Well, all of these terms are used to describe the same thing; a film on travel or a lecture or notes on travel experience. Travelogue as a web term was made popular in the late 1990s to describe personal travel websites. Sites such as TravelPod (http://www.travelpod.com/) allowed their online members to post their travel experience. This trend caught on and has snowballed into a full-blown genre that is greatly enjoyed by web savvy individuals and companies alike.These days, as "blog" has become more of a main stream term, these personal travel websites have been slowly adopting the term Travel Blog. It's all very confusing but the bottom line is that it's all the same. Anyone who enjoys traveling, learning about new cultures and viewing exciting lands can write a travelogue. Some travel writers are people who travel and make their living by writing about it. Travelogues have moved on to new levels and now we are seeing lectures, slide shows and even motion pictures describing travels. New web technologies have made it possible to put Travelogues digital collection into interactive form drawing on the cheaply available but advanced multi-media expertise.
History
Since the middle ages, people have kept diary entries, travelogues and stories of travelling around the globe. Exciting memoirs have been written from diaries of people traveling in a variety of different ways in or through various countries and continents. So travel stories and nicely slanted insights about far flung regions and bemusing cultures have indeed been around for a long time. Just as the early explorers of the new lands packed their compass and telescope to guide them in their quest for adventure, now we are seeing the modern traveler trekking and climbing around the world with a laptop and digital camera.
For example Dom Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese explorer, one of the most successful explorers in the European Age of Discovery (1400 AD) and the commander of the first ships to sail directly from Europe to India, wrote a lot and his travels were a major break through, linking Europe with the new lands.
Modern day travelers derive pleasure from tracing the route of the old Voyage of Discovery around the world. Chronicles of the on-going sailing journey around the globe are big hits with the media.Traveling tips and roadside recommendations for crossing continents by car, motorcycle, or bike are exciting serialisations on television and in books. These first hand accounts including roadtrip planning help, scenic routes, and recommended sights along the way draw a lot of interest for adventure-seeking travelers.
Travel literature
Travel literature is travel writing considered to have value as literature. Travel literature typically records the people, events, sights and feelings of an author who is touring a foreign place for the pleasure of travel. An individual work is sometimes called a travelogue or itinerary.
To be called literature the work must have a coherent narrative, or insights and value, beyond a mere logging of dates and events, such as a diary or ship's log. Literature that recounts adventure, exploration and conquest is often grouped under travel literature, but it also has its own genre: outdoor literature. These genres will often overlap with no definitive boundaries. Travel literature is not to be confused with travel guides which are usually a series distributed by a publisher, each dealing with a particular country, city or region. These information and publications are useful for travellers, as they provide a wealth of information on hotels, restaurants, major sights, travel tips etc. We all know the writings of Michael Palin and the popular Lonely Planet country guides. Writers of these literature are often specialists who travel and write these books for a living.
Accounts of personal adventure may also be considered as travel literature. Fictional travelogues make up a large proportion of travel literature. Many "fictional" works of travel literature are based on factual journeys. Some of the most interesting imaginary accounts and even highly fantastic journeys contain factual elements.
Where
As this genre becomes popular, the need for a place to submit your travelogue for other travelers to read has become a necessity. Some sites are offering free web space for travelers who would like to share their travel stories while they're on the road. Other sites have guidelines on how to be published on the web and learn how to be a worldwide correspondent for travel sites, media houses and companies.
Some particularly fabulous or horrific experience at an airport,customs, immigration make useful reading. Others are advise on how best to spend your time at an airport when traveling. Some sites show you how to save money and time by staying at an heathrow airport hotels.
Travelogues are here to stay and soon they will be a way of life.