Héctor Reinoso Gallo: architecture, image, and storytelling to portray tourism through people

Héctor Reinoso Gallo built his professional identity at the intersection of architecture, design, and journalism, with a sensitive perspective focused on people, territories, and the stories that inhabit them. His path toward travel journalism was neither linear nor immediate; rather, it was the result of a natural evolution that combined technical expertise, visual communication, and a deep curiosity about travel as a transformative experience.

The decisive turning point came in 2021, when he discovered the educational proposal of the World Travel Journalism Organization. From that moment on, he began continuous training through annual travel journalism courses, adding a new dimension to a career that already included a key role as Head of Art and Design at the historic newspaper La Gaceta de Tucumán. This graphic and narrative foundation became a strength when approaching tourism from a comprehensive communication perspective.  

His first real engagement with tourism as a phenomenon did not come from economics or promotion, but from a sociocultural viewpoint. Between 2014 and 2025, he hosted and produced a television program dedicated to tourism and events, Viví Madryn, broadcast from Puerto Madryn in Argentine Patagonia. There, he began to understand tourism as a space of encounter among communities, identities, and narratives, beyond the postcard image.  

Two trips marked a before and after in his career. The first was to Mar del Plata, while he was still living in Tucumán, and the second was an unforgettable journey to Brazil with a group of friends. In both experiences, he discovered that traveling was not only about moving or enjoying oneself, but also an opportunity to tell stories, observe cultural practices, and translate lived experiences into meaningful narratives.

For Héctor, contemporary travel journalism is going through a pivotal moment. The possibility of distributing content across multiple digital platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook has expanded reach and storytelling formats without displacing traditional media, which remain essential. This hybrid scenario demands journalists capable of adapting, interpreting, and communicating responsibly. 

His storytelling philosophy is based on conveying real experiences of a place, combined with personal perspective. This blend seeks to create closeness and allows audiences to emotionally connect with the narrative, whether through reading, listening, or visual imagery. 

Balancing a critical perspective with responsible dissemination means, for him, abandoning postcard tourism and embracing an ethical commitment. This translates into honesty when also showing the problems destinations face,such as overcrowding or environmental impacts,prioritizing local communities over the communicator’s ego, and adopting an educational approach that not only promotes travel but teaches how to travel without causing harm.     

The principles guiding his work are clear: honesty, professional ethics, cultural respect, truthfulness, responsibility, and empathy. All of this aligns with the Código Ético Mundial de Turismo ensuring dignified representation of communities and avoiding any form of symbolic or material exploitation.  

When addressing sensitive issues such as sustainability or destination overload, Héctor proposes a structural approach that includes diagnosis and planning, education and awareness, community participation, promotion of off-season benefits, and a long-term sustainability vision that ensures destination viability.

Among his most significant contributions to regional travel journalism is the unprecedented coverage of the interiors of major international cruise ships arriving in Puerto Madryn. Through his television program, he showcased true floating cities featuring theaters, swimming pools, sports facilities, and art spaces, along with interviews with captains and public relations managers. In doing so, he allowed the local community access to a reality that would otherwise remain unseen. 

While he acknowledges the scarcity of specialized travel journalists in his region, he highlights the work of journalists, photographers, and camera operators who document Patagonian marine wildlife with great quality,from whales and orcas to birds and sea lions,often incorporating drones to achieve striking imagery.    

One of the most emotionally and visually impactful contents for his audience has been the coverage of whale watching in Puerto Pirámides, where he recorded mating, births, and acrobatic breaches that attract increasing numbers of international tourists each year and reinforce the value of the region’s natural heritage.

Being appointed an Ambassador of the World Travel Journalism Organization represents a profound honor and a renewed commitment for Héctor. He embraces it as an ethical and professional responsibility within a global network of journalists from different countries and continents.

From this role, he plans to primarily represent Puerto Madryn, his city of residence for the past fifteen years, and later extend his work to Tucumán, his birthplace. His main tool will continue to be travel television, strengthened by social media to expand its reach.

Within the WTJO ecosystem, he is interested in promoting projects related to regenerative and heritage tourism, focused on memory, cultural ties, and ecosystem restoration, as well as initiatives in narrative innovation, travel neurojournalism, and the ethical use of artificial intelligence applied to the sector.

What inspires him to continue traveling and storytelling is not only destinations, but above all, people. Contact with residents of different generations allows him to interpret customs, traditions, and ways of life that later become audiovisual and digital narratives.

Brazil holds a special place in his personal history. There, he discovered a sense of freedom and naturalness that shaped his way of living and communicating,an imprint that remains to this day. 

From the communities that welcomed him, he learned to value the diversity of customs, food, music, and cultural expressions, understanding that each territory is a universe of its own.

Looking toward the future of tourism in Argentina, he envisions a balance between responsible use of nature and technological advancement, with a shift away from mass tourism toward more personalized and conscious proposals. In this context, travel journalism ceases to be a living brochure and becomes a key actor in sustainable development.

Among the challenges he identifies for travel communicators are defending truth in the age of artificial intelligence, prioritizing an educational role over a promotional one, and the growing need for specialization in communication methods.

His final message to new generations is clear and forceful: do not sell stories,tell human, real stories. Because authenticity, he affirms, is the only thing that never loses value.