Whether you’re heading home for the holidays or escaping them entirely, this collection is made for travelers who need something great in their ears. From planes and trains to long car rides (or just a break from family small talk), these podcasts have a little bit of everything - nostalgia, big ideas, other worlds - all of them will make the miles go by a little faster.

This list is curated by the audio obsessed, for the super listeners who just get it. Tink Media. is an award-winning podcast growth company that specializes in podcast marketing, PR, and creative partnerships.

Check out more podcast recommendations at: https://podcastthenewsletter.substack.com/

NO.1

Pitch Party
2 12
Listen

Pitch Party is a new podcast that champions the art of narrative audio by providing a platform where independent show creators can get discovered and funded. Every episode features a different podcast pilot from an independent producer, plus bonus episodes diving into the behind the scenes.

NO.2

Shifting Terrain
2 8
Listen

Politics doesn’t stop when the votes are counted. Shifting Terrain digs into how race and class continue to shape campaigns, the media, and everyday lives - through the voices of voters, organizers, and strategists working to define America’s democracy.

NO.3

Comic Sans
1 0
Listen

Whether you’re new to comics or have a long box full of them, Comic Sans has something for you. Hosts Myle Yan Tay and Nathaniel Mah dissect everything from noir capers to postcolonial vampire sagas, unpacking how comics tell their stories - one panel at a time.

NO.4

Face-Off: The U.S. vs China
14.9K 59.9K
Listen

On November 11, Face-Off will return for another season to unpack the changing relationship between China and the U.S. Hosted by Jane Perlez, along with Rana Mitter, they unpack the turbulent relationship between the world’s two superpowers. As the U.S.-China relationship continues to take center stage in global affairs, Perlez and Mitter, along with their guests, discuss the latest developments in the economies, warfare, soft power, alliances, and more to amplify the dangers of this increasingly tense and tumultuous relationship.

NO.5

Speed & Scale
23.8K 59.6K
Listen

Speed & Scale is the antidote to climate doom. Hosts Ryan Panchadsaram and Anjali Grover share stories of global progress and the people creating real solutions, from wind farms in Texas to coal-free power in England.

NO.6

Hello, Puzzlers!
141.6K 1,960.2K
Listen

Ready to stretch your brain and laugh while you do it? In The Puzzler, A.J. Jacobs and his celebrity guests take on witty riddles, creative challenges, and mind-bending wordplay. It’s the perfect mix of curiosity, competition, and comedy.

NO.7

That Aged Well
229 19.3K
Listen

With a years'-long back catalogue and a content pool across decades, That Aged Well is a hit for passing the driving time by with laughs and some deep ruminations. This podcast about media from the 80s and 90s asks if those properties stand up today or soured like milk, hosted by a hilarious dynamic duo of besties who are always here to have a good time.

NO.8

ReCurrent
13 49
Listen

ReCurrent is a podcast about what we gain by keeping the past, present. Host Jaime Roque explores the everyday places and stories that shape our cultural heritage. It highlights how cultural practices, objects, and narratives serve as connectors across generations, geographies, and identities. Together, these stories paint a holistic portrait of how culture functions as both a glue that binds communities and a platform for their evolution and resilience.

NO.9

The FAIK Files
50 2.1K
Listen

Stressed about AI? Maybe you don't really need to be - or at least, not in the ways you think. The FAIK Files is here to dispel myths about AI and deepfakes, by people who actually know how it all works instead of just telling themselves they do. Get ready for a wild ride, and get ready to learn about where we're actually at in the tech world today.

NO.10

Josie's Lonely Hearts Club
131 3.6K
Listen

Remember passing the time on long drives listening to Delilah give love advice? Josie's Lonely Hearts Club is a fiction podcast with the same concept, but given an improv twist: host Josie doesn't know what the callers are asking about, and the actors all have to stay in character while they bring their buckwild romance worries to this fake call-in show.

NO.11

WHAT WENT WRONG
2.9K 167.4K
Listen

Ever wonder why some movies just didn’t work? What Went Wrong takes you behind the scenes of Hollywood’s biggest flops and cult favorites, mixing sharp insight, juicy trivia, and plenty of laughs along the way.

NO.12

Desperado
256 3.4K
Listen

Desperado is a full-cast completed audio fiction podcast - think of it like a full movie without the visuals, or a super enhanced audiobook, making it perfect for a long drive. And to top that off - it's a road trip style story across different places and cultures. This story about anti-Colonialist demigods is riveting, suspenseful, and often shockingly funny.