The best travel journalism has the ability to transport you to a new place, whether or not you have actually visited. These six podcasts offer a mix of evocative travelogues, practical tips and expert recommendations for destinations across the globe. They are worth a listen, whether you are jetting off or staying put this summer.

This daily show tells short stories about awe-inspiring, but often overlooked, places. Most episodes run just 15 minutes to 20 minutes long, but deliver immersive explorations of places and phenomena that may not appear in your average travel guides, including geographical oddities, offbeat architecture and sculptures, and historically significant sites.

Hosted by Dylan Thuras, who co-founded travel platform Atlas Obscura, the podcast features a rotating group of reporters who bring each location to life. One recent episode focused on The Barbican in London, a sprawling and singular complex that combines a residential development with Europe’s largest performing arts centre. Alongside the history and cultural significance of the complex, the episode unpacks its importance as the kind of “third place” that is becoming more and more scarce.

Starter episode: “The Last Wild Apple Groves”

This series has been on the air in some form for more than 20 years, originally debuting as a syndicated radio show in 2005. A typical episode will feature two or three conversations between veteran travel writer Rick Steves and local experts who might be tour guides, historians, reporters or expatriates who have made a life abroad.

Although the show deals mainly with European destinations, Steves is big on encouraging travellers to step out of their comfort zones, and his advice emphasises living like a local as much as possible by avoiding tourist traps, taking public transport and approaching culture shock with curiosity rather than discomfort.

Starter episode: “Bite...