Senior Editor Zak Patten joined SmarterTravel.com in November 2000. He currently manages SmarterTravel's copyediting and fact-checking processes, and puts his passion for photography to good use by managing the site's image library.

Zak has previously worked at an online self-publishing company where he created a travelogue about time he spent in the Caribbean. Prior to that position, he taught English in the Czech Republic for almost two years. His love of travel has led him on explorations around the world, from trekking Peru's Inca Trail to working with children in Rajasthan, India.

Born in Dublin, Ireland, Zak now lives in Boston. He is a graduate of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, and has a graduate certificate in publishing from Emerson College in Boston.