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Mad Travelers: A Tale of Wanderlust, Greed and the Quest to Reach the Ends of the Earth
"This is a wonderful book about my favorite subject—travel obsessed individuals indulging themselves in solitary wanderlust." Paul Theroux
A brilliant, young con artist offered to help the world's most traveled people reach the planet's last untouched frontiers; instead, they were taken for a wild ride that turned into a costly lesson on the perils of wanderlust.
At twenty-three, William Simon Baekeland was well on his way to becoming the world's best traveled person. The "billionaire" heir to a great plastics fortune had already visited 163 countries, but his real passion was finding ways to visit the world's most challenging destinations—war torn cities, disputed territories, and remote or officially off-limits islands at the margins of the map. He earned rock-star status in the world of extreme travel by finding ingenious ways to bring the world's most widely traveled people to difficult-to-reach and forbidden places. But when his story began to unravel, an eccentric group of hyper-well-traveled country collectors were left wondering how they had allowed their obsession to blind them to the warning signs that William Baekeland wasn't who they thought he was.
Mad A Tale of Wanderlust, Greed and the Quest to Reach the Ends of the Earth delves deep inside the subculture of country collecting, taking readers to danger zones like Mogadishu and geographical oddities like Norway's nearly impossible-to-reach Bouvet Island. Along the way, this raucous tale of adventure and international intrigue illuminates the perils and pleasures of wanderlust while examining a fundamental why are some people compelled to travel, while others are content to stay home? Mad Travelers is a perceptive and at times hilarious account of how the pursuit of everywhere put the world's greatest travelers at the mercy of a brilliant young con man.
Featured in an HBO docuseries.
A brilliant, young con artist offered to help the world's most traveled people reach the planet's last untouched frontiers; instead, they were taken for a wild ride that turned into a costly lesson on the perils of wanderlust.
At twenty-three, William Simon Baekeland was well on his way to becoming the world's best traveled person. The "billionaire" heir to a great plastics fortune had already visited 163 countries, but his real passion was finding ways to visit the world's most challenging destinations—war torn cities, disputed territories, and remote or officially off-limits islands at the margins of the map. He earned rock-star status in the world of extreme travel by finding ingenious ways to bring the world's most widely traveled people to difficult-to-reach and forbidden places. But when his story began to unravel, an eccentric group of hyper-well-traveled country collectors were left wondering how they had allowed their obsession to blind them to the warning signs that William Baekeland wasn't who they thought he was.
Mad A Tale of Wanderlust, Greed and the Quest to Reach the Ends of the Earth delves deep inside the subculture of country collecting, taking readers to danger zones like Mogadishu and geographical oddities like Norway's nearly impossible-to-reach Bouvet Island. Along the way, this raucous tale of adventure and international intrigue illuminates the perils and pleasures of wanderlust while examining a fundamental why are some people compelled to travel, while others are content to stay home? Mad Travelers is a perceptive and at times hilarious account of how the pursuit of everywhere put the world's greatest travelers at the mercy of a brilliant young con man.
Featured in an HBO docuseries.
256 pages, Paperback
Published June 1, 2021
18 people are currently reading
322 people want to read
About the author
Dave Seminara
6 books22 followersDave Seminara is a writer, former diplomat and self-diagnosed pathological traveler who lives in St. Petersburg, Florida. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, BBC, The Washington Post, Outside, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Chicago Magazine, ESPN, The Boston Globe and dozens of other publications. His first book, Bed, Breakfast & Drunken Threats: Dispatches from the Margins of Europe was a #1 bestseller in Malta and Liechtenstein. In 2016, Dave won a Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism award and his stories have been featured as notable stories of the year in the 2014 edition of The Best American Sports Writing and the 2015 and 2019 editions of The Best American Travel Writing.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
May 20, 2021
This is not a book about William Baekeland, as I mistakenly assumed when I first picked up the book. It's a deep dive into the social and cultural context which paved the way for con artists, like William Baekeland, to take advantage of a group of smart, experienced travelers, featuring exclusive communication with the aforementioned, who has declined to speak directly to other reporters.
Woven between interviews with self-proclaimed extreme travelers and "William" or "Jesse" or whatever he is going by these days, the author includes anecdotes about the history of nomadism, commentary on the modern travel industry, the biology behind our primal instinct to seek novel experiences, and a selection of excerpts from others who have pondered the intersection of these topics before.
This book’s release coincides with the premiere of HBO docuseries, Generation Hustle, which features Baekeland, but it also comes at a time where we are collectively examining our relationship with travel as a global pandemic has brought with it new freedoms juxtaposed with travel restrictions. Mad Travelers inspired my own introspection about why I struggle to stay in one place and am drawn to the freedom of the open road: am I going somewhere or just anywhere? What would I sacrifice to go where I haven't gone before?
For many of us who are drawn to this book, we can understand exactly why country collectors would be charmed by the 20 year old who claims to be close to seeing the whole world and, to those who finish the book, we can understand why those claims may have been made in the first place.
Woven between interviews with self-proclaimed extreme travelers and "William" or "Jesse" or whatever he is going by these days, the author includes anecdotes about the history of nomadism, commentary on the modern travel industry, the biology behind our primal instinct to seek novel experiences, and a selection of excerpts from others who have pondered the intersection of these topics before.
This book’s release coincides with the premiere of HBO docuseries, Generation Hustle, which features Baekeland, but it also comes at a time where we are collectively examining our relationship with travel as a global pandemic has brought with it new freedoms juxtaposed with travel restrictions. Mad Travelers inspired my own introspection about why I struggle to stay in one place and am drawn to the freedom of the open road: am I going somewhere or just anywhere? What would I sacrifice to go where I haven't gone before?
For many of us who are drawn to this book, we can understand exactly why country collectors would be charmed by the 20 year old who claims to be close to seeing the whole world and, to those who finish the book, we can understand why those claims may have been made in the first place.
April 12, 2022
A con story and a fun adventure for armchair travelers or actual travelers alike. You'll go to the edges of the world in this book and get a look inside the subculture of the world's most well-traveled people. Dave is a great storyteller. It's a fast, engrossing read and an original idea.
March 11, 2022
Ick. I barfed a little in my mouth (and stopped reading) when I read the author’s description of Captain James Cook: “Captain James Cook is one of history’s best examples of a person who wasn’t afraid to explore new places. Even at tremendous risk and personal hardship. He grew up poor, the son of a farm laborer and he became one of the world’s greatest navigators. Cook could have dined out for life after his first voyage across the Pacific on the H.M.S. Endeavor. Instead, and despite the fact that he was a family man in his forties with six children, he made two more epic journeys of discovery in the Pacific, crossed mostly uncharted waters before being stabbed to death on a beach in Hawaii at fifty.” While some of the facts may be true, it leaves a lot to be desired in the way of an honest, well rounded description — and anyone who thinks so highly of Cook is not an author whose work I want to read.
May 2, 2021
Excellent book by Dave Seminara (BBC Travel, Wall Street Journal, New York Times). It combines the real story about young con man "Baekeland" (currently on HBO Max Generation Hustle), with a lot of background research about "Mad Travelers" in general, in history and in literature. The book is easy to read, always bringing a funny remark, when a scientific term is too dry, like "Fugue" or "Dromomania" (medical terms for "travel madness"). There are plenty of references to other famous and classic books about mad travelers in history. And a good report about the best known names in the "scene" of today's mad travelers. These are also known as country collectors, systematic or extreme travelers, and they try like mad "to go everywhere". And like every good author, Dave Seminara even finds examples for the anti-thesis, that is people who hate traveling more than anything, and in this book they do get room to explain why. But neither Seminara (nor myself) really understand those travel deniers ;-) Dave Seminara's "Mad Travelers" is the opus magnum about addiction to travel.
July 3, 2021
I really enjoyed this book. I didn't realize that people can be addicted to travel. I didn't even realize that extreme travel is treated as a very competitive sport in some corners. I learned a lot about this world. I dream of traveling to some of these places, for example I have always wanted to travel to Antarctica. Mr Seminara explores his subject in an enjoyable manner. He lets us in on his own wanderlust. Good book to read as you travel on your summer vacation!
August 13, 2021
An interesting, enjoyable yet a bit scary read about the life of Mr Baekeland. However, the book turned out to be much more. As a big traveller myself, it made me realise some important things about travel through great research on related studies.
April 5, 2022
This book has something for everyone. It is a review of research on travel, nomadism, and the need to explore our world. It profiles some of the world's most traveled people, taking a look at their lives and what drives them. It is also a true-crime story. Is William a con artist or is he an extreme traveler who got in over his head? It is a fascinating read.
February 6, 2022
This is a great great brilliant book and I recommend it for anyone who is an extreme traveler, or even anyone who just likes the idea of extreme travel. Not so much for just average travelers or non-travelers! This book brilliantly blends the story of a very young extreme traveler named William Baekeland with some travel history, the psychology of extreme travelers versus average travelers versus non-travelers, how extreme travel can affect your relationships with family or friends or significant others, the dark and bright sides of extreme travel, etc… plus it gives case studies of a few of the best traveled people or extreme travelers from around the world. Seriously, read it! As someone who loves the idea of extreme travel, this book made me feel different in a good way after reading it.
April 20, 2022
Very well written, exciting book by Dave Seminara , a must read for all ,not only mad travellers.
April 14, 2022
It's worth reading Dave Seminara's books every time.
Many thanks for this beauty.
Many thanks for this beauty.
April 14, 2022
This book was a very fun read. As an avid traveler it has inspired me to step up my game.
April 15, 2022
An engaging and fascinating book about a class and type of travelers who attempt to travel to far corners of the globe. Read this book to get a flavor of this unique traveler.
April 15, 2022
Excellent book on the compulsion of extreme travel and the people who pursue it. What a cast of characters! The collection of earnest, gullible and dubious people of this small club are worth your time. And the author’s interactions with the mysterious Mr. Baekeland is fascinating. This is a fun and interesting read.
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April 13, 2022This author appears to be harassing readers who draft unflattering reviews by sending them repeated emails and threatening to sue. Good reads should not tolerate this behavior.
April 16, 2022
I really enjoyed this book. I consider myself well-traveled, having been to almost 100 countries, but that's nothing compared to those who want to see and do it all. Fascinating read!
April 17, 2022
Dave Seminara approaches Mad Travelers with resourcefulness and, foremost, curiosity. As a result, a book about a potentially esoteric subject—extreme travelers and country collectors—expands into a fascinating study of human behavior. A lifelong traveler himself, the author approaches (and reapproaches) the impulses that lead to wanderlust. He skillfully and self-effacingly uses himself as a reference point among a cast of wealthy and eccentric international characters. Seminara documents how their travel obsession makes them easy marks for a young, country-collecting conman—most often known as William Baekeland—as they attempt to reach the world’s most obscure and difficult destinations. As he collects their firsthand accounts, Seminara’s own communications with Baekeland become more frequent and alarming.
It’s a fascinating story, and well-captured. It would stand on its own, but the author lifts it to another level with his diverse and fascinating research (often presented with rich humor). If there is a common theme among the reviews here it is that this book is much more than initially meets the eye. I thoroughly enjoyed the mystery of Baekeland’s con, but again and again, found myself bookmarking pages filled with fascinating facts about human evolution and psychology—how nomadism and wanderlust are less of a luxury for some than an actual condition. Seminara’s curiosity about what fuels his own drive to keep moving leads to countless fascinating scientific studies and historical anecdotes. (Of course, humans adopted a sedentary lifestyle in order to…better brew beer!). Legendary and notorious travelers fill the pages, including Arthur Rimbaud, Paul Gauguin, Sir Richard Burton, Juan Ponce de León, and Lisa St. Aubin de Terán, to name a tiny sampling, as Seminara tries to pinpoint what made them tick. Inveterate travelers bear witness, of course, but I was equally fascinated by the selection of opinionated and articulate “travel haters” that he brought into the story. You might pick this up for the swindler tale within; but by the time you put it down, you will have learned a lot—and if you are a traveler like the author (which I am), you’ll learn much about yourself as well.
It’s a fascinating story, and well-captured. It would stand on its own, but the author lifts it to another level with his diverse and fascinating research (often presented with rich humor). If there is a common theme among the reviews here it is that this book is much more than initially meets the eye. I thoroughly enjoyed the mystery of Baekeland’s con, but again and again, found myself bookmarking pages filled with fascinating facts about human evolution and psychology—how nomadism and wanderlust are less of a luxury for some than an actual condition. Seminara’s curiosity about what fuels his own drive to keep moving leads to countless fascinating scientific studies and historical anecdotes. (Of course, humans adopted a sedentary lifestyle in order to…better brew beer!). Legendary and notorious travelers fill the pages, including Arthur Rimbaud, Paul Gauguin, Sir Richard Burton, Juan Ponce de León, and Lisa St. Aubin de Terán, to name a tiny sampling, as Seminara tries to pinpoint what made them tick. Inveterate travelers bear witness, of course, but I was equally fascinated by the selection of opinionated and articulate “travel haters” that he brought into the story. You might pick this up for the swindler tale within; but by the time you put it down, you will have learned a lot—and if you are a traveler like the author (which I am), you’ll learn much about yourself as well.
September 13, 2021
A very interesting and enjoyable book about William Baekeland, the Ripley-esque way he conned hundreds of thousands of dollars out of trust-fund babies, captains of industry, and wealthy retirees, and an eye-opening glimpse (at least for me) of the competitive travel sub-culture that made it all possible. A refreshing mix of Twain, Melville, and Theroux styles (although Mr. Seminara’s technical and medical descriptions are more akin to the ones found in Tom Clancy or Michael Crichton’s books), “Mad Travelers” would be a great addition to anybody's carry-on luggage...
April 16, 2022
Great research and information embedded in a story that makes any traveler reflect on how fat to go!
The style of writing is enjoyable and there is a perfect dose of mystery that will hook you to it. VERY recommended, and congratulations to Dave Seminara!
The style of writing is enjoyable and there is a perfect dose of mystery that will hook you to it. VERY recommended, and congratulations to Dave Seminara!
April 12, 2022
This book is a waste of time. The author is clearly hates all women.
I recommend therapy for him.
Can I have my money back please?
I recommend therapy for him.
Can I have my money back please?
April 15, 2022
5 stars!!
April 16, 2022
One of the best books I ever read.
October 19, 2021
Seminara takes readers through three intertwined topics, first is understanding what drives a wanderlust to pursue endless travel by exploring the psychological side of the equation. Second, navigating the world of extreme travel by interviewing and sharing the stories of people who travel to unusual and often off limits locations. Lastly, he begins unfolding the twisted story of William Blaekland, a con artist who swindled many of the extreme travelers out of thousands of dollars.
I struggled with this format because it was almost as if Seminara had started the book, then discover William's story so he went back and sprinkled it in throughout.
I believe William's story could have been a book all on its own. That story was fascinating!
However, overall I enjoyed it. As a traveler that feels compelled to be on the road going somewhere all the time I appreciated Dave sharing his own struggles to balance a home life and a travel life.
I struggled with this format because it was almost as if Seminara had started the book, then discover William's story so he went back and sprinkled it in throughout.
I believe William's story could have been a book all on its own. That story was fascinating!
However, overall I enjoyed it. As a traveler that feels compelled to be on the road going somewhere all the time I appreciated Dave sharing his own struggles to balance a home life and a travel life.
June 16, 2021
This is an interesting read about a cultural subset that is compulsive about travel. When I was employed full-time I flew lots of miles (LOTS) but these folks make me look like an amateur. The story starts with a person who claims to be called William Baekeland who helped for a time to arrange trips for these ubertravellers to go to out of the way places. He is accused of absconding with lots of fees that these people paid him to get them to places like Palmyra and tons of places I have never heard of.
The story is murky - Baekeland (who also uses other names) seems to quite self involved. There are three or four groups which compete to go to every location on the earth - the counting is compulsive. But Seminara is a good story teller and the subject is offbeat enough to keep your interest.
The story is murky - Baekeland (who also uses other names) seems to quite self involved. There are three or four groups which compete to go to every location on the earth - the counting is compulsive. But Seminara is a good story teller and the subject is offbeat enough to keep your interest.
March 28, 2022
I had no idea that there was a class of travelers that one might consider 'extreme' or obsessive travelers. These men, mostly older (mostly white), compete for rankings on lists like NomadMania where they track the places they have visited. This goes beyond continents, countries or even cities and includes some dangerous places (war zones) and some uninhabited islands that can only reached by private boat during a few weeks each year (because of the weather). The storyline includes an examination of a young man (25) who appeared to be well funded and well traveled who was willing to help get others to various out of the way and even forbidden places. He turns out to be a con man and it is interesting how long he plays his marks.
August 7, 2021
An extremely entertaining read of recent upheavals in the extreme travel world. I had a great time following the crazy story unfolding.
June 22, 2022
Just when I thought the woke can’t get worse, they prove me wrong.
We live in an age of shocking cowardice. Cowardice masquerading as bravery.
One person hides behind their keyboard, making baseless personal attacks on this author’s character, trying to destroy his career and reputation. When that attacker is confronted, they claim they’re being harassed and bullied. There is nothing so powerful these days as someone pretending to be a victim. They launch a campaign to cancel the author and, predictably, a mob of other cowards pretending to be warriors for social justice pounce, right on command.
Wakeup call for every single one of you: you are not brave. You are bullies and cowards and you should be ashamed. Sadly, the power of your mob is all it takes for pathetically weak-kneed corporations like Amazon to bend to your will. It’s disgusting. What you are doing is positively immoral and repugnant.
The vast majority of you have not read any of Seminara’s books. You come on here giving him one-star ratings with zero explanation. All you have are groundless assertions about his personal character that are so obviously not true, it’s shocking anyone would have the temerity to make them.
Whatever your problem is, stop. Your rage and hate are not welcome here.
We live in an age of shocking cowardice. Cowardice masquerading as bravery.
One person hides behind their keyboard, making baseless personal attacks on this author’s character, trying to destroy his career and reputation. When that attacker is confronted, they claim they’re being harassed and bullied. There is nothing so powerful these days as someone pretending to be a victim. They launch a campaign to cancel the author and, predictably, a mob of other cowards pretending to be warriors for social justice pounce, right on command.
Wakeup call for every single one of you: you are not brave. You are bullies and cowards and you should be ashamed. Sadly, the power of your mob is all it takes for pathetically weak-kneed corporations like Amazon to bend to your will. It’s disgusting. What you are doing is positively immoral and repugnant.
The vast majority of you have not read any of Seminara’s books. You come on here giving him one-star ratings with zero explanation. All you have are groundless assertions about his personal character that are so obviously not true, it’s shocking anyone would have the temerity to make them.
Whatever your problem is, stop. Your rage and hate are not welcome here.
February 9, 2022
Interesting book - mostly I really loved it especially as I count myself also as one of the country collectors. However the focus on the Baekeland case got a bit too many pages in this book, I would have loved a broader view of the phenomenon.
August 11, 2021
He leído este libro de modo virtual en una tablet (o tableta). A veces tuve que utilizar el diccionario pues está escrito en inglés. Trata sobre la obsesión de algunos viajeros a viajar constantemente, como una enfermedad, y cómo un joven timador inglés les ofrece viajes caros que nunca materializó, pero esos viajeros obsesivos le pagaron mucho dinero por adelantado, unos 800.000 euros, que nunca recuperaron y el timador inglés desapareció. Entre los timados hay estadounidenses, alemanes, franceses y hasta rusos. No hay ningún español entre las víctimas, aunque en el libro se menciona a uno nacido en la ciudad de Barcelona, pero no por haber sido timado sino como ejemplo de viajero compulsivo que no paró de viajar hasta que completó la visita a la totalidad de los países de las Naciones Unidas más numerosas islas remotas.
El libro está bien escrito y los personajes timados son bastante curiosos, aunque una parte del libro se me hizo pesada pues el autor pretende explicar las razones que impulsan a esos viajeros compulsivos a obsesionarse por su afición a viajar hasta el punto de perder a sus esposas e hijos, o dejarse timar por un mequetrefe de apenas 20 años de edad.
El libro está bien escrito y los personajes timados son bastante curiosos, aunque una parte del libro se me hizo pesada pues el autor pretende explicar las razones que impulsan a esos viajeros compulsivos a obsesionarse por su afición a viajar hasta el punto de perder a sus esposas e hijos, o dejarse timar por un mequetrefe de apenas 20 años de edad.
June 9, 2022
Not my cup of tea. I was looking for a gripping story about corruption and travel and powerful people and hoping to get many details about the insane places that people travel to- instead this was an in-depth study on the phenomenon of wanderlust and followed one story of corruption. I just couldn’t get into it and ended up skipping the chapters that were focused on reporting on the findings of wanderlust to hear the story part of the book.
May 5, 2025
An interesting overview of extreme travelers in general with insight into the William Baekeland scam situation specifically peppered throughout. I thought it was an enjoyable read, but then again I'm a frequent traveler (not quite at 100 to get into the Century Club, but maybe one day). For now I'm just trying to figure out if I have a travel addiction or the wanderlust gene...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews