Black people have always traveled. Even during the darkest periods of American history — through Jim Crow, through sundown towns, through the era when thousands of American communities would literally expel Black people who had not left by sunset — Black families found ways to see the world. They traveled carefully, strategically, and armed with knowledge shared through community networks. They built their own resorts, their own hotels, their own destinations. They refused to let fear or hostility define the boundaries of their lives. Victor Hugo Green understood this when he published the first Negro Motorist Green Book in 1936 — a guide that listed safe hotels, restaurants, gas stations, and businesses that welcomed Black travelers during the Jim Crow era. Green described his mission as giving the Negro traveler information that would keep them from running into difficulties and embarrassments, and make their trip more enjoyable. The Green Book ran until 1966 and became a lifeline for Black American travel. It is 2025. Legal segregation is over. And yet the conversation about traveling while Black is more relevant than it has been in a generation. The dismantling of DEI initiatives, shifting political winds, and documented discrimination in travel and hospitality have prompted a new generation of Black travelers to ask the same questions Victor Hugo Green was answering nearly a century ago: Where is it safe? Where am I welcome? How do I travel smart? This guide answers those questions — practically, honestly, and with the conviction that Black people deserve to experience the full richness of this world without having to manage fear as a piece of their luggage. The Modern Green Book: Tools That Help Black Travelers Navigate Today The spirit of the original Green Book has been reborn in digital form — and today’s Black travelers have access to tools that Victor Hugo Green could not have imagined. Green Book Global (greenbookglobal.com) — The most direct digital descendant of the original Green Book. Founded by Lawrence Phillips — a Georgia Tech graduate who traveled 30-plus countries across all seven continents and documented his experience as a Black traveler globally — Green Book Global allows users to read and write destination reviews specifically from a Black traveler’s perspective. Each city has a crowd-sourced ‘Traveling While Black’ safety score, a road trip planner that identifies Black-friendly cities in the USA, and a database of Black-owned accommodations and businesses. Available as a mobile app and website Travel Noire (travelnoire.com) — One of the most influential Black travel platforms in the world. Features destination guides, travel deals, community stories, and cultural immersion experiences specifically curated for Black travelers. Their community-driven content has inspired a generation of Black travelers to explore destinations they never considered ABC Travel Greenbook (abctravelgreenbook.com) — Part of the ABC Travel Network multimedia platform, this modern Green Book helps Black travelers find community across the globe — going beyond what standard search engines surface to connect travelers to Black-owned businesses and welcoming spaces internationally Ebony Travelers (ebonytravelers.com) — A travel blog and community resource specifically focused on safe and inclusive travel for Black and Brown travelers, with destination-specific safety insights, tips for navigating microaggressions, and recommendations for welcoming hotels and experiences Black travel creator communities on social media — Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube have produced a rich ecosystem of Black travel creators who share unfiltered, real-time accounts of their experiences around the world. Searching specific destinations combined with ‘Black travel’ or ‘traveling while Black’ will surface community reviews and insights that no traditional travel guide provides Most Welcoming International Destinations for Black Travelers The world is large and most of it is genuinely welcoming to Black travelers. Here are some of the destinations that Black travelers consistently rate as exceptional experiences — places where you are not a novelty, where the culture is rich and celebratory, and where your presence is met with warmth rather than suspicion. Ghana — The Year of Return and Beyond — Ghana’s ‘Year of Return’ in 2019 — marking 400 years since the first enslaved Africans arrived in America — invited the African Diaspora back to the continent and sparked a wave of Black American and Caribbean travel that has not stopped. Cape Coast Castle, Elmina Castle, Accra’s vibrant nightlife and street food scene, the Ghanaian people’s legendary warmth — Ghana has become one of the top destinations for African Diaspora travelers seeking connection to ancestry, culture, and belonging. Many visitors describe it as a deeply healing experience Portugal — Particularly Lisbon and Porto — Portugal consistently appears at the top of Black travel recommendation lists. Lisbon and Porto are diverse, cosmopolitan, historically connected to Africa through Portugal’s colonial past, and home to significant African Diaspora communities. The cities are walkable, affordable compared to western European peers, food-obsessed, and genuinely warm to visitors of all backgrounds. Black travelers report positive experiences across the country Colombia — Cartagena and the Afro-Colombian Coast — Colombia’s Caribbean coast, particularly Cartagena and the surrounding Afro-Colombian communities, is one of the richest African Diaspora travel experiences in the western hemisphere. The African roots of Colombia’s coastal culture are visible in everything — the music (Cumbia, Champeta, Vallenato), the food, the architecture, the festivals. The city of Palenque, just outside Cartagena, is a UNESCO World Heritage site and the first free town established by escaped enslaved Africans in the Americas Tanzania — Safari and Zanzibar — Tanzania offers two extraordinary and distinct travel experiences: wildlife safaris in the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater, and the spice island of Zanzibar with its Arab, African, and Indian cultural blend, stunning beaches, and Old Stone Town. Black travelers consistently report feeling welcomed and celebrated in Tanzania Brazil — Salvador da Bahia — Salvador is the most African city in the Americas — the capital of Bahia, where African cultural traditions survived slavery more intact than almost anywhere else in the western hemisphere. Candomblé religious ceremonies, capoeira, orixá traditions, Afro-Brazilian cuisine — Bahia is where the African Diaspora can trace its cultural