Celebrating Travel's Trailblazing Women

The extraordinary English-Italian 20th-centuryexplorer and travel writer was one of the first Westerners to travel through Iran and Arabia and penned a whopping 24 travel books. Combining practical travel tips with entertaining commentary, her work significantly contributed to the understanding of the Middle East.

"To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world. You are surrounded by adventure. You have no idea of what is in store for you, but you will, if you are wise and know the art of travel, let yourself go on the stream of the unknown and accept whatever comes in the spirit in which the gods may offer it."

Burns became the first woman to pilot a Boeing 747 in 1984 while cruising from Newark to Los Angeles, and knew she wanted to become a pilot after hearing a first officer comment that women are just not smart enough to do this job. Although Burns has been integral in opening the door for women to pilot aircraft today, female pilots still only make up 5% of pilots across the top 35 global airlines.

I knew as soon as the words came out of his mouththat I wanted to be an airline captain immediately.

Alone and with just a Gladstone bag in tow, the revolutionary American journalist raced around the world in a record-breaking 72 days in the late 1880s. Inspired by Jules Verne's novel "Around the World in Eighty Days," her journey challenged gender norms and set a new standard for adventurous travel.

"I always have a comfortable feeling that nothing is impossible if one applies a certain amount of energy in the right direction. When I want things done, which is always at the last moment, and I am met with such an answer: "It's too late. I hardly think it can be done;" I simply say: "Nonsense! If you want to do it, you can do it. The question is, do you want to do it?"