About

Want to travel in a way that gives you a deeper connection to the places you visit? If you’re someone who craves authentic travel experiences that connect you with the heartbeat of a place, you’re in the right place.

Roaming the Americas is a resource for immersive travel in the United States, Canada, and Latin America.

This is a space for everyday adventurers and curious minds who want to go beyond checking things off a list or rushing through an itinerary.

Community-based indigenous tourism in Alberta, Canada - Painted Warriors Ranch

Immerse Yourself in Nature

If you love being in nature, consider yourself outdoorsy-ish, but are maybe sometimes intimidated by the outdoor industry…Hi, welcome. I’m right there with you. Here at RTA, I offer resources for everyday adventurers like you to connect with nature (and yourself) through outdoor experiences. This might mean exploring new places by bike, seeing a landscape with an Indigenous guide, escaping on a nature getaway, going whitewater rafting, learning to read a compass, or taking a waterfall road trip.

Maybe we’ll try something new along the way.

Hands of a Guatemalan woman, who is wearing yellow woven blouse and weaving with red and blue thread
Young woman with handful of peanuts on a community-based tour near Antigua, Guatemala

Immerse Yourself in Culture

Or maybe you’re curious about culture and want to connect with people and places in a meaningful way. Learning about a place doesn’t have to feel like writing a research paper or taking a high school history class.

It could be uncovering those less-touristy experiences, or maybe seeing iconic places in unique ways–like taking a hard hat tour of the abandoned hospital on Ellis Island. It could look like learning a language, listening to podcasts before a trip, or taking a cooking class to learn the cultural significance of local dishes.

With curiosity as our guide, there are so many ways to enrich our travels through learning.

Hang around for a bit to discover content that invites you to slow down, savor the moments, and truly connect with the places you visit.

About Naomi Liz

Hey! I’m Naomi Liz (Figueroa)—a writer, photographer, and lover of all things Latin America. I’m a small-town girl from Maine, transplanted to the Philadelphia area for 20 years, and now getting back to my New England roots at my home base in Connecticut. 

Portrait of Naomi Liz, the site author, sitting on a chair outside

At various points in my travels, I’ve picked up my camera and my pen to not just document what I’ve experienced, but to communicate something about what it felt like to be in those places.

My love for the outdoors was instilled at a young age as I grew up traipsing around rural Maine, where camping and hiking were our family “vacations.” As an adult, I’ve realized that I need to learn some practical skills since I no longer have a nurse and an outdoor guide (AKA Mom and Dad) along with me, so I still feel like a beginner in many areas. 

In 2004 I studied abroad in Costa Rica, and it was a catalyst in transforming the way I see travel. Aside from the experience of living with my Tico family, I was pushed out of my comfort zone continuously with assignments that required me to dig below the surface of my assumptions. I had to approach people on the streets and ask them about current events, race relations, immigration, and more—in Spanish. 

What. I’m an introvert. It was terrifying.

But it also taught me that visiting a place isn’t just about seeing new landscapes or tasting exotic foods—culture lives in the people who shape it and are continually shaped by it. 

Nowadays when I travel, I’m guided by my curiosity and belief that every place has a story to tell. And I try to get outside as often as I can in the midst of life as an adult because nature is my retreat and space for reflection. 

Through my content on Roaming the Americas, I’m here to spark some ideas, give you inspiration to get out there and engage, and offer plenty of useful resources for planning your trips.

About Naomi

Naomi Liz is a travel content creator based in Connecticut. She is the creator of Roaming the Americas, a site about immersive travel in the United States, Canada, and Latin America. Naomi has photographed professionally in a variety of contexts for 10+ years, and now focuses solely on travel photography, including aerial photos and videos as a Part 107 certified drone pilot.

Travel Photography Portfolio

Grab a coffee and stay awhile

Roaming the Americas Core Values

  • I seek to tread lightly in the places I love by embracing the three pillars of sustainable travel: protecting the environment, supporting the local economy, and engaging respectfully with culture. But I’m not perfect, and I have a strong aversion to the legalism I often see in this space–I’m simply seeking to do better. I have a mindset of traveling to connect, learn, and share experiences across cultures, all while seeking to minimize my negative impact.
  • While some travel sites publish generic content from places the author has just read about on the internet, I write about places I’ve visited so I can provide firsthand information. Occasionally, I may include a specific location (restaurant or activity) that I haven’t been, but it will only be in a destination I know and I’ll always be transparent about it.
  • The beauty of travel is about more than just visiting a place–it’s about connecting authentically with the landscape, the culture, and the people who call a place home.
  • The outdoors should be a welcoming space for everyone. We were all beginners at some point.
  • Nature is an incredible backdrop for personal growth.
  • Learning history is fascinating and gives us context for the present-day culture. History shapes culture, and culture shapes history.