PORTFOLIO
Angelo Zinna is a writer, photographer and editor currently based in Florence, Italy. He is the author of ten Lonely Planet guidebooks and has contributed with words and images to BBC Travel, National Geographic, New Lines Magazine, Condé Nast Traveller and more. Over the past decade Angelo has lived and travelled extensively across three continents. Besides travel, his main interests lie in history, European borderlands and the relationship between collective memory, place, and identity.
HISTORY + HERITAGE
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC | 2025
"How Do You Save a Language from Extinction?" →
In the 1990s, fewer than 350 people spoke Inari Sámi. Today, experts say about 500 people speak the near-extinct language, and the movement to learn it is growing.
LONELY PLANET | 2024
"The Railway Unlinking the Baltics from Their Past" →
The Baltic nations have embarked on the largest infrastructure project of the past century, aimed at redefining European connectivity, reshaping politics and starting a new historical chapter.
NEW LINES MAGAZINE | 2023
"Lenin Still Has Pride of Place in a Tiny Italian Town" →
A rare public bust of the Soviet leader symbolizes a community’s century of resistance against the right.
BBC TRAVEL | 2023
"Azerbaijan’s Ever-Burning Fire Temples" →
To understand Azerbaijan, one must understand the nation's sacred relationship with fire stemming from its ancient Zoroastrian roots.
LONELY PLANET | 2023
"Florence’s Digital Renaissance" →
Tuscany’s artistic heritage is going digital – though not without concerns.
BBC STORYWORKS | 2024
"Found in Fergana" →
In the shadows of the Tien Shan and Alay Range mountains lies the Fergana region, an area of Uzbekistan that is as rich in history as it is in culture and delicious produce.
WAYER | 2024
"Emperor Nero’s Forgotten Residence in Rome" →
Nero’s residence, once Rome’s most opulent building and then buried and forgotten, was found by Renaissance artists 1500 years later.
WAYER | 2024
"Grand Tour of Italy: How Tourists Invented 'La Bella Italia'" →
From the 16th century, British aristocrats began visiting Italy setting the foundation for the modern tourism industry.
BBC STORYWORKS | 2023
“The Balkan Country at Europe’s Crossroads” →
Venetian Renaissance architecture, pirate strongholds, and avant-garde socialist urban experiments – Montenegro’s cities tell the story of a small country at a continental junction between land and sea.
LONELY PLANET | 2023
"Get Into: Calcio Storico in Florence" →
Each year fifty-four bare-chested men beat each other up on a 5000-square-meter sand arena set up for the occasion in the heart of this Renaissance city, surrounded by 4000 cheering spectators and half a dozen ambulances.
L'INDISCRETO | 2021
“Esiste un “Nuovo Est”? Falci, martelli e soft-power: l’estetica post-post-sovietica” →
Il termine “post-sovietico” è diventato un’etichetta inglobante (e ingombrante) utilizzata per indicare una produzione culturale che, sebbene sia specifica da un punto di vista temporale, è rimasta piuttosto vaga nella sua essenza. Ha ancora senso, quindi, parlare di uno spazio culturale post-sovietico?
LONELY PLANET | 2020
“See the Haunting Beauty of the Czech Republic’s Industrial Heartland” →
Once one of the largest coal and iron production sites in Europe, Dolní Vítkovice is now a cultural heritage area representing one of the most impressive examples of 19th-century industrial architecture.
MATADOR NETWORK | 2020
Located in a remote corner of Central Asia between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the lake that was once the fourth largest in the world has been receding for the past six decades.
MATADOR NETWORK | 2019
“A Brief History of the Yurt” →
The traditional Central Asian dwelling is a majestic piece of temporary architecture.
BOOKS + LONGFORM
TRAVEL + REPORTAGE
LONELY PLANET | 2025
"Lonely Planet guide to Oulanka National Park, Finland" →
On the east side of central Finland, gorgeous Oulanka National Park is one of the country’s most beloved national parks.
FODOR'S | 2025
"The 15 Best Things to Do in Florence, Italy (and Top Things to Avoid)" →
Discover 15 must-see Florence experiences—from climbing Brunelleschi’s Duomo to sipping a Negroni—plus insider tips on planning, booking, and pitfalls to avoid.
LONELY PLANET | 2025
"Things To Known Before Traveling to Sardinia" →
Whether you are planning a road trip, a through-hike or a tour in search of the hidden coves that dot the rugged coast, keep these things in mind as you plan your Sardinian holiday.
LONELY PLANET | 2025
"All you need to know for your first trip to Estonia" →
The northernmost country of the three Baltic States may be small and sparsely populated, yet Estonia’s wild landscapes and fascinating history offer a unique combination of nature and culture.
LONELY PLANET | 2023
“How to Plan an Epic 2000-mile Hike Through Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania“ →
Forget snow-capped peaks and the well-trodden paths of alpine fame. The Baltic States offer a different kind of adventure, a hushed beauty found in bogs and silent forests endlessly expanding over the plains of northeastern Europe.
LONELY PLANET | 2020
“See the Haunting Beauty of the Czech Republic’s Industrial Heartland” →
Once one of the largest coal and iron production sites in Europe, Dolní Vítkovice is now a cultural heritage area representing one of the most impressive examples of 19th-century industrial architecture.
MATADOR NETWORK | 2020
"Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Is Packed With Odd, Angular, and Stunning Soviet Architecture" →
Built from scratch during the Soviet era, Bishkek is packed with a well-preserved collection of modernist concrete experiments.
MATADOR NETWORK | 2020
“Europe’s Largest Buddhist Community” →
Descendants of the Oirats, the westernmost group of nomadic Mongols, Kalmyk people traveled across the Volga River in search of pasture lands in the early part of the 17th century.
MATADOR NETWORK | 2020
"How to Do the Ultimate Silk Road Trip" →
With modern(ish) methods of transportation available and a relatively calm situation in most countries along the way, traveling the 5,000-mile route connecting east and west is mostly a matter of patience.
MATADOR NETWORK | 2019
“To See the Best Art and Architecture in Tashkent, Ride the Subway” →
On top of being clean and punctual, Tashkent's metro boasts some of the most artistically curated stations in the world, complete with carved pillars, golden chandeliers, and intricate mosaics featuring local, historical heroes and myths.
MATADOR NETWORK | 2019
“Traveling Overland From the Very Top of Russia to the Bottom of Iran" →
Starting at the 69th parallel north, I set out to travel along the invisible line that separates Europe from Asia to reach lower Iran.
MATADOR NETWORK | 2019
“Kyiv Is an Amazing Hub for Street Art – and These Are the Best Murals in the City” →
Kiev’s fame as an Eastern European cultural hotspot has increased dramatically since 2014 when a number of large murals began appearing on the facades of old Soviet buildings.
CLIMATE + ENVIRONMENT
VALIGIA BLU | 2021
Se il mondo smettesse di consumare carne e latticini nell’arco dei prossimi 15 anni, il processo di riscaldamento del globo potrebbe essere fermato per i successivi 30 anni.
VALIGIA BLU | 2021
La carne prodotta in laboratorio, conosciuta anche come carne "coltivata" o "pulita", non è più una visione della fantascienza.
VALIGIA BLU | 2021
“Contro gli allevamenti intensivi" →
Le Nazioni Unite chiedono una riduzione rapida e drastica del consumo globale di carne per limitare i suoi effetti negativi sull’ambiente, mentre dall’altra la domanda di proteine animali continua a crescere con l’aumento della popolazione mondiale.
