The beauty of writing a postcard

Siren Song VII, 2011, by John Stezaker, who uses old film stills, postcards and Hollywoodfan magazines to construct his surreal collages — *Siren Song VII,* 2011, by John Stezaker, who uses old film stills, postcards and Hollywood fan magazines to construct his surreal collages

(Image credit: John Stezaker)

After nearly four centuries of service, Denmark recently announced that it will stop delivering letters, leaving the humble envelope, once essential to communication, postmarked for the past. This shift reveals just how communication has changed. Messages now travel instantly, arriving in inboxes and group chats at all hours, while photographs, once carefully slipped inside letters bound for far-flung locations, are shared just as quickly as they are forgotten.

‘Wish you were here’ is one of the most recognisable lines of a certain time – scrawled on the back of cards showing sunlit promenades or famous landmarks – but what mattered wasn’t the words so much as a brief proof of life somewhere else

For most of human history, news travelled only as fast as a horse, ship, or train could carry it. Letters – composed with care and revised before being sealed – became the place where people thought aloud, confessed things they couldn’t say in person, or tried to capture the events of life between two dates. A letter’s physical quality was part of the experience, and receiving one always came with a sense of anticipation and the promise of a story waiting to be told.

Postcards also once functioned as a kind of social gesture. ‘Wish you were here’ is one of the most recognisable lines of a certain time – scrawled on the back of cards showing sunlit promenades or famous landmarks – but what mattered wasn’t the words so much as a brief proof of life somewhere else.

Photographer Martin Parr once observed that postcards often say more about the sender than the place itself, an idea he explored in his book Boring Postcards, which featured a collection of unremarkable examples from the 1950s and 1960s. His comment was a simple reflection on how people unintentionally present themselves, which may explain why postcards still retain a certain contemporary appeal.

Personally, I still find joy in receiving an old-fashioned postcard. With no one else to do the job, sending them to myself – usually from remote destinations like the Falkland Islands or Greenland – with the simple line: ‘just a reminder of how lucky you are’, never fails to brighten my day, especially when it arrives long after I’ve forgotten I sent it.

Letters aren’t essential to communication anymore, but taking the time to put pen to paper will do wonders for clearing your mind. Spill your thoughts. Tell someone you love them, send a thank-you note or simply let a friend know you’re thinking of them. There are few things nicer than receiving a thoughtful, handwritten letter. Sadly, it won’t come from Denmark.

A version of this article appears in the June 2026 Travel Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.

Lauren Ho is the Travel Director of Wallpaper*, roaming the globe, writing extensively about luxury travel, architecture and design for both the magazine and the website. Lauren serves as the European Academy Chair for the World's 50 Best Hotels.