Lee Abbamonte FRGS (born August 29, 1978) is an American travel blogger, on-air travel personality and entrepreneur[1] who has been to all 193 United Nations member states,[2] the North Pole[3] and the South Pole.[4][5]
Lee Abbamonte | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | August 29, 1978 Bridgeport, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Maryland, College Park |
| Occupation(s) | Travel blogger, speaker |
Early life
editLee Abbamonte was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut[6] and raised in Trumbull, Connecticut.[7][8] He graduated in 2000 from the University of Maryland, College Park, where he received a degree from the Robert H. Smith School of Business.[9] Abbamonte earned his MBA from the Thunderbird School of Global Management (now part of Arizona State University) in 2010.[10]
After college, Abbamonte worked on Wall Street, spending time at Cantor Fitzgerald at the original One World Trade Center,[11][12] Intercontinental Exchange, Citigroup, and Merrill Lynch.[13]
Travel career
editBy 2006, Abbamonte had visited more than 100 countries.[13] In that year he launched his travel blog LeeAbbamonte.com[14] and decided to make an effort to visit every country in the world, completing the goal in 2011 at the age of 32.[2] He is currently regarded as one of the world's most well-traveled people[15] and one of a handful of people to visit every country and both geographic poles.[16]
Abbamonte has appeared on television hundreds of times, including as an expert on CNN,[17] FOX Business,[15] Fox News,[18] Bloomberg,[19] Fox 5 New York,[20] and Travel Channel.[21] He has been featured, quoted or written about in dozens of publications including USA Today,[22] BBC,[23] Bravo,[5] Chicago Tribune,[24] Forbes,[25] New York,[1] Slate,[26] Condé Nast Traveler,[27] ABC News,[28] The Washington Post,[29] Martha Stewart Weddings,[30] The Huffington Post,[31] and U.S. News & World Report.[32]
As a speaker, Abbamonte has appeared at The New York Times Travel Show,[33] South by Southwest,[34] Public Relations Society of America Travel and Tourism Conference,[35] Travel Bloggers Exchange,[36] the Travel & Adventure Show,[37] and New York Trav Fest,[38] among others.[39]
Abbamonte is a member of the Travelers' Century Club[40] and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.[9] During an interview on the Frommers Radio Travel Show, Arthur Frommer called him the "Marco Polo of the 21st Century."[41]
Interest in sports
editAbbamonte is a professed sports fan, having written and spoken about his love of all sports. His favorite teams are the New York Yankees, New York Giants, Maryland Terrapins men's basketball, Miami Hurricanes football, Arsenal F.C., FC Barcelona, and the now-defunct Hartford Whalers.[8][42]
Abbamonte made his television debut in 2006, appearing on the ESPN sports trivia show Stump the Schwab.[43]
References
edit- ^ a b Davis, Arianna (June 30, 2014). "Meet the Bro Who Plans Outrageous Wall Street Bachelor Parties". New York Media LLC. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ a b "The Best Travelled – UN Master List" Archived 2019-05-04 at the Wayback Machine, The Best Travelled Retrieved 21 February 2016
- ^ "How I Made it to the North Pole". 21 April 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ "How I Made it to the South Pole". 21 December 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ a b "Must-Read Travel Inspiration From the Youngest American to Visit Every Country: "All Excuses Are Bogus"". Bravo Media LLC./NBC Universal. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ Abbamonte, Lee (13 May 2013). "Medjumbe Private Island". Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ Whamond, Keith (June 5, 2007). "Trumbull native takes aim at worldly target". Hearst Media Services Connecticut, LLC. Connecticut Post. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- ^ a b Mike Siegel (19 January 2015). "Travel Tales Podcast: Lee Abbamonte" (Podcast). Event occurs at 1:25:03. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ a b "Terp Travels the World". University of Maryland Alumni Association. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ Buzgar, Alina (February 12, 2015). "Living the Dream: Lee Abbamonte". Thunderbird School of Global Management. Das Tor. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ "9/11/01 Ten Years Later". 11 September 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ Jennings, Ken. "I've been everywhere, man". Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ a b Hackley, Randall (December 11, 2007). "Sleeping in a Yurt, Retching in a Sink: Globetrotters Unite". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ "LeeAbbamonte.com". Lee Abbamonte. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ a b "Airlines now giving frequent flier miles for high spenders". FOX News Network LLC. 31 December 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ "Meet the Youngest American to Visit Every Country in the World". Condé Nast. 19 January 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ "Be a better traveler". 19 July 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ Fox & Friends (November 29, 2015). "How to be the perfect passenger during holiday travel". FOX News Network LLC. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
- ^ "How to Be a Million-Dollar Travel Blogger". Bloomberg. 20 August 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Morris, Alison. "Travel tips that will save you time and money". Fox Television Stations, Inc. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ "Skyventure Montreal". Travel Channel. 31 December 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Trejos, Nancy (December 27, 2014). "Why travel to Cuba?". USA Today. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ "Forms of identification: Lee Abbamonte". BBC. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Noel, Josh. "Where is the 'perfect city'? The experts check in". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
- ^ Talty, Alexandra (December 29, 2014). "Seven Best Budget Travel Destinations". Forbes Media. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Jennings, Ken (September 22, 2011). "The World's Most Traveled Man". The Slate Group. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Abbamonte, Lee (24 August 2012). "Lord Howe Island: So Far Away, But So Worth It". Condé Nast. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Chen, Amy (May 9, 2013). "Experts Share Their Go-To Business Travel Gear". ABC News Internet Ventures. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Sachs, Andrea. "Tips on how to travel light without sacrificing comfort and style". The Washington Post. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
- ^ Katz, Brooke Porter. "10 Travel Tips from the Youngest American to Visit Every Country in the World!". Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
- ^ Abbamonte, Lee (11 July 2012). "5 Tips To Visit Every Country In The World". TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Weiss, Liz. "7 Top Places to Avoid Spring Break Crowds". U.S. News Travel. U.S. News & World Report LP. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
- ^ "Attendance Surges at 2015 New York Times Travel Show" (Press release). The New York Times Company. 2 February 2015. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ "Get Inspired to Travel Like a Globetrotter Meet Up". SXSW, LLC. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Berardino, Angela. "PRSA Travel + Tourism Conference 2014: Key Learnings". Turner Public Relations. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ "Lee Abbamonte". NMX Events. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ "THE 13TH ANNUAL DC TRAVEL & ADVENTURE SHOW BRINGS TOP TRAVEL EXPERTS, 1000s OF VACATION OPTIONS & INTERNATIONAL CULTURE & CUISINES TO WASHINGTON DC JANUARY 14–15, 2017". Unicomm, LLC. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ Herrmann, Michele. "Lee Abbamonte to Deliver NY Trav Fest's Sunday Keynote". Archived from the original on 11 March 2015. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ "TCC Int'l Meeting Speaker". 25 July 2007. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ "Photos From the May 2013 New York Luncheon". The Travelers' Century Club. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Arthur and Pauline Frommer (2014). "Frommers Radio Travel Show: Lee Abbamonte" (Podcast). Event occurs at 18:27. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ Abbamonte, Lee (17 December 2012). "Sports and Travel Just Go Together". HuffPost. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ Alexander, Chico. "Shortshots Tuesday: September 26, 2006". Game Show NewsNet. Retrieved 7 March 2015.