The Fascinating History of 1920s Travel Posters
A crowded London escalator, a Belgian beach and a Canadian mountain landscape might seem to have little in common. In the travel posters of the 1920s, each became an invitation: leave the everyday behind and discover somewhere different.
These designs did more than announce a destination. They gave travel a visual identity, combining illustration and lettering to sell the feeling of a journey. Today, they offer a fascinating record of advertising, design and the aspirations of their era.
Explore our vintage travel poster reproductions collection as we look at how these images developed and what made them memorable.
Before the 1920s: railways and the illustrated poster
Travel advertising was already well established before the 1920s. During the nineteenth century, expanding railway networks gave companies reasons to promote places passengers could reach by train. Illustrated posters helped turn a route into an appealing experience, showing landscapes, resorts and attractions rather than timetables alone.
Colour lithography allowed designers to combine expressive illustration with prominent lettering. Posters could reach people in stations and public spaces, where a clear image and a quickly understood message mattered.
The travel posters of the following decades built on that foundation. The journey remained the product, but the destination and its pleasures increasingly became the centre of the image.
Why 1920s travel posters look so distinctive
The 1920s brought several approaches to travel-poster design. Some artists used simplified shapes and strong contrasts associated with Art Deco; others retained a more painterly treatment of scenery. There was no single style shared by every poster.
What many successful designs had in common was clarity. A large destination name, a striking colour relationship or a carefully chosen scene could communicate an idea at a glance. Details rewarded closer inspection, but the overall composition had to work from a distance.
These advertisements also presented an idealised view of travel. Their elegant passengers and inviting resorts represented a promise, not everyone's experience. Cost and access still limited who could enjoy the holidays being advertised.
City life: Brightest London by Horace Taylor, 1924
Brightest London by Horace Taylor (1924) shows that travel advertising was not only about distant holidays. The Underground could also be presented as a gateway to the pleasures of the city.
Orange escalators carry a procession of passengers through the composition. Hats, coats and evening clothes add personality, while the lettering below turns the scene into a direct invitation to travel by Underground.
Notice how movement and repetition organise the image. The design tells a story about urban life while keeping its advertising message easy to recognise.
Seaside leisure: Ostende, Belgium, 1920s
The Ostende travel poster (1920s) promises something different: leisure by the sea. A reclining figure and large parasol dominate the foreground, with beachgoers and buildings beyond.
Yellow lettering, a purple sky and red clothing give the destination a distinctive palette. The scene is less a neutral description of a beach than an advertisement for the mood of a holiday.
This mixture of place and aspiration helps explain the lasting appeal of resort posters. They invite viewers to imagine themselves inside the scene.
Landscape and adventure: Holidays in Canada, 1920s
Holidays in Canada by Leonard Richmond (1920s) uses a mountain landscape, tall trees and a rider beside a white horse to suggest outdoor adventure. Large red lettering identifies Canadian Pacific and the holiday destination.
The words “riding”, “mountaineering” and “fishing” make the offer explicit. Rather than selling scenery alone, the poster presents activities a traveller might imagine enjoying there.
Its more painterly landscape also demonstrates the variety within 1920s travel design. Bold typography could coexist with atmospheric illustration, rather than every poster relying on sharply geometric forms.
The artists behind the imagery
Travel-poster artists had to balance individual style with a commercial brief. Their work needed to be attractive, legible and persuasive, often within a composition dominated by the name of a destination or transport company.
Roger Broders became associated with French railway and resort advertising, while A. M. Cassandre built his influential poster career in France. Cassandre should not be described as primarily a US travel-poster artist. Both are important names in the wider history of modern poster design, alongside artists whose work took different visual directions.
Why these posters still resonate
Vintage travel posters let us explore how places were presented to potential visitors. Their lettering, clothing, colours and chosen landmarks reveal as much about advertising priorities as they do about the destinations themselves.
For today's homes, reproductions offer a way to enjoy those designs without buying an original historical poster. Check each product's description for its format, dimensions and available options, and choose a place or image that has a connection to your own interests.
Browse our vintage travel poster reproductions to discover more examples, or explore the Australian travel posters collection for a different regional perspective.