

United States – The Black Traveler: Insights, Opportunities & Priorities

The Black Traveler Insights, Opportunities & Priorities
2020

On September 9th, 2000, MMGY Global announced that they would be developing a series of market research studies to be informed by diverse travel advocacy organizations to better identify the needs, behaviors, and sentiments of underrepresented travel communities. The first installment of these studies titled  The Black Traveler: Insights, Opportunities.. Read More...

United States – Black Travel Alliance

Black Travel Alliance Board Members
2020

The Black Travel Alliance was launched on June 16th, 2020 by a group of Black Travel Content Creators from across the globe. As travel authors, bloggers, broadcasters, journalists, photographers, podcasters, social media influencers, and vloggers, they unified to amplify. The Black Travel Alliance also aims to provide training and business.. Read More...

United States – Jessica Nabongo, Completes Goal Of Visiting All 195 United Nations Member Countries

Jessica Nabongo in Guinea-Bissau. Photo Credit: © Jessica Nabongo via Instagram.
2019

On October 6, 2019, Jessica Nabongo completed her goal of visiting all 195 United Nations member countries and observing states, including the Vatican and Palestine, when she arrived in her final country, Seychelles. A travel entrepreneur and photographer, Nabongo, documented her journey via social media, particularly her popular Instagram account.. Read More...

United States – Woni Spotts, Completes Goal Of Visiting All 195 United Nations Member Countries

Woni Spotts visiting the Great Wall of China in 2015. Photo Credit: © Woni Spotts via Instagram.
2018

On September 28, 2018, Woni Spotts completed her goal of visiting all seven continents and the 195 countries recognized by the United Nations. Much of Spotts travel occurred during the 1970s and 1980s before the era of social media, and so her proof comes in the form of airline records,.. Read More...

United States – National Memorial for Peace and Justice

2018

The Equal Justice Initiative National Memorial for Peace and Justice and Legacy Museum is the country’s first Memorium for the legacy of enslaved Black people and is informally referred to as the National Lynching Memorial as it details the nation’s dark history of torture, humiliation, and subjugation of African Americans... Read More...

United States Civil Rights Trail

U.S. Civil Rights Trail logo.
2018

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail is a coalition of more than 100 churches, public service buildings, museums, and other landmarks in the South of the United States. These played a pivotal role in advancing social justice in the 1950s and 1960s, including those for Black road travelers. Some of the.. Read More...

United States – The Historical Harrington School

Historic Harrington School. Photo Credit: © Historic Harrington School.
2017

The Historic Harrington School, formerly known as the Harrington Graded School, was built in the 1920s and served as the main educational structure for three African American communities on St. Simons Island, Georgia, United States. In 2017, The Historic Harrington School on St Simons Island finishes renovation and opens as.. Read More...

United States – Kellee Edwards, First Black Woman To Host A Travel Channel Show

Kellee Edwards, an avid traveler, licensed pilot, advanced open water scuba diver and TV host. Photo Credit: © Kellee Edwards.
2017

Kellee Edwards is an avid traveler, licensed pilot, and advanced open water scuba diver. In 2017, she became the first solo Black woman to host a travel series “Mysterious Islands” for the Travel Channel. Mysterious Islands is a travel series that explores some of the most remote islands in the.. Read More...

United States – National Museum Of African American History And Culture

National Museum of African American History and Culture. Photo Credit: © Alan Karchmer via Smithsonian Institution.
2016

Description: The National Museum of African American History and Culture opened in Washington DC on September 24, 2016, making the four-level museum the only national museum solely dedicated to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture. The museum allows visitors to walk the path of American Americans from.. Read More...

United States – Whitney Plantation Historic District

The Big House at Whitney Plantation Historic District in Louisiana. Photo Credit: © Bill Leiser via Wikimedia Commons.
2014

First opened to the public on December 7, 2014, The Whitney Plantation Historic District is a museum devoted to educating the public about the history of slavery and its legacies. The museum, including the main house and outbuildings, is preserved near Wallace, in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana, on.. Read More...

United States – President Barack Obama Visits Goree Island

2013

President Obama, the first Black president of the United States visits Goree Island, Senegal, with his wife, First Lady, Michell Obama, and other members of their family. Goree Island is a symbolically important landmark that serves as a reminder of ships bound for America bearing enslaved Africans in shackles. References:.. Read More...

United States – Denali Expedition

Team of African American climbers in 2013, part of Expedition Denali. Photo Credit: © Expedition Denali.
2013

On June 7, 1913, Walter Harper, Harry Karstens, Hudson Stuck, and Robert Tatum were credited with being the first men to reach the top of Mt. McKinley’s, now known as Denali. To mark the 100th anniversary, a team of African Americans did a similar climb. Known as the Denali Expedition,.. Read More...

United States – Pin Point Heritage Museum

2012

Pin Point Heritage Museum located in Savannah, Georgia, showcases the history and culture of the Gullah Geechee people, a product of West African traditions brought to America on slave ships.   References: Pin Point Heritage Museum. Video: “Pin Point Heritage Museum – Savannah, GA,” Visit Savannah, YouTube video, 0:47, February.. Read More...

United States – Nomadness Travel Tribe

Audacity Festival organized by Nomadness Travel Tribe. Photo Credit: © Nomadness Travel Tribe.
2011

Evita Turquoise Robinson launches Nomadness Travel Tribe, building an online community of over 20,000 Black travelers.  This is the first online community for Black travelers, inspiring the growth of other outlets like Travel Noire and the Black Travel Movement. Beyond the online community, Nomadness Travel Travel offers a range of.. Read More...

United States – Withers Collection Museum & Gallery

2011

The Withers family open the Withers Collection Museum & Gallery on Beale Street in Memphis, TN. Opened in February 2011, the museum and archive displays the photography of Ernest Withers, an African American entertainment and civil rights photographer who worked on Beale Street before its revitalization. References: Withers Collection Museum.. Read More...

United States – Barbara Hillary, First Black Woman To Reach North Pole & South Pole

2007

Barbara Hillary was born in New York City on June 12, 1931, and raised in Harlem. She attended New School University in New York, going on to become a nurse. Surviving lung cancer, she became interested in Arctic travel during her retirement. Raising over $25,000 to fund her expedition to.. Read More...

United States – Barrington Irving, First Black Person And Youngest Person To Fly Solo Around The World

2007

Born in Kingston, Jamaica but residing in the United States from a young age, Barrington Irving became the first African American to fly solo around the globe. Irving started his solo journey from Miami, Florida on March 23, 2007 and after stopping in various countries in Europe, Africa, The Middle.. Read More...

United States – Mississippi Blues Trail

2006

Music fans have always been drawn to the history along U.S. Highway 61. The 1,400 miles from New Orleans to Minnesota has been called the “Blues Highway” for the path through the northwestern Mississippi region known as the Delta, where the earliest blues sounds originated. The Mississippi Blues Trail is.. Read More...

United States – Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission

Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission logo.
2006

The Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor is a federal National Heritage Area in the United States, signifying the important story of the Gullah-Geechee people for sustaining their cultural traditions, and for being a reflection of the values of ingenuity, pride, and perseverance. The Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor extends along the coast.. Read More...