Annie Fitzsimmons

Annie Fitzsimmons is a luxury travel expert and editor, working in the travel industry for nearly 20 years. She is currently Editorial Director at Indagare, a luxury travel agency and media company founded in 2007. Her first book–for National Geographic and Disney Publishing–“100 Hotels of a Lifetime,” will be published in December 2024.

Most recently, she was Luxury Travel + Advisor Editor at AFAR Media, launching a successful newsletter. Prior to that, she held many roles at National Geographic Travel over nine years, including Editor at Large, Luxury Editor, and Urban Insider. She also was an editor at Virtuoso for three years. Across a constantly changing travel and media landscape, Annie has cultivated a vast network of friends and colleagues. She has traveled to six continents for work and will make it to Antarctica one day!

In March 2020, as the world shut down, she began hosting AFAR Live, featuring travel leaders and personalities such as Netflix’s Phil Rosenthal and Hermès CEO Bob Chavez, in front of an online audience of thousands. She worked with International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM) to produce and host a podcast showcasing the true value of luxury travel, a $2.05 trillion ecosystem that supports around 170 million jobs, 90 percent of which are family or small businesses.

At National Geographic, she pitched and created the vision for an entirely new brand as National Geographic’s first and only Urban Insider, focusing on cities, culture, and lifestyle, and was a founding member of their Editorial Council. Within National Geographic, Annie leveraged her personality status and engaged social following to cross-promote brand initiatives across print, digital, and social media. She was the spokesperson for two NatGeo books, The World’s Best Cities and The World’s Most Romantic Destinations, through radio and media interviews. As Urban Insider, she worked with an editor and producer to execute on an annual editorial calendar. She also helped launch National Geographic’s first luxury magazine.

She has an in-depth understanding of advertorial, sponsored content, and commercials. Annie appeared in national campaigns for travel and lifestyle brands like Mexico, Maui Jim, Quebec City, and Colonial Williamsburg. She also been the main talent in national TV spots, including for Transitions Lenses and Buick.

SPEAKING: Annie has been a speaker and panelist on luxury travel trends, media, and content at many events around the world, including SXSW in Austin, World Travel Market in London, the International Tourism Conference in Latvia (as keynote speaker, sponsored by the U.S. Embassy in Riga), the Hospitality World Congress in Barcelona, ILTM Americas in Mexico, and luxury hotel regional meetings, like Ritz-Carlton. In the first years of her travel career, she wrote for USA Today, Forbes, Travel + Leisure, CNN, Robb Report, Gotham, and Hamptons.

“As with any renowned and respected journalist, Annie Fitzsimmons is an exceptional communicator who seeks to understand, evaluate and then impart her wisdom in a way that truly engages her audience. She is thorough, pays attention to detail and acts with integrity; values that we rate highly at The Ritz-Carlton. Each time Annie has presented to a group of our leaders, her contribution has been invaluable and her sparkling personality ensures continued invitations to return.”

Allison Sitch, Vice President, Global Public Relations, The Ritz-Carlton

Her first jobs in the industry were in hotel communications and as an international tour guide, which helped shape a top-level view of the entire hospitality and travel media industry. She is known for her interview skills and has connected with a wide range of A-list luminaries in business, technology, entertainment, and fashion.

Beyond her dedicated, enthusiastic devotion to her job and the luxury travel industry, she is happiest having afternoon tea, reading a great book, exploring new restaurants, and on long walks and bike rides through cities. She is also a licensed New York City tour guide. Annie is originally from Scottsdale, Arizona, spent the last decade in New York City (Brooklyn Heights), and is now based in west London with her husband, toddler daughter, and dog.