Experiences refined for people

The Top 12 Travel Marketing Trends Defining 2024

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Erik Stubenvoll

Wanderlust is revitalizing the travel industry.

Amidst this boom,  travel advertisers rebounded with post-pandemic vigor, boosting ad spending by 15% in 2023 over the previous year.

Explore these 12 travel marketing trends that illustrate an industry recovering and reimagining its future.

1. Alternative ID-free targeting methods are surging in the new cookieless advertising era

With increasing concerns over privacy and Third-Party cookies’ impending phase-out , travel marketers must rely more on alternative methods like First- and Second-Party data, contextual marketing, cross-device audience targeting, and more.

Below are the top targeting strategies you’ll see to in response to this cookieless trend:

1.  First-Party Data

First-Party (1P) data , collected directly from customer interactions, is now the gold standard in travel advertising. This includes data collected through direct interactions, like website visits, app usage, customer feedback, and booking histories. 

Travel brands use this data to understand where and how their core customers interact with digital marketing placements.

2. ID-Free Artificial Intelligence (AI) & First-Party

ID-free targeting combines AI with First-Party data to analyze anonymous digital journey patterns, creating a map to identify the actions of similar website visitors. 

Advertisers can tailor their model using their own First-Party data to forecast and choose impression opportunities.

3. Second-Party Data

Collaborating with trusted partners to use Second-Party data involves collecting data through deterministic processes like login IDs, providing a more accurate and scalable way to target specific audience segments.

4. Contextual Marketing

Contextual marketing targets ads based on the content currently being viewed by users, replacing the need for Third-Party data.

Contextual marketing matches ads with the user’s current interests and the webpage’s theme, enhancing relevance and audience engagement.

AI-powered contextual marketing analyzes audience actions in real time to identify engagement patterns, enabling brands to target similar content to new audiences at optimal moments.

Travel marketers should explore and implement cookieless solutions, experimenting with strategies that best align with their brand and audience to stay ahead this year.

💡 The Takeaway

Travel marketers must adopt cookieless targeting strategies like First- and Second-Party data, ID-free AI, and contextual marketing to achieve precise, privacy-compliant audience engagement.

2. Sports tourism is very popular amid the Paris Olympics & other big events

Sports tourism will continue to surge in 2024, fueled by high-profile events like the Paris Summer Olympics , the FIFA World Cup , March Madness , and the Super Bowl , where tourists book travel tickets at least a year in advance.

sporting event revenue stats 2024 travel trends

The appeal of sports tourism is growing due to new tournaments and a rise in women’s sports participation, including events like the Women’s Big Bash League and the women’s edition of the Indian Premier League.

Increased government funding, initiatives to promote sports tourism, and a rise in young athletes are also major influences.

Travel marketers can take full advantage of this surge by integrating strategies, such as advanced TV advertising strategies like Connected TV (CTV) and Picture-in-Picture (PiP) (a type of interactive CTV) advertising , as well as advertising on Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) channels.

PiP allows viewers to watch live sports and other content, allowing travel brands to present appealing packages during these events.

Sports tourism’s rising popularity, driven by major events like the Paris Olympics and increased women’s sports participation, presents a significant opportunity to use advanced advertising strategies and tap into this growing market.

3. Video content to expand target audiences & enhance website traffic

Integrating traditional blog posts with concise, visually engaging video content on platforms like TikTok and Instagram greatly enhances a brand’s reach and website traffic potential.

TikTok’s user growth–approximately eight new users every second –highlights video content’s potential to reach a broad audience. This trend isn’t lost on travel companies, which they use to engage customers better.

Video content for travel marketing serves multiple purposes:

  • Sharing Holiday Experiences: Travel companies use videos to give potential customers a glimpse of the experiences that await them, making these destinations more tangible and inviting.
  • Highlighting Destination Information: Videos provide a dynamic way to showcase the attractions and uniqueness of a country or destination, offering viewers a virtual tour that text alone cannot match.
  • Presenting Activities and Experiences: Through video, travel brands can vividly depict the range of activities available at a destination, from adventurous excursions to relaxing retreats, engaging viewers with the possibilities.
  • Conveying the Destination’s Essence: Videos enable travel companies to capture and convey the essence of a destination – its culture, scenery, and atmosphere – creating a compelling narrative that draws viewers in.

Online video (OLV) and Connected TV (CTV) have also opened new avenues for reaching families and larger audiences, especially using cross-device targeting.

For example, a family watching a Royal Caribbean cruise ad on CTV is later targeted with personalized smartphone follow-up offers, enhancing engagement and allowing travel marketers to track the ad’s effectiveness across multiple platforms.

💡 The Takeaway Integrating visually engaging video content, such as on TikTok and Instagram, alongside traditional blog posts can significantly expand a travel brand’s reach and website traffic potential, engaging viewers with immersive storytelling.

pexels-leah-newhouse-3935702

4. TikTok emerges as a modern travel guide to engage younger audiences

TikTok has transformed travel guides, with videos replacing traditional blog posts as the go-to source for travel inspiration and information.

Since 2021, TikTok has seen a staggering 410% increase in views of travel content, with 71% of European users likely to book a holiday based on TikTok recommendations. 

🌴 TikTok Made Me Travel There 83% of Spanish users would consider a travel product or activity after seeing it on TikTok.

TikTok’s community craves content that stirs wanderlust, showcasing unique destinations and experiences.

tik tok travel marketing trends

TikTok’s findings on the top travel content for 2023.

Travel brands should align their content strategy with the top emerging TikTok travel trends and user preferences, such as:

  • Luxury Travel: Many users discover affordable luxury destinations on TikTok, increasing interest in these experiences. Brands should showcase any luxury options.
  • Domestic Travel: As travel preferences shift towards more local experiences, brands should highlight unique local travel experiences.
  • Sustainable Travel: Sustainability is a growing concern among TikTok users, with hashtags like #SustainableTravel and #EcoTourism drawing millions of views. Travel brands should promote eco-friendly and sustainable travel options.

Adapting to these trends, travel brands can inspire, engage, and connect with a travel-enthusiastic audience.

TikTok is a prime platform for travel inspiration and recommendations. Travel brands should align their content with emerging TikTok travel trends like luxury, domestic, and sustainable travel to engage younger audiences effectively.

Image Description

5. Influencer marketing is a resurgent force, especially on TikTok

According to a MediaRadar report, as major travel categories (e.g., airlines, lodging, rental car companies) ramp up their marketing efforts, a substantial portion of their budgets is allocated to partnerships with creators and influencers.

Influencers, with their large followings and ability to generate authentic content, offer a personal touch and a sense of trust that traditional advertising channels often can’t match. 

Local influencers help draw their following to restaurants and other locations in the area.

@gracietravels i bet you didnt know about these! 🫣 ✈️ #travelhacks #traveltiktok #travelfyp #travellife #traveltips #travelhack #traveltok ♬ original sound – grace | TravelCreator✨

Gracietravels shares helpful dos and don’ts for various exotic locations.

As travel marketing continues to surge, much of marketing spending will likely go to creator partnerships, increasing total influencer marketing spending.

influencer marketing stats 2024

Influencer marketing is returning, particularly on TikTok, with significant budgets allocated by major travel categories for partnerships with creators who offer authentic and trustworthy content.

6. Eco-tourism is a rising star, especially among younger travelers 

Ecotourism focuses on travel experiences that preserve and sustain natural environments while improving the welfare of local populations.

A lust for more outdoor travel experiences, urbanization, and affordable flight availability primarily drives ecotourism’s popularity. Generation Y (millennials) dominates ecotourism, with 60% of the share and spending $200 billion on travel.

For example, #SustainableTravel boast s 78.1 million views, and #EcoTourism garnered 72M views on TikTok.

eco travel marketing trends sustainable travel

Booking.com found that 76% of survey respondents planned to travel greener, up 15% from 2021. 55% of travelers seek off-the-grid vacations for escapism, with 44% preferring simpler travel experiences.

Hotels are increasingly committing to go carbon-neutral by 2050 or earlier to appeal to eco-conscious travelers. The Brutalist-style Hotel Marcel Hilton in Connecticut is the first net-zero carbon emissions hotel in the United States.

Travel marketers can tap into these younger generational and eco-conscious segments by focusing on eco-friendly and unique travel experiences in their campaigns.

Ecotourism is on the rise, driven by the popularity of outdoor travel experiences and younger generations like Millennials and Gen Z. Travel marketers can cater to eco-conscious travelers by highlighting sustainable initiatives.

7. Virtual reality offers virtual tourism opportunities

As VR technology becomes more sophisticated and accessible, it opens up new opportunities for consumers and advertisers.

Innovative services like Discover Live and Wowzitude , are offering interactive virtual vacation tours, allowing users to experience destinations before they decide to visit them in person.

Companies like Meta are enhancing the VR experience, with products like the Oculus headset offering virtual tours of world-renowned sites, such as the reconstruction of Notre Dame.

Platforms like Renderverse and Avatour provide VR-based real estate and travel tours, allowing users to explore properties and destinations remotely.

us ar vr users stats

The VR space also opens up the potential for partnerships and sponsorships. For instance, theater groups could secure corporate sponsorships by integrating ads into their VR performances.

Despite its growing popularity, VR technology is still evolving. Users want high-quality, real-time experiences to share with friends, pushing the boundaries of current VR capabilities.

Virtual reality (VR) technology offers immersive virtual tourism experiences and advertising opportunities, driven by innovative services and products, but the demand for high-quality, real-time VR experiences continues to challenge its growth.

8. Adapting to SEO & local SEO in the AI age

Advanced AI models like Google’s Gemini signal a trend toward AI-generated content rich in quality and relevance. Gemini can understand diverse formats like text, images, and even audio.

Google’s Search Generative Experience will integrate diverse content formats like videos, web stories, and podcasts in SERP (search engine results pages) optimization to directly engage users from the search results. A consistent and diversified presence across these channels can help travel brands capture more organic traffic, complementing paid search strategies.

For travel marketers, the increasing need for personalized, localized, and experiential local strategies signifies a shift towards creating more immersive and region-specific content. 

local seo 3.0 generative ai

Create content that resonates with the local culture and experiences. This includes local posts, stories about the area, and highlights of unique local attractions.

In the AI age, travel marketers should prioritize creating immersive and localized content to enhance SEO and engage users effectively.

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9. Travel apps are transforming how travelers organize trips

Travelers have a growing demand for travel apps, with the industry witnessing a 53% increase in the last year.

These platforms serve as digital travel agencies, offering a seamless interface for managing bookings, accommodations, and activities. They offer convenience without juggling various booking sites and the fear of falling into tourist traps or overpriced services.

As digital tools for trip planning become more popular, opportunities in marketing partnerships, targeted ads, and direct customer engagement grow. Booking.com leads with its intuitive design and broad booking capabilities.

travel marketing trends 2024 travel apps booking.com

Meanwhile, niche apps like TakeMeOutOfOffice , Brevity , and LetsBatch cater to unique travel needs, offering specialized services for leisure breaks, business trips, and group travel, respectively.

travel marketing post

10. Return to hotels in the face of Airbnb’s growing challenges

Despite financial prosperity, with bookings hitting unprecedented highs and the company celebrating its first full profitable year in 2022, Airbnb confronts a mix of discontent from guests, hosts, and cities alike. 

Issues range from the platform’s rising costs to the mismatch between online portrayals and actual accommodations, alongside stringent regulations from cities aiming to curb short-term rentals.

Airbnb listings surpass available apartments:

  • Airbnb listings outnumber available apartments in NYC areas (Manhattan, Brooklyn, northwest Queens).
  • Asheville, NC: 2,881 Airbnb properties vs. 250+ long-term rentals.
  • Austin: 12,205 Airbnb listings vs. 3,700 long-term rentals.

Airbnb’s growing challenges, including rising costs, regulatory pressures, and guest dissatisfaction, are driving a noticeable shift of some travelers back to traditional hotels.

11. New Airbnb-style car rental companies are taking off

Skyrocketing rental car prices were a popular frustration during pandemic-era travel stories, hitting record highs in July 2021. Turo , a peer-to-peer car-sharing platform, allows car owners to rent their own cars to regular people, like an Airbnb for cars.   The global car-sharing market surpassed $2 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at least 20% annually through 2027. Taking advantage of the industry’s growth, other companies like Getaround and Car Shair are quickly following. These platforms cater to a growing consumer demand for more accessible, cost-effective, and flexible car rental options. Whether or not it will face the same fate as Airbnb is yet to be decided, though it is certainly challenging traditional rental agencies.

The rise of peer-to-peer car rental platforms signifies a transformative shift towards economical and personalized transportation options, challenging traditional rental models.

12. Travelers want nostalgia & more family time

A staggering 88% of travelers desire nostalgic getaways that hark back to yesteryears—be it visiting locations of retro film fame or opting for bus travel reminiscent of school excursions.  23% of travelers, including millennials and Gen Z who have not experienced it firsthand, are yearning for pre-digital charm, seeking an escape to a simpler time. This sentiment is fueling interest in popular destinations in the ’80s and ’90s, such as Budva in Montenegro and Bolzano in Italy, both trending locations in 2023. Furthermore, family travel is evolving, with 54% of respondents planning multi-generational trips or “family reunion” vacations.

There’s an increasing demand for nostalgic travel and multi-generational family trips. Offering competitive Child Rates is a strategic move to capitalize on this trend. Such initiatives can potentially boost family bookings by 15% on average.

Travel Advertising Trends in 2024

The shift towards cookieless advertising, the rise of sports tourism, the dominance of video content, and the growing influence of platforms like TikTok and VR technology are redefining how travel brands engage with their audiences.  With a stronger focus on eco-tourism and the integration of AI in SEO strategies, travel marketers are poised to deliver more personalized, immersive, and sustainable travel experiences. Adapting to these trends will help travel brands stay ahead in a competitive market and meet diverse traveler needs around the globe.

About the Author

Erik Stubenvoll is a Managing Director at KORTX with over 20 years of experience. When he is not learning about his client’s goals, he is on the sidelines with his wife at his daughter’s softball and soccer games or on the golf course.

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12 Travel Marketing Trends You Can’t Ignore in 2024

  • travel marketing

travel marketing post

Here’s your list of travel marketing trends you cannot ignore in 2024. If you want to:

- Fight the stiff competition and low ROI in your industry - Pivot your travel marketing strategy despite the pandemic - Capture more bookings when travel resumes full speed

Then this list will be really helpful. You also get a glimpse of travel marketing ideas by brands that you can learn from. Let’s dive in.

12 Travel marketing trends in 2024

1. virtual reality experiences.

Ideally, the best virtual experience requires a VR headset, but today we also have 360 degree and panorama videos that can provide a virtual experience. This is an increasingly popular form of travel marketing, used by various sectors of the industry. For instance, hotels use VR tours to showcase their hotel rooms, while travel agents offer VR videos of tourist attractions. For example, check out this VR tour of the Conrad Koh Samui resort.

Want to know how you can create your own VR videos? Check out this video below.

Pro-tip: Once you’ve created your video, you can easily edit it using InVideo’s online video editor  

2. TikTok Marketing

With over 2 billion downloads and over 1 billion monthly active users , TikTok is the latest social media platform marketers need to look at. Travel marketers have a unique opportunity to stand out on TikTok with travel-related videos, something many people are desperately craving more of right now since they may not be able to go anywhere themselves. TikTok video tours and video stories have the potential to go viral . You can even repurpose your Instagram reel videos on TikTok! 

Create viral travel TikTok videos

With trending InVideo templates

Create viral travel TikTok videos

For example, Trip Hacks DC , a firm that provides guided tours of Washington DC, actually saw phenomenal success using TikTok. They posted 1 video daily on TikTok in December 2020. They gained 738,551 video views, 3,511 new followers, 92,300 likes and 6,572 profile views. Check out their best performing video (with 320K views) below:

Check out this article by Trip Hacks DC founder Rob on his learnings. Meanwhile, here are a few TikTok video tips to help you get started on your TikTok travel marketing journey:

Tip #1 - Use relevant TikTok hashtags the same way you would on Instagram to show up for those using the search feature.

Tip #2 - Add your location to your profile because geo-location is a factor in the TikTok algorithm. This is especially helpful for travel businesses as it means your geo-tagged post will show up in relevant searches and help you get more views.

Tip #3 - There are 2 types of videos you may find on TikTok - trending videos and original content. You make trending content by copying an existing video concept and putting your own twist on it. Trending content usually revolves around a specific piece of music or audio. For example, a popular trending video in 2020 involved people hopping to the beat of the Black-Eyed Peas song “Where is the Love” with a funny caption about how they were “on my way” somewhere. 

Wondering how you can find out the top TikTok trends for 2024 that you can mirror for your brand? Check out this list of 5 trending video ideas for any business.

Tip #4 - Rob from Trip Hacks DC found that his best performing TikTok videos included all original content - a video he made with a tip to stand near the Washington Monument for magnificent city views (320K views). Other high-performing videos were about Florida House (149K views) and a lesser-known FDR monument (66K views). Meanwhile, the trending videos he made garnered very few views comparatively. 

Tip #5 - The above point is interesting because it suggests that viewers want to see locations and places in a new way, from different perspectives. Travel businesses can create TikTok tours that give a sneak peek of what the travel experience will be like, keeping this insight in mind. For example, check out this compilation of TikTok videos on YouTube that show a vlogger traveling to different locations - his concept revolves around shooting his feet on unfamiliar terrain.

3. Facebook Ads can be your best bet!

In 2020, a few travel operators braved Facebook Advertising despite the pandemic. They ended up seeing astounding results, generating six figures in revenue for bookings with less than $1000 ad spend. This might have required careful planning and testing of different combinations. But these travel marketers found interesting new target users and audiences.

For example, Morgan Cantrall, the founder of History Well Travelled , a walking tour operation in Georgia, discovered that their Facebook ads got the most engagement from older generations! Who knew Facebook Ads was one of the hottest senior citizen tourism trends?! Check out some of Morgan’s learnings here .

With 2 billion monthly active users and hundreds of targeting and retargeting options, Facebook ads can give you genuine ROI and provide massive reach. 

Want to learn more about how you can get started with Facebook advertising in 2024? Check out this step-by-step tutorial that will help you create and set up your first Facebook ad.

Create thumb-stopping Facebook ads

Using templates that convert

Create thumb-stopping Facebook ads

4. Remarketing

Even though brands spend big bucks on marketing, according to a Think with Google study, only 14% of leisure travelers always book with the first airline that comes to mind when they start their research. Even worse, that number drops to 10% when we look at the first hotel brand that came to mind during their research. Essentially, this means that you need to keep reminding your consumers of your brand presence throughout their consideration process, before they book a flight or a hotel room or any other service.

The best way to ensure your brand remains top of mind for travel planners is to leverage the power of remarketing. 

For instance, maybe they started to book a hotel room, or looked at flights and then stopped midway. As a travel marketer, this is a unique lead you can reach out to through remarketing, mainly because you know exactly what they are looking for. For example, check out the Facebook ad below. They targeted this to customers who already checked out hotel prices on Expedia.com, but did not make a booking. The ad subtly nudges customers to come back to Expedia.com and look for a relevant hotel while promoting the Aava Whistler Hotel. 

remarketing - Sponsored post example

You can tailor the actual content you target individuals with to show them the exact product they were viewing for maximum relevance. Remarketing enables you to push the services and products that your consumers need. It can be carried out primarily using Google AdWords and Facebook ads . Check out this guide to remarketing to learn how you can use it for your business.

5. Review Marketing

For the travel and tourism sector, customers turn to review marketing for deals, discounts and making decisions. Websites and services like TripAdvisor, Hotel.com, Kayak.com, and more provide reviews for hotels, airlines, tours, and services. If reviews are a part of your travel marketing strategy, they are likely to give you stellar results. Check out this search result for hotels in Michigan - the top few names are ones that have great reviews on Google.  

search result for hotels in Michigan

As a travel marketer, you need to make sure that your profiles on platforms like Google, TripAdvisor, Kayak, et al., are well maintained with accurate images, and descriptions as well as prices. You also need enough reviews to mitigate any negative ones. The main travel marketing tips in this area are to encourage customers to leave reviews through email requests, and to take the time to update information and photos on each review platform. 

6. User Generated Content

User-generated content includes videos created by users, images uploaded to social media platforms, and comments on blog posts. You can factor in user-generated content as a part of your travel marketing strategy to build brand loyalty and authenticity.

A restaurant can encourage customers to upload images to their website, while hotels or attractions can provide a digital photo booth at their location, which automatically adds the company or relevant hashtag to every photo. Brands can also hold contests on social media to create user-generated content. 

For example, as part of their For the Love of Mesa contest, Visit Mesa asked people to create content describing what Mesa (a city in Arizona, USA) meant to them. They then featured the best photos and videos in a music video, “For the Love of Mesa”. Check it out here:

Hashtag campaigns are also a great way to create user generated content while subtly promoting your products and services. For example, Cathay Pacific created #lifewelltravelled in 2015 to align it with their global advertising campaign. The hashtag took a life of its own though with constant involvement from travel blogger Jessica Stein . Today the hashtag is still in use and pretty popular with 2,900,532 posts on Instagram.

Example of Cathay Pacific created #lifewelltravelled IG Account

Check out how you can use hashtags to improve your business in this article .

7. Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing involves influencers endorsing a product or a service to their existing following on social media sites like Instagram and YouTube. Basically, since the audience trusts them, they are more likely to trust the marketing content influencers share. 

Images and videos are ideal for this, as it allows the influencer’s audience to see their travel experience. Businesses may reach out to influencers that have a following from a specific demographic, in order to target them. For example, check out travel influencer Murad Osmann ’s video collaboration with the Renaissance Hotels chain.

Renaissance Hotels

8. Augmented Reality

AR or augmented reality differs slightly from virtual reality. It involves the use of apps and overlays to show an object in a particular space. Travel companies can use this to enhance real-world settings. 

For instance, a review app might display customer reviews for a restaurant when a phone is pointed at the building. Some hotels have also innovatively used AR, providing wall maps within rooms and a companion app, which overlays additional information onto the map. For example, check out this AR Travel Guide to the city of Florence, Italy.

9. Artificial Intelligence 

More and more travel marketing plans include some or the other application of AI or artificial intelligence. Customer service is one of the biggest areas where businesses compete, and the use of AI-powered chatbots can significantly improve response times and offer 24/7 service, even when staff are not available.

From recommended flights to intelligent online travel assistants, tailored offers for loyal customers and dynamic pricing, AI is used extensively. For example, Expedia.com, an online travel agency, uses the Facebook messenger chatbot to help you find hotels when travelling. The bot (image below) asks you various questions about your journey and then selects the top 5 hotels that suit your criteria to make it easy to look for accommodation. 

Artificial Intelligence- FB messenger chatbot of Expedia.com

10. Customer Experience Marketing

To stand out among the competition, your brand and business need to create and deliver customer-centric experiences and campaigns as it gives your target audience an interesting reason to stay and become repeat customers. You also must create an emotional connection between your brand and customers, putting them at the center of your travel marketing strategy.

Most believe that the highest form of customer experience would be personalised to each consumer. One example of personalisation is the use of data aggregating softwares. For example, The Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group has appointed SevenRooms as their global reservation, table management and guest engagement platform software.

SevenRooms is a software platform that captures data right from the start of the guest’s journey. 

This software helps Mandarin Oriental teams to understand their guests’ needs and personalise their services accordingly. They can track guest data from reservation to check-in to meal orders and preferences (see image below).

Customer Experience Marketing

It also helps with reservation and seating arrangements (see image below), point of sale (POS) and property management systems (PMS), and automatically tagging guests according to preferences and providing upgrades or experiences according to their profiles. This software also helps Mandarin Oriental with marketing automation and engagement tools like email automation, review aggregation and special offers. 

POS and PMS example

Mandarin Oriental can capture approved guest data points including personal, preference and transactional data that can then be used both in- and post-service to drive repeat visits through direct reservations across the Group. Similarly, you too can ensure that your customers delight in experiencing your product or service and come back for more. Check out how your travel business can improve customer experience here .

11. Voice Search

With Amazon Alexa, Siri, Google Home and other smart devices becoming mainstream, voice search now must be a part of your travel marketing strategy. A growing number of customers are turning to smart phones and devices to make hotel, flight, and transport bookings, using online travel agencies. Besides offering this kind of service, marketers can also optimise web content to capitalise on voice searches. Hotels are increasingly using smart hubs within their hotel rooms, improving the customer experience. 

A good example of voice search in action within the travel industry is seen in this video, focused on the Expedia skill for Amazon Alexa. This provides a voice-activated means of managing your upcoming travel and booking holidays.

Check out this article to understand how you can optimise your website and content for voice search.

12. Personalised or Targeted Marketing

Personalized travel experiences are one of the most significant trends within the tourism industry, with some brands already jumping on the bandwagon. According to a report, 69% of travelers will be more loyal to a provider that personalizes their experiences. For example, check out this Hilton Hotels virtual guide, a part of the Hilton Honors application. 

The app accompanies guests during their stays. It provides suggestions, recommendations, activities, resolves doubts, and more. If the guest is looking for the hotel spa, the app helps them get there, and may even send them an exclusive deal on the way. Guests can also check in using the app, control the devices that are connected to their room, and use it as a key. Not only that; app users also collect points they can share with friends or redeem on Amazon. Pretty cool right!

Personalised or targeted marketing can include AI based recommendations, targeted emails, text messages, and even remarketing campaigns. Check out this guide to travel personalisation to understand what kind of travel marketing strategies you can adopt to follow this trend.

Wrapping Up

So these were the top 12 trends you can leverage as a part of your travel marketing strategy. If you found value in this article, you definitely want to check out this ready reckoner of top video ideas that you can create in the travel space. Do share this with your friends and drop-in questions you may have on tourism marketing.

For more quick tips and hacks on editing and creating videos, subscribe to InVideo’s YouTube Channel . Finally, if you’re looking to create thumb-stopping videos in minutes (even if you’re not a PRO)- sign-up for a free account on InVideo.io today. 

This post was written by Upasna and edited by Abhilash from Team InVideo

Let’s create superb videos

Jessie on a Journey | Solo Female Travel Blog

120+ Travel Blog Post Ideas For Creating Engaging Content

By Jessie Festa. This guide to travel content ideas contains affiliate links to trusted partners!

Looking for engaging travel blog post ideas ?

Then you’re in the right place!

If you’ve ever sat in front of your laptop wondering, “What should I post on my travel blog?” this article shares over 120 topics — as well as bonus tips for those looking to see success and make money blogging.

Personally, I get most of my blog traffic through keyword research, and these travel blog post titles and topic ideas come from researching what people are actually searching in Google so that you can create content people truly want to read.

And with so many to choose from, you’ll never need to wonder what to write about again or spend hours coming up with new travel blog ideas.

Without further adieu, let’s dive into the list of travel blog content ideas!

Quick tip: There are many tools that make it easier to come up with blog post ideas. Personally, I love Keysearch for finding high traffic keywords. Use code “jessieonajourney30” for 30% off. Additionally, Jasper AI utilizes the power of artificial intelligence to help you come up with content topics, draft outlines, create content, and more – free trial included !

Table of Contents

Travel Blog Content Creation & Promotion Workflow Freebie

Now, I realize that even when you have a ton of travel post ideas it can still be challenging to understand how to create and promote your content.

Luckily, I’ve got a freebie that can help!

It’s a Content Creation & Promotion Workflow Trello Board that will help you plan your blog posts as well as write them and promote them for maximum engagement.

You can grab the free Trello board here .

travel marketing post

Grabbed it?

Then let’s continue with our travel blog content strategy.

What Should I Post On My Travel Blog?

Writer’s block for bloggers is a very real thing, as is being confused on what to actually post to see growth.

So, before we dive into the list of travel blog topics , let’s discuss how to determine what to post on your blog.

One smart tactic is starting with a mission statement. You can use the template “I help [group of people] do [how you help].”

From there, you can pinpoint the best travel topics to fulfill that mission and even come up with a few travel blog categories.

For instance, if your mission is to help women feel confident traveling solo, you might write a blog post about how to travel solo in Paris or a guide to overcoming fear when you’re scared to travel alone .

Feeling stuck? You can use a tool like Jasper’s Blog Post Topic Ideas Template for quick and easy help. This tool uses artifical intelligence to instantly generate a list of topics that can engage your audience.

Also, if you’re curious how to write blog posts quickly , Jasper can help you create amazing content almost instantly (though it’s recommended to edit your articles to add a human element).

More on this tool below, though note that you can click here for a 10,000-word free trial of Jasper AI .

travel blog post ideas

120+ Travel Blog Post Ideas For Engaging Content

To come up with the following list, I looked at popular blog post ideas related to travel.

Keep in mind, this list is in no way exhaustive. There truly are a limitless number of travel blog topic ideas that are possible.

Moreover, this list is customizable. You can always tweak any of the travel blog post titles mentioned below to better fit your own niche and audience.

For instance, if an idea mentions compiling a list of travel yoga mats, but you don’t cover yoga, consider what relevant piece of gear you can swap in, like sleeping bags, nutritious TSA-friendly snacks, or camera gear.

Once you’ve narrowed down what you’d like to write about, use a blog content planner to stay organized. You can also follow this strategy on how to plan a year of content in one week to help you save time.

Have ideas for travel blog posts to add?

Leave them in the comments below!

Travel Blog Post Ideas Focused On Travel Tips

A review of your favorite piece of travel gear

Best free travel apps

How to do a Global Entry name change

How to change your passport name

Why duct tape (or another item) is your best travel accessory

How to practice self-care while traveling

How to become a travel hacker

Your top travel hacks

Your top travel tips for introverts

Important advice for the first-time traveler

A list of uncommon travel tips

How to learn a language while traveling

Travel Blog Post Ideas Focused On Trip Planning

How to pack for a long trip with just a carry-on

What to pack for a particular destination

A review of your favorite travel insurance provider

What to wear in a particular destination

How to save up for a round-the-world trip in a certain amount of time

How to choose the perfect suitcase/backpack/luggage

A review of your favorite suitcase

How to ask your boss for an extended travel leave

The best credit cards for travelers

How to prepare your house for vacation

What to do the day before a big trip to prepare

travel blog topics

Best Travel Content Ideas About Transportation

Things to do on a long bus ride

How to survive a long flight

What not to do one a plane

How to sleep on a plane

A review of the Eurail pass (or another transportation pass)

A guide to using a city’s transportation, such as the subway in NYC

How to get to the main part of a city from the airport — and vice versa, such as a guide to Bangkok’s airport shuttle

A guide to an airline’s rewards program

The best platforms for booking cheap flight/bus/train tickets

Travel Blog Post Ideas Focused On Destinations

Fun facts about a place

Things to do in a destination during a specific season

A roundup of your favorite tours in a destination

What not to do in a destination

A roundup of your favorite hotels in a destination

How to visit a particular place on a specific budget — such as $50 per day

A roundup of your favorite restaurants in a destination

The cheapest countries to visit on a certain continent

Your top travel tips for a specific destination

Travel Blog Post Ideas For When You Can’t Leave & Must Travel At Home

A recipe from a particular place, including a background story of the dish

Your favorite travel-inspired beauty ritual

Your favorite travel-themed craft

How to throw a dinner party inspired by a specific destination

How to transform your living space into a destination or give your space a makeover inspired by a particular place

Do a souvenir show-and-tell and share the story behind your favorite travel finds

Cocktail recipes from around the world

A roundup of your favorite movies set in a particular destination

A roundup of your favorite books set in a particular destination

How to visit the places featured in a certain movie

How to visit the places featured in a certain book

A roundup of inspiring TED Talks related to travel

travel marketing post

Niche Travel Blog Post Ideas

Note: Feel free to swap in your own travel blog niche for any of the below ideas.

The best destinations for a budget-friendly wellness experience

Best weekend getaways for couples

The best destinations for solo female travelers

Best bookstores around the world

How to plan a cruise vacation

How to book an ethical volunteer trip

Best female travel blogs

How to stay safe when traveling solo

Relaxing couples vacations

Common work-related travel expenses

Top luxury travel companies

Meals from around the world

Cheap travel insurance for families

Best luxury hotels in the world

How to avoid the single supplement when traveling solo

Tips for flying with a baby

Lesbian travel groups

Outdoor vacations for couples

Fun trips for kids

Best travel yoga mats

How to travel with a yoga mat

Best hiking vacations

Top guided backpacking trips

Best travel baby gear

Gifts for traveling couples

The top all-inclusive family vacations

Best family beach destinations

Tips for traveling with grandchildren

Quotes about family travel

Travel jobs for couples

Top liveaboard dive trips

Fun yoga and hiking retreats

Top spiritual yoga retreats

Safest countries for LGBTQ+ travelers

best travel topics

Holiday Blog Post Ideas For Travel Bloggers

Best gifts for a certain type of traveler — such as the best gifts for solo female travelers

How to book cheap Christmas vacations

How to find cheap Thanksgiving flights

Where to travel during Christmas

Best Christmas markets in europe

Traditional Christmas desserts from around the world

Top Jewish heritage tours

Delicious Kwanzaa recipes

Inspirational Blog Post Ideas For Travel Bloggers

Lessons learned from traveling to X# countries

What travel teaches you

Benefits of traveling

How travel changes your brain

Inspiration travel quotes

Recount one of your favorite funny travel stories

Share an inspiring love story from the road

Share one of your favorite inspiring travel stories about the kindness of strangers abroad

travel blog content about meeting locals

Summer Blog Post Ideas For Travel Bloggers

Cheap summer vacations

Places to visit in summer in the USA

Summer vacation ideas for families

A summer travel guide for a particular destination — or you can even niche down to a specific month, such as July Travel In Seattle

Best travel-sized sunscreens

Stylish active swimsuits

Fall Blog Post Ideas For Travel Bloggers

Where to go apple picking

Fall wine tasting outfit ideas

Fall foliage tours

Scariest haunted houses in America

Best fall road trips

Winter Blog Post Ideas For Travel Bloggers

Best showshoes for hiking

Scenic winter hiking trails

Best places to spend New Year’s Eve

Cozy log cabin getaways

Top ski resorts in a certain destination

Spring Blog Post Ideas For Travel Bloggers

Best gardens in the world

Warm places to visit in April

Cheap spring break trips

Romantic spring getaways

Best Easter holiday destinations

Tourism Blog Ideas

Must visit attractions in X

Best hidden gems in X

Most Instagrammable spots in X

Where to Stay in X

Best restaurants in X

Beach Blog Ideas

Most beautiful beaches in the world

Best beaches for surfing

Best beaches for families

Instagrammable beaches

Best beaches for snorkeling

Travel Agent Blog Ideas

Best time to visit X

Travel deals and discounts

Best travel destinations for families/couples/solo travelers

Guide to all inclusive resorts

ideas for travel blog posts

Where To Find New Travel Blog Post Ideas

After learning how to start a travel blog and make money , it’s important to regularly publish interesting articles that continuously bring you traffic and help you grow your income.

But, maybe you’re wondering how to come up with blog post ideas that people actually read .

Luckily, I have a few tips for this.

Note that for a full overview of how to create a content plan that aligns with your overall goals, I recommend taking my free Profitable Travel Blog Makeover , a four-day course that takes you from blog branding to monetization.

So earlier in the post I discussed starting with a mission statement that guides your content.

Along with coming up with travel blog post ideas from your own imagination, you can also utilize:

Jasper AI (click for a 10,000-word free trial).

Jasper uses the power of artificial intelligence to help you outline blog posts, create content, and come up with blog post ideas.

You can use the Blog Post Topic Ideas Template and simply enter your:

  • company name
  • product description
  • tone of voice
  • how many ideas your need

Boom — Jasper will provide you a list of ideas for travel topics to write about. From there, you can favorite the ones you like to help the tool better get to know what you’re looking for.

Keysearch  (use code “jessieonajourney30” for 30% off)

This is a powerful keyword research tool that can help you optimize your blog content to rank higher in search engine rankings.

You’ll also be able to input desired keywords to see related keywords — as well as questions people have about your keyword in the “Content Assistant” section. These can also be used as travel blog post ideas.

travel blog post ideas from Keysearch

Like tutorials?

Check out this short video to see how to find micro niche keywords and relevant keywords you can actually rank for using Keysearch:

Niche Facebook groups & forums .

Pop into a Facebook group or Reddit forum related to your niche and see what people are discussing. These can make for great travel related content ideas.

Google Trends .

Monitor search trends over a given time. This can help you post about things people are truly talking about.

Pinterest Trends .

See what topics are trending on Pinterest. This tool can help your content marketing efforts by helping you get more traffic to your Pinterest pins, which translates into more visitors to your blog content.

These are just a few of many strategies for coming up with engaging travel post ideas.

How To Write A Travel Blog Post Without Traveling

One common question many travel bloggers have:

How do I write a travel blog without traveling?

Of course, there will be times when travel isn’t possible.

This doesn’t mean you need to stop creating content.

Instead, consider how you might cover where you live in a way that would be interesting to travelers.

For instance, I have loads of New York City travel content because I know that even though it’s not a travel destination to me, it is to other people. Plus, being a local allows me a unique perspective not every blogger can provide.

You might also think about “armchair travel” content; blog post ideas that have a travel theme but can be enjoyed without leaving home.

A few examples of this include roundups of short travel stories , cultural recipes, solo staycation ideas , and other travel at home posts that align with your mission.

These strategies are also great travel blog ideas for beginners, who may be looking to jumpstart their blog with content even if they’re not traveling.

travel blog post ideas staycations

How To Write A Catchy Blog Post Title

Now, here’s the thing when it comes to coming up with ideas for travel blog posts:

Even if you have an amazing article, if your title isn’t enticing, it likely won’t get read.

Luckily, there is a free Headline Analyzer tool from CoSchedule that can help with this.

Basically, it looks at your headline to ensure that:

  • It has a good mix of common, uncommon, emotional, and power words
  • The first and last three words of the headline are engaging (as these are the words people tend to focus on most)
  • It includes searchable keywords
  • It isn’t too generic
  • It’s the right length (about 60 characters)

How To Start A Travel Blog Post

Now that you have a big list of travel content ideas , it’s time to dive deeper into how to actually write your blog post.

One very important part of your travel blog post is the introduction, as this will affect whether someone continues reading or clicks away.

To help you engage readers right away, I recommend utilizing the APP Method; also known as Agree – Promise – Preview.

This copywriting technique, which I learned about from Backlinko , revolves around the idea that your introduction should first agree with the reader to make it clear you understand them.

From there, you make a promise to them — such as a solution to a problem or a benefit of some kind.

Finally, you provide a preview by sharing exactly what they’ll get out of reading the blog post.

This blog post on growing an email list as a blogger provides a nice example of the APP Formula in action.

It’s also shown here:

travel blog post ideas

Promoting A Travel Blog Post Organically

There are many smart ways to increase blog traffic , a few of which I’ll outline here.

I recommend incorporating these into a content checklist so that you always know exactly what needs to be done before hitting publish on a blog post.

Optimize your blog posts for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) .

In my opinion, the best way to grow your blog traffic is to optimize it to rank in search results.

Once it ranks, you can continue to enjoy steady traffic for the foreseeable future.

Again, Keysearch makes it simple to both research if you can realistically rank for a keyword and then optimize your content for it. You can use code “jessieonajourney30” for 30% off.

While Keysearch offers loads of tutorials on how to use their tool, here is a quick overview:

travel blog post ideas in Keysearch

Above is an example of me researching “places to hike on Long Island,” a keyword I currently rank in the first spot of Google for.

On the left, you can see a graphic comparing all of the first page posts — which provides information for determining whether it’s worth competing for the keyword or not.

For instance, you can see things like how your Domain Authority compares to the other posts already ranking, as well as if the other posts have optimized their title, description, and URL for the keyword you want to rank for.

Additionally, on the right, you can see other suggested keywords with important information related to how competitive they are and how often people search for them.

Keep in mind, this is just the main page of Keysearch. The tool has numerous other features for ranking your posts in Google, too.

Take your SEO to the next level.

Now, another tool that can help with optimizing your content to rank in organic search results is Surfer SEO .

Instead of simply giving you data about other sites that are ranking, Surfer SEO analyzes your website to make tailored recommendations for:

  • specific keywords to target
  • specific ways to optimize new content
  • specific changes to make to old content to improve its chances of ranking
  • specific missed opportunities for internal and external backlinks
  • specific on-page SEO optimizations (such as optimal word count, title length, image count, etc)
  • and much more

As you can see, the tool gets very specific.

In short, you’ll get a step-by-step SEO workflow that can help you grow your traffic and increase your rankings – no guesswork required!

Here is a quick tutorial going over some of Surfer SEO’s powerful features:

While you’ll need a paid plan to get everything I showcase in the video, they do offer a free AI Article Outline Generator to give you a small taste of the platform.

Promote your new travel blog post on your social media channels.

When you promote new content, I highly recommend weaving a story into your shares to increase engagement. Talk about why you wrote the post, how the topic has impacted you, and how it can benefit others.

To save time, you can use a tool like StoryChief to blast your new travel blog content across your blogging hubs, social media channels, and email newsletter with one click.

Speaking of email newsletters…

Understand how to promote your blog content to your email subscribers in an engaging way by utilizing storytelling email marketing .

Just like when sharing travel blog content on social media, it’s helpful to share a story to make your email even more valuable.

Moreover, if you have an automated email sequence set up for new subscribers you can add in your best blog posts to help the content continuously get traffic.

Looking for an email marketing software that’s feature-rich and intuitive — and includes automations?

Click here for a free one-month trial of ConvertKit (no credit card required!).

The platform is made for bloggers by bloggers. And once you sell products, they also offer a marketplace to help their users increase sales.

Choosing Blog Post Categories

In terms of the categories you put on a travel blog post, consider how you want to organize your content.

Typically, your categories will be your blog’s main themes, while your tags help further break them down.

For instance, you might have “North America” as a category and “USA” and “Canada” as tags.

travel blog post ideas for online courses

How To Get Paid As A Travel Blogger

There are many ways to boost your travel blogging income — especially if you’re focusing on offering paid products, services, and experiences that fulfill your mission and that are an extension of your travel blog content.

Again, I highly recommend grabbing a seat in my free four-day travel blogging course if you want to learn how to make money blogging, though a few of the main ways I monetize my travel blog include:

Creating & selling online courses.

You’re already sharing knowledge in some way through your helpful blog content. Why not package up your wisdom into an online course that further helps your readers?

Personally, I use and recommend Teachable for creating online courses. That link gets you a two-week free trial, no credit card required!

You’ll have everything you need to be successful — including powerful training videos and support. It’s what I use to create and launch all of my online travel blogging courses .

Selling photo tours in NYC.

After having loads of readers ask me to show them around New York, I decided to get licensed as an NYC tour guide and start offering local experiences.

In fact, I’ve done so well selling these through my blog that I started a sister company, NYC Photo Journeys .

Working with brands.

This includes working on blogger brand collaborations as well as going on paid press trips and promoting partners in my travel blog content.

Affiliate marketing for travel bloggers .

When coming up with travel blog post ideas, I highly recommend you regularly add content optimized for affiliate sales to your publishing schedule. Here are some creative ways to promote affiliate links .

Running display ads on my travel blog.

Personally, I work with Mediavine for this. To see success, you should be publishing SEO-optimized articles and regularly updating older content so that it’s up-to-date.

travel blog post ideas

How To Become A Travel Blogger

If you stay focused, it’s possible to make money blogging in one year or less .

Map out your blogging goals , including what they are, how to reach them, and by when.

Stick with one or two main strategies, and then once you master those, you can add in others. This helps alleviate spreading yourself too thin.

This might mean saying you want to earn $5,000/month in affiliate sales by June 1 through publishing two affiliate-optimized blog posts per month, publishing two affiliate-optimized videos per month as part of your YouTube strategy , and hosting a free challenge that promotes an affiliate each quarter.

Remember, also, to grab access to my free Travel Blogger Resource Library to snag printables and workshops that can help you take your blog full-time much quicker.

Bonus: 10 Ways To Make Money Travel Blogging [Free Workshop]

how to make money as a travel blogger

While we’re on the topic of growing a profitable blogging business, I’d love to invite you to my free workshop: 10 Powerful Ways To Make Money Travel Blogging.

During the 60-minute on-demand workshop, you’ll learn:

  • Myths related to monetizing a blog (that may be holding you back!)
  • Strategies for creating profitable content (so those blog posts, emails & social shares lead to income!)
  • Tips for earning recurring passive revenue as a blogger (so your income grows even when you’re away from your laptop!)
  • How to create products that you know your audience will buy (so you don’t waste your time!)
  • Advice for growing your affiliate income (with a strategy that truly works!)

Plus, your free ticket to this actionable workshop also includes a Q&A, limited-time replay, and special bonuses.

Click here to grab your seat in the free travel blog monetization workshop .

Bonus Profitable Blogging Tutorials [Video Playlist]

Want to learn more powerful strategies for taking your blog full time?

Check out this curated playlist of blogging tips and tactics that work:

What travel blog post ideas would you add to this list?

Which of the above best travel topics are you excited to write first.

Enjoyed this post on travel blog content ideas? Pin it for later!

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10 Tips For A Perfect Travel Social Media Marketing Strategy

Last Updated on April 14, 2024 by The Digital Travel Expert

How do you build a travel social media marketing strategy that conveys the right message to the right target audience and addresses their travel pain points?

First thing first, how has social marketing changed the way we travel?

In the digital era, the travel and hospitality industry has been evolving at an unprecedented pace. Traditional marketing methods are quickly making way for digital media marketing, compelling hotels, travel agencies, and tour operators to adapt and innovate.

But how do you effectively build a travel social media marketing strategy? Like in our previous post about travel SEO strategy , this article will go through steps to consider when building a travel marketing strategy that aligns with your brand and niche.

Table of Contents

10 Steps to Building a Successful Travel Marketing Strategy

Any digital marketing plan starts with defining your goal. Your goal might be brand awareness or conversion, but in general social media is best for the first two stages of the marketing funnel. Once the goal is defined, the next steps to building a successful travel social marketing strategy will require you to have your target audience and understand their preferences and interests.

This involves conducting thorough research to identify the platforms where your audience is most active, whether it’s Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest. Next, you create compelling and visually appealing content that showcases the unique vacation experiences and destinations your hotel or travel brand offers. Let’s explore every step of travel social marketing in detail.

1. Identifying the Right Social Media Platforms

When developing your social marketing strategy for travel brands, the first step is to identify the platforms most used by your target audience. Facebook, with its billions of users, is a must for most businesses. Instagram travel marketing ‘s visual nature makes it ideal for showcasing destinations, accommodations, and local attractions. Twitter can be great for quick updates and engaging in conversations, while LinkedIn can help you establish connections in the industry.

2. Creating Engaging Travel Social Media Content

Like in travel SEO marketing , Content is king in the digital marketing world. When it comes to crafting your content plan, it should be a mix of promotional, educational, and entertaining content.

  • Promotional content: Share special offers, discounts, or exclusive packages. Highlight your unique selling propositions but ensure it doesn’t come off as pushy.
  • Educational content: Share travel tips, must-visit places, local customs, or any information that would enrich your audience’s travel experience. Providing valuable insights establishes you as an expert in your field.
  • Entertaining content: Interesting anecdotes, breathtaking photos, or engaging travel tales can get your audience excited about their next trip. This is not social media addiction:)

Is there a digital transformation and travel culture that should govern social media influencer marketing partnerships?

Remember, your content should align with your brand’s personality and engage your audience. Vary your formats between videos, images, infographics, and stories.

3. The Role of a Social Media Marketer

A skilled marketer can turn your social presence from an afterthought into a major revenue driver. They are the architects of your social content plan, responsible for crafting posts, scheduling content , engaging with the audience, and analyzing performance metrics.

In essence, a digital travel marketer ensures that your brand’s voice is heard and respected, your customers are satisfied, and your business goals are achieved.

4. Monitoring and Adapting Your Strategy

Social media marketing isn’t a “set it and forget it” type of strategy. It requires continuous monitoring and adaptation. Keep an eye on your metrics – likes, shares, comments, followers, website clicks, etc. Use these insights to understand what works and what doesn’t, and tweak your strategy accordingly.

Don’t be afraid to experiment. Trends change quickly, so stay updated and adapt your strategy to ride the wave of these changes.

5. Engaging with the Audience

Interaction is a vital aspect of any social media marketing strategy . It’s not enough to simply push out content; you need to engage with your audience as well. Respond to comments, encourage discussion, and consider creating polls or contests to boost engagement. Being accessible and responsive can foster a sense of community and loyalty, making your followers more likely to convert into customers.

6. Utilizing User-Generated Content

Your customers are your best advertisers. Travelers love sharing their experiences online, so why not incorporate user-generated content into your strategy?

It’s a great way to foster engagement and create authenticity around your brand. Encourage customers to share their experiences using a branded hashtag and feature these posts on your social profiles. It’s a win-win situation: you get authentic and cost-effective travel content , and your customers get recognition.

7. Leveraging Travel Influencer Partnerships

In the world of travel social media marketing , influencers can be a powerful tool. Partnering with influencers who align with your brand can help you reach a more prominent, engaged audience. While celebrities can have a massive reach, don’t overlook micro-influencers. They often have a smaller but highly engaged following and can drive excellent results.

8. Implementing Travel Social Media Advertising

While organic reach is important, social platforms offer sophisticated advertising options to help you reach a larger, targeted audience. Use them to promote your special deals, boost your top-performing posts, or target users who are planning their next holiday.

9. Building a Consistent Brand Voice

It is important to keep your brand voice consistent across the platforms you use . Your brand voice communicates your values through your online and offline messages, and customer service as well. It’s a reflection of your brand’s personality and values. Whether you’re serious and professional, fun and quirky, or helpful and friendly, your voice should resonate with your target audience and be consistent in every post, comment, and reply.

10. Staying Updated with Social Media Trends

Stay abreast of the latest social travel trends and updates. Platforms regularly roll out new features, such as Instagram’s Reels or LinkedIn’s Stories. Being an early adopter of these features can give you an edge over your competitors.

15 Content Ideas for Social Media Marketing For Travel Business es

First, what is social media and its importance for the travel industry? The ease of sharing experiences, the visual appeal of exotic locations, and the accessibility of reviews make social platforms ideal for engaging prospective customers in the travel sector.

An effectively implemented social media content plan can be your key to reaching a broad audience and driving bookings.

Ethical travel content for social media marketing is a great way for tourism businesses to engage with their audience while promoting sustainable and responsible travel practices.

These content ideas aim to inspire travelers to explore the world responsibly, while also promoting the values of sustainability, cultural appreciation, and community support.

Here are 15 content ideas from travel catchy slogans, captions, and quotes suitable for Instagram, TikTok posts, and bios:

1. Eco-Friendly Accommodation Spotlights

  • Slogan: “Stay green, stay serene!”
  • Caption: “Discover eco-friendly stays that offer luxury with a conscience. #EcoTravel #SustainableLiving”

2. Local Cuisine Exploration

  • Slogan: “Taste the world, support local.”
  • Caption: “Savor the flavors of [destination] while supporting local farmers and businesses. Every bite tells a story. 🍽️ #EatLocal #SupportLocal”

3. Voluntourism Opportunities

  • Slogan: “Travel with purpose, leave a positive impact.”
  • Caption: “Make a difference while exploring new destinations. Join us in giving back to the communities we visit. 💚 #VolunteerTravel #MakeADifference”

4. Wildlife Conservation Initiatives

  • Slogan: “Protecting wildlife, one adventure at a time.”
  • Caption: “Embark on unforgettable wildlife experiences while supporting conservation efforts. Let’s preserve our planet’s precious biodiversity. 🐾 #WildlifeConservation #ResponsibleTravel”

5. Cultural Immersion Experiences

  • Slogan: “Embrace diversity, celebrate unity.”
  • Caption: “Immerse yourself in the vibrant cultures of [destination]. Every interaction is an opportunity to learn and grow. 🌍 #CulturalExchange #UnityInDiversity”

6. Plastic-Free Travel Tips

  • Slogan: “Pack memories, leave only footprints.”
  • Caption: “Small changes can make a big difference. Say no to single-use plastics and help keep our oceans clean. 🌊 #PlasticFreeTravel #LeaveNoTrace”

7. Adventure with a Cause

  • Slogan: “Adrenaline with purpose.”
  • Caption: “Experience the thrill of adventure while supporting local conservation projects. Let’s protect the places we play in. 🏞️ #AdventureForGood #ConservationHeroes”

8. Responsible Tour Operator Features

  • Slogan: “Exploring responsibly, together.”
  • Caption: “Partnering with responsible tour operators committed to sustainable and ethical travel practices. Join us on our journey towards a better future. 🌿 #ResponsibleTourism #TravelConsciously”

9. Community-Based Tourism Highlights

  • Slogan: “Travel with heart, leave with stories.”
  • Caption: “Discover the warmth and hospitality of [destination] through community-based tourism experiences. Every visit helps support local livelihoods. ❤️ #CommunityTourism #TravelWithPurpose”

10. Low-Impact Transportation Options

  • Slogan: “Go green, travel clean.”
  • Caption: “Opt for eco-friendly transportation options like biking or walking to explore [destination] sustainably. Let’s reduce our carbon footprint together. 🚲 #GreenTravel #SustainableTransport”

11. Nature Conservation Awareness

  • Slogan: “Protecting paradise, one step at a time.”
  • Caption: “Explore the beauty of nature and learn how we can all play a role in preserving it for future generations. 🌳 #NatureConservation #ProtectParadise”

12. Fair Trade Souvenir Suggestions

  • Slogan: “Souvenirs with a story.”
  • Caption: “Support local artisans and communities by choosing fair trade souvenirs that empower rather than exploit. Every purchase makes a difference. 🎁 #FairTrade #EthicalSouvenirs”

13. Educational Sustainable Travel Tips

  • Slogan: “Travel smart, travel sustainably.”
  • Caption: “Learn simple yet effective ways to minimize your environmental impact while traveling. Together, we can create a more sustainable future. 📚 #SustainableTravelTips #TravelWisely”

14. Off-the-Beaten-Path Destinations

  • Slogan: “Explore beyond boundaries.”
  • Caption: “Discover hidden gems off the tourist trail and support lesser-known communities. Adventure awaits where the crowds don’t go. 🗺️ #OffTheBeatenPath #ExploreLocally”

15. Leave No Trace Challenges

  • Slogan: “Take memories, leave no trace.”
  • Caption: “Challenge yourself to leave behind only footprints and take away memories and photographs. Let’s keep our favorite destinations pristine for generations to come. 👣 #LeaveNoTrace #TakeMemories”

You can leverage ethically catchy travel slogans, captions, and quotes to engage your audience and encourage them to join responsible travel practices.

Travel Social Marketing FAQs

How has social media influenced travel and tourism in recent years? 

Social marketing has revolutionized how people plan, experience, and share their travel adventures. With the rise of platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, travelers now have access to a wealth of information and inspiration at their fingertips. Through stunning visuals and personal stories shared by fellow travelers, social media has fueled a desire for exploration and discovery like never before. It has become a powerful tool for research, allowing individuals to gather recommendations, read reviews, and gain insights into destinations they may have never considered.

How do luxury travel brands use social media marketing?

Luxury travel brands have embraced social media marketing as a powerful tool to engage with their affluent clientele and create a unique brand experience. They leverage various platforms, such as Instagram and Facebook, to showcase their exclusive destinations, personalized services, and opulent accommodations. By curating visually stunning content, they captivate their audience’s attention and evoke a sense of wanderlust. These brands also employ influencer collaborations to enhance their online presence, partnering with renowned travel bloggers and celebrities who embody the essence of luxury travel.

Final Thoughts

Crafting an effective travel social media marketing strategy involves understanding your audience, creating engaging content, and continuously monitoring and adapting your approach. It’s not about being present on every platform but about maximizing your impact on the right ones.

It’s a journey with exciting twists and turns, but with patience, creativity, and persistence, you’ll be well on your way to harnessing the power of social media for your travel business.

Remember, building a successful travel social media marketing strategy doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a process that requires patience, creativity, and the ability to connect with your audience. With the right approach, social media can play a pivotal role in your business’s growth. The world is waiting for your story. Now, go ahead and share it!

This article was written from the love of travel and digital marketing. If you came through this part, it either means you have some thoughts about travel digital marketing or you know someone who might need to read this article. Let us know in the comment section your point of view!

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Travel and Tourism Marketing: The Complete Guide

A travel and tourism marketing plan will help you reach new customers and protect the future of your business, no matter what its size.

travel marketing post

Travel is big business in Canada. Tourism spending in the first quarter of 2023 surpassed $20 billion , an increase of 2.6 per cent over the previous quarter.

While these numbers are good news, travel and tourism companies still have to work hard to stand out and capture their market share. There’s more to running a successful travel company than guest experiences.

To keep travel and tourism companies thriving, marketers must stay on top of trends, reach new customers and engage audiences in new ways.

Travel industry marketing trends

Online consumer behaviour can drive changes in any industry, travel included. Your potential customers are changing how they plan, research and book their trips.

Consumer priorities will continue to shift in 2023, according to Deloitte . Travellers are likely to be budget conscious due to rising inflation. They may want to explore working remotely from attractive destinations or book trips that include sustainability initiatives.

They likely research travel options online before contacting tourism agencies or hospitality operators. They may follow social media accounts for travel inspiration or check online reviews before making decisions. These behaviours will change how you attract, reach and engage potential customers with your marketing.

Common challenges faced by travel and tourism operators

There are multiple challenges for marketers in the travel industry, especially as consumer expectations and marketing channels shift from year to year.

  • Standing out in a competitive industry

The travel industry is highly competitive, and any tourism company will need strong branding and marketing messages to differentiate itself from competitors.

  • Balancing seasonal fluctuations

Travel and tourism companies navigate significant business swings over a calendar year and may need to explore off-season income sources to stay profitable.

  • Building consumer loyalty

In a time when potential customers can research your company online and read reviews from past clients, building trust and managing your online reputation is critical.

  • Reaching new audiences

Growing your business means adding new customers to replace those you lose each year through attrition. Without proactive marketing, your potential customer base could shrink every year.

  • Adopting digital processes

Digitalization of business practices will affect nearly every area of your business. Exploring updated approaches can help you stay ahead of others in your industry.

  • Customer attrition

Most people you sell to will eventually leave your business, creating a steady loss of revenue over time for any company not proactively marketing to new customers.

7 tips for creating a travel and tourism marketing plan

To stay ahead of others in your industry, you’ll want to create a targeted travel and tourism marketing plan to get your brand in front of more people.

With a concrete plan, you can deliver targeted messaging that resonates with your audiences and compels people to book their next travel adventures with your company.

1.     Define your goals

The first step in any plan is to be clear about your objectives. Ensure the goals you’re trying to achieve align with those of all the stakeholders in your company. This effort will ensure you create a plan within an approved budget and drive tangible progress toward business outcomes that will strengthen your business over time.

Your marketing goals could include a plan for measuring success as well as the overarching brand story and messages you want to communicate to future guests.

2.     Update your research

Many marketers are working with outdated or lacklustre marketing plans. If you plan your marketing and spend your budget based on old information, you could target the wrong people or miss out on new markets emerging from recent travel trends.

Take the time to research the latest industry trends, local markets and other shifts in how people spend money on travel in your area. You can brainstorm new income sources or off-season ideas that will meet the evolving needs of your customers.

3.     Learn about your audience

Your marketing should target specific groups of people who are likely to become customers. Demographic or lifestyle factors may drive them toward what you sell, or they may have been customers in the past. Their online habits will also enlighten you.

Researching your potential customers to create target audiences is a valuable step in marketing. The information you glean can help you understand your customer’s needs and develop marketing messages crafted to address those needs.

4.     Plan and develop marketing content

These fresh insights about your target audience let you create marketing campaigns that position your company as the best choice.

The messaging, visuals and channels you choose will be affected by who you’re targeting. For example, consider the differences between a marketing campaign aimed at young couples planning a destination weddings and one aimed at solo travellers in their fifties who want to experience local culture and volunteer while visiting a destination.

Most of your customers will search online, so you’ll need a helpful and robust content suite on your website. Some may use Instagram to discover new destinations, while others may read trending articles on LinkedIn about remote work.

5.     Leverage multiple platforms

Creating meaningful marketing content is essential, but it won’t help you if nobody sees it. Your travel marketing plan should include a content distribution calendar that outlines where and when you’ll share your marketing content.

Your marketing plan may include posting content on your website, distributing it through your social channels and leveraging your email list to get as many people to see your content as possible.

Imagine your target customers see your marketing content regularly, and you’ve refined the messaging to speak directly to them. In that case, there is a good chance they will follow your desired call-to-action, whether it’s visiting your website, contacting your service team or booking their trip.

6.     Optimize your marketing

It can be tempting to choose a few topics and quickly post a blog or social media post to share your ideas. These actions are often where smaller companies start with their marketing, but there’s much more to marketing than simply telling your customers you’re offering something appealing.

For example, you may publish blog content that would attract more website visitors if you optimized it for SEO, included links to other content and had a call to action. Your social media posts should drive traffic to your website, engage your customers with replies and responses, and include hashtags to increase visibility.

Optimizing each marketing channel will ensure every piece of content you distribute works to build the return on your marketing investment. Every area of marketing requires expertise to drive results. Don’t be afraid to enlist outside help.

7.     Track and adjust over time

As you implement your marketing plan, you may realize some channels drive better results than others. You may notice a new trend that could affect your target audience. Your company may develop a new avenue of attracting customers with an off-season event or new amenities.

A plan helps guide your actions but should remain flexible and fluid so you don’t miss out on new opportunities. Ensure you can access analytics and data to help you assess your plan’s most effective components and adjust accordingly. With the right insights, you can increase coverage of topics that perform well or invest more resources in content for an audience that is most responsive.

Reaching new customers is vital to your business growth, and we’re here to help you be successful. Download our Travel Report to learn more.

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10 Creative Travel Marketing Ideas to Attract More Customers in 2023

David kovacs.

  • May 2, 2023
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Looking for some creative travel marketing ideas?

As a travel business owner, you are constantly looking for ways to attract more customers and increase your revenue. While traditional marketing methods like brochures and billboards still work, they may not be enough to stand out in the crowded travel market. 

With so many competitors in the travel industry, it can be challenging to stand out and attract new customers. But by leveraging effective travel marketing ideas, you can capture the attention of your target audience and boost your sales. In this blog post, we’ll share practical tips and strategies for using travel marketing ideas to promote your business and drive revenue growth. 

Whether you’re a hotel owner, travel agency, or tour operator, you’ll find plenty of valuable insights to help you succeed in the ever-changing travel market. So, let’s dive in and discover how to make the most of travel marketing for your business!

Here are 10 creative travel marketing ideas

travel-marketing-ideas

1. Create a visually stunning website

Your website is often the first impression potential customers have of your travel business. Make sure it’s a good one by creating a visually stunning website that showcases your unique selling points. Use high-quality images and videos to entice visitors and make it easy for them to find the information they need.

2. Use social media to your advantage

Social media is an incredibly powerful tool for travel marketing. Use platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to share stunning photos, customer testimonials, and travel tips. You can also run social media ads to target specific audiences and promote your travel packages.

3. Partner with influencers

Influencer marketing is a popular trend in travel marketing. Partnering with influencers who have a large following can help you reach new audiences and build credibility. Choose influencers who align with your brand values and have a genuine interest in travel.

4. Create engaging video content

Video content is becoming increasingly popular on social media and websites. Create engaging videos that showcase your travel packages, highlight customer experiences, or provide travel tips. You can also use video ads to promote your business on platforms like YouTube and Facebook.

5. Offer exclusive deals and discounts

Everyone loves a good deal. Offer exclusive discounts and deals to your customers to entice them to book with your travel business. You can offer early bird discounts, referral discounts, or package deals that bundle multiple services.

6. Host events and webinars

Hosting events and webinars can help you build a community around your travel brand. You can host events like travel expos or webinars on travel topics like budget travel or luxury travel. These events can help you connect with potential customers and showcase your expertise.

7. Create a loyalty program

Loyalty programs are a great way to retain customers and encourage repeat bookings. Offer incentives like free upgrades, priority booking, or exclusive offers to customers who book with your travel business multiple times.

8. Use email marketing

Email marketing is still a powerful tool in travel marketing. Use it to send personalized offers, updates on new travel packages, and travel tips to your customers. You can also use email marketing to re-engage with customers who have abandoned their bookings.

9. Create a referral program

Word-of-mouth marketing is a powerful tool in the travel industry. Create a referral program that incentivizes your customers to refer their friends and family to your travel business. Offer discounts or exclusive offers to customers who refer new business to you.

10. Use virtual reality

Virtual reality is an exciting technology that can help you showcase your travel packages in a unique way. Use virtual reality to give potential customers a virtual tour of your accommodations, destinations, and activities. This can help them visualize their travel experience and increase the likelihood of booking with your travel business.

Frequently asked questions about travel marketing

What is travel marketing.

Travel marketing refers to the strategies and techniques used to promote travel-related products and services, such as hotels, flights, and tours, to potential customers.

What are some common marketing techniques used in the travel industry?

Some common marketing techniques used in the travel industry include social media marketing, email marketing, influencer marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, and paid advertising.

How can I create a successful travel marketing campaign?

To create a successful travel marketing campaign, you need to identify your target audience, set clear goals, create compelling content, choose the right channels to promote your campaign, and measure your results.

What are some ways to stand out in the crowded travel market?

To stand out in the crowded travel market, you can focus on your unique selling points, create visually stunning content, offer exclusive deals and discounts, use influencer marketing, and provide exceptional customer service.

How can I use social media to promote my travel business?

To use social media to promote your travel business, you can share high-quality images and videos, engage with your followers, run social media ads, and partner with influencers who have a large following.

What are some effective ways to target my ideal customer?

To target your ideal customer, you can use demographic targeting, interest targeting, and behavior targeting on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Google Ads.

What are some creative ideas for video content in travel marketing?

Some creative ideas for video content in travel marketing include showcasing your travel packages, highlighting customer experiences, providing travel tips, and using virtual reality to give potential customers a virtual tour of your accommodations and destinations.

How can I measure the success of my travel marketing efforts?

You can measure the success of your travel marketing efforts by tracking metrics like website traffic, social media engagement, email open and click-through rates, conversion rates, and customer feedback.

What role does SEO play in travel marketing?

SEO plays a crucial role in travel marketing by helping your website rank higher in search engine results pages, which can drive more traffic to your site and increase your visibility in the travel market.

How can I build a loyal customer base for my travel business?

To build a loyal customer base for your travel business, you can offer incentives like loyalty programs and referral programs, provide exceptional customer service, and personalize your marketing efforts.

What are some current trends in travel marketing?

Some current trends in travel marketing include using social media influencers, incorporating sustainability into your marketing efforts, and using virtual and augmented reality technologies to enhance the customer experience.

How can I leverage influencer marketing for my travel business?

To leverage influencer marketing for your travel business, you can partner with influencers who align with your brand values and have a large following, and have them promote your travel packages and destinations to their followers.

What are some effective ways to use email marketing in the travel industry?

Some effective ways to use email marketing in the travel industry include sending personalized offers and updates, providing travel tips and recommendations, and re-engaging with customers who have abandoned their bookings.

How can virtual reality be used in travel marketing?

Virtual reality can be used in travel marketing to provide potential customers with a virtual tour of your accommodations, destinations, and activities, which can help them visualize their travel experience and increase the likelihood of booking with your travel business.

What are some ways to personalize my travel marketing efforts for my target audience?

Some ways to personalize your travel marketing efforts for your target audience include using customer data to tailor your messaging, offering personalized recommendations based on their interests and past behavior, and providing customized experiences that cater to their preferences and needs.

Travel marketing is all about standing out in a crowded market. By using these 10 creative travel marketing ideas, you can attract more customers and increase your revenue. Whether you’re using social media to promote your business or hosting events to build a community, there are plenty of ways to reach potential customers and showcase your unique selling points. Remember, the key to successful travel marketing is to be creative, authentic, and customer-focused.

David Kovacs

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Direct Mail Automation

November 23, 2023 by MADX

7 Travel Marketing Strategies to Win Travelers

Revenue for the travel and tourism market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 4.42%. By 2027, the projected market volume is over one trillion dollars. 

As travelers return to their normal traveling frequency, competition is soaring again. Travel companies must develop new and innovative ways of getting their services in front of potential customers.

Travel marketing has become increasingly important. Many competitors are finding success in a cluttered industry thanks to innovative marketing. As a direct mail automation platform, we have observed what makes travel marketing unique and how you can create strategies to attract travelers to your business.  

Let’s strap in and begin our journey. 

What We’ll Cover:

  • What is Travel Marketing?
  • #1 Direct Mail Marketing
  • #2 Content Marketing
  • #3 Video Marketing
  • #4 Influencer Marketing
  • #5 Email Marketing
  • #6 User-Generated Content
  • #7 Virtual Reality Marketing
  • #1 Define Your Target Audience
  • #2 Target Travel-Related Keywords
  • #3 Don’t Oversell
  • #4 Retarget Audience Interest
  • #5 Focus on Visuals
  • #6 Reach Out to Micro-Influencers
  • How Can Direct Mail Help Travel Marketing Campaigns?
  • Elevate Your Travel Marketing Campaigns

What is Travel Marketing? 

Traveling marketing involves all the marketing strategies you use to;

  • Generate leads
  • Attract more website visitors
  • Drive social media visibility
  • Strengthen your brand
  • Convert customers
  • Increase sales
  • Improve customer retention

It encompasses all the marketing campaigns you run on different platforms, like content marketing, advertising and social media marketing, to capture the attention of all types of travelers, like adventure seekers, business travelers, or vacation planners.

It’s important to note that travel marketing includes all businesses in the industry, like hotels, resorts, travel agents, transportation companies, airline companies, lodging businesses, tour operators and tourist destinations.

7 Effective Travel Marketing Strategies 

Travel marketing allows brands to create stories and draw more eyes to their business. A proper investment in travel marketing strategies allows marketers to generate enthusiasm, entice tourists, and drive economic growth.  

Here are seven such strategies you can adopt.  

#1 Direct Mail Marketing 

Did you know that the travel and hospitality industry ranks second in the usage of direct mail ? This is because direct marketing is a great way to reach travel customers. Personalized direct mail can surprise and delight travelers. 

There are a lot of creative ways you can print your direct mail postcards and brochures to create an engaging experience for your audience. For example, you can use pop-ups, window printing, specialty inks, embossing, and debossing to create attractive mail. 

Many travel marketers also use destination pictures to create a visual impact and evoke certain emotions.  

If you think direct marketing is complicated and requires a lot of time, think again. With the advent of direct mail tools like Postalytics, you can access; 

  • Readymade templates
  • Personalize campaigns at scale
  • Get address verification functionality
  • Dashboards to track the success of your campaign
  • pURLs & QR codes for easy online tracking

It means you can create, send, and track campaigns with ease. 

#2 Content Marketing 

Investing in content marketing can pay off well in the long run. With so many different content formats like blogs, videos, podcasts, ebooks, etc., you can be as creative as you want. 

One format that you should capitalize on before moving to others is blog content. An engaging blog can target your audience’s questions, offer tips and suggestions that the audience finds valuable, and persuade those who wish to travel. 

Booking.com ’s blog is the perfect inspiration for you. 

Here are some best practices you can adopt to get the most out of this travel marketing strategy: 

  • Perform keyword research to find the keywords and phrases your target audience is searching for.
  • Understand your audience and create relevant content.
  • Master the usage of powerful and persuasive copy and CTAs.
  • Perform competitor research to find the content types getting the most engagement.
  • Experiment with recent trendy content formats like Instagram reels and YouTube shorts.
  • Create a newsletter with your top-performing content to get even more benefits out of your popular content.

#3 Video Marketing 

According to Oberlo’s video marketing survey, the demand for video content is increasing, with 91% of consumers wanting to see more video content from brands. 

This holds even more true for the travel and tourism industry. For example, take these two options: 

Option A: A detailed landing page talking about how to set up an itinerary for Italy 

Option B: A YouTube video that shows the different things you can cover in Italy for your itinerary  

Which one would you prefer first? The last option, right? That’s because this industry is heavily dependent on visuals. Visuals help you show off destinations and your hospitality business in full glory. 

Here’s how G Adventures creates powerful travel videos on YouTube. 

You can also tell compelling stories with videos. And the best part? You don’t need an extensive budget for this travel marketing strategy. You only need some basic tools like Vimeo and Adobe to get started.  

#4 Influencer Marketing 

Partnering with relevant influencers in your niche can help you reach a wider audience and get more visitors to your social profiles or website. 

When you work with great names in the industry, it also does a lot to improve the trust and credibility people have in your brand. 

One question marketers often have with influencer marketing is, “Wouldn’t this strategy be very costly?” 

No! With the advent of micro and nano-influencers, even small businesses and travel agencies can adopt influencer marketing. Here are some questions to ask before choosing influencers for your campaigns. 

Before moving ahead with this strategy, ensure you have a plan drawn out which answers questions like: 

  • What will be the budget spend?
  • How many posts/videos/articles are we looking to collaborate on?
  • Will we let the influencer create content independently, or will we have a set of guidelines?
  • How will we compensate the influencers?

#5 Email Marketing 

Email marketing can be a great way for travel marketers to nurture travel leads and build relationships. But it’s not as easy as writing a generic email and sending it to 200 subscribers on your list. 

Instead, here are some tips to help you create effective travel email campaigns: 

  • Embed beautiful visuals and videos : Instead of sending the same mundane emails, by adding a short video to your email, you can engage your audience and improve response rates.
  • Use email automation: Create triggered email workflows to send the right message to the right person at the right time. Here’s a workflow example.
  • Personalize your campaigns: Email personalization can improve your open rates by 82% . So, get customer preferences and use them in campaigns.
  • Get creative with subject lines: As travel marketers, your subject lines should be such that they draw the recipients in and push them to open the email. You can even use A/B testing to find the right subject lines.

Here’s an email campaign by a travel business, Carnival Cruise Line, to inspire you. 

Image source 

#6 User-Generated Content 

User-generated content (UGC) is any content created by the users of your company that reflects their experiences with your services or brand. 

Utilizing this in your campaigns, websites, or blogs can help build trust and social proof. After all, people trust other travelers more than they trust branded content.  

Here’s how you can use UGC: 

  • Embed reviews on your homepage or targeted landing pages.
  • Create a separate page on your website to display your customer’s pictures, such as their stay in your hotel.
  • Use these visuals in your email campaigns. For example, if you’re sending details about an upcoming trip to Indonesia, embed pictures of your customers having fun on the pristine beaches of Bali.
  • Design an attractive brochure with UGC and send it via direct mail platforms.

To source these visuals, you can ask your customers via email, or you can create branded hashtags on social media and encourage customers to use those while uploading their pictures. 

#7 Virtual Reality Marketing 

We have seen virtual reality applications in many areas of our lives, whether gaming or the beauty industry. With VR offering a realistic experience, travel marketers can use it to create memorable and immersive experiences. 

For example, you’ll see many hotels and resorts offering a virtual tour of their resort. The 360-degree videos make you feel as if you are right in the hotel. This makes visitors feel like the main character in your story and helps build strong relationships. 

Here’s a YouTube video that shows what this experience feels like. 

You could create virtual guided city tours, wine-tasting tours, or virtual visits to museums and galleries. To find how effective this is, many travel companies ask recipients to scan QR codes to access these tours and then track their activity. 

6 Best Tips for Travel Marketing Campaign 

We’ve covered the different marketing strategies you can implement. Now, it’s time to find out how you can create effective campaigns with these strategies. Here are six travel marketing tips you should follow. 

#1 Define Your Target Audience 

Not all travelers are the same. While you might have something for each traveler, you want to create separate buyer personas to target different audiences with different campaigns. This can help create more effective marketing campaigns. 

For example, while adventure seekers may want to spend extra bucks on adventure activities, luxury travelers may not mind spending lots on expensive hotels and resorts. 

To create detailed buyer personas, consider demographics, interests, pain points, and travel preferences. You can conduct surveys or pay close attention to visitors’ activity on your website to find this information.  

#2 Target Travel-Related Keywords 

You might want to create an article on “How to select the right travel agency?” But are people searching for this keyword? If not, you’re wasting your resources. 

To find this out, you can use keyword research tools like Ahrefs , Google Keyword Planner , or Semrush .  

Not only can you use these keywords for your articles or YouTube videos, but you can use them for search ads as well. 

If you’re just starting, ensure you don’t go after high-search volume keywords, which are generally very competitive. Start with long-tail keywords or keywords that have a moderate difficulty level. 

#3 Don’t Oversell 

Have you ever unsubscribed to a brand because they were very pushy? That’s one thing travel marketers should avoid at all costs.  

You need to strike a balance between promoting travel services and providing valuable information.  

For example, if someone booked a trip to Thailand, you can send them valuable content about attractions to visit in Thailand, how to book island tours or the food they should not miss out on. You can then insert links in these articles where customers can pre-book tours or other activities. 

This way, you’re not aggressively marketing your add-ons. At the same time, you’re providing your customers with valuable information. 

#4 Retarget Audience Interest 

Retargeting in the travel industry focuses on reconnecting with those leads or customers who have shown interest in your product/service once. This helps convert those who just need that extra nudge to rent a room in your hotel or book a tour from your agency. 

You can use website tracking pixels and data analysis to identify valuable retargeting opportunities. One major way travel marketers retarget audience interest is by using search ads or showcasing ads on social media platforms. 

To get the most out of this strategy, ensure your ads are compelling enough to remind travelers of their interest in your services. 

Here’s how SkyLux Travel uses retargeting ads with irresistible discounts. 

#5 Focus on Visuals 

Visual content is the go-to content for travel and tourism marketing. After all, you can write a hundred flamboyant words on how beautiful Spain is. Still, it’ll only make a lasting impact if you support those words with high-quality images and videos of Madrid, Seville, or Ibiza. 

Ensure you optimize visuals for mobile devices and social media platforms and maintain consistency in branding through visual elements. 

If you’re using direct and email marketing, add visuals to get better open rates and conversions. You can even A/B test these campaigns to understand the impact visuals have on your KPIs. 

#6 Reach Out to Micro-Influencers 

A micro-influencer is an influencer with a follower count of 10,000-100,000 followers. These influencers are the best option for brands looking to get a broader appeal with their campaigns on a budget. 

These micro-influencers charge less, have a more engaged following, and have a more targeted or niche audience, all of which benefit travel marketers. 

You can do a manual search on social platforms or work with influencer marketing agencies to get a list of micro-influencers you can work with. 

How Can Direct Mail Help Travel Marketing Campaigns? 

Many travel agencies and related businesses use direct mail to create a tangible and memorable experience for their clients.  

With different direct mail formats and printing methods, you can create beautiful direct mail pieces that capture attention and improve your brand’s visibility. 

Direct mail automation tools like Postalytics streamline the creation and delivery of direct mail. With access to readymade templates, functionality to add pURLs & QR codes, and the ability to personalize each direct mail piece at scale, you’re all set to carry out your direct marketing efforts seamlessly . 

Vacation Reputation, a leading-edge solution tailored for vacation rental management companies, used Postalytics to market their services. They loved that there were no minimum order sizes, and they could personalize and automate direct mail. 

After adding Postalytics to their list of services, one of their clients signed six new properties after sending only 2100 postcards. That’s an incredible conversion rate to cold outreach in this industry. 

Elevate Your Travel Marketing Campaigns 

With these travel marketing strategies, you’re ready to create campaigns that convert. Before you start, ensure you have done preliminary research on your audience to get the most out of your campaigns. 

Direct marketing is one of our most used marketing strategies in the travel industry. You need to adopt it sooner to gain a competitive edge. 

Register for free today and head to our blog to get all the latest direct marketing insight s. 

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YOU CAN’T PLAN

 INCREDIBLE VACATIONS  IF YOU DON’T HAVE ENOUGH CLIENTS

As a travel agent, advisor or agency owner, do you ever feel like you’re perpetually lost at sea, endlessly circling without a compass to guide you? 

Maybe you’re akin to a night owl, burning the midnight oil and pushing the boundaries of your day, but still finding those high-flying goals always out of reach.

Or are you standing at the crossroads, wondering how to turn this passionate hobby into a thriving, profitable travel agency?

If any of these scenarios strike a chord, this quiz is just the lifeline you need. 

It’s designed to cut through the confusion and map out the precise direction for your travel business.

Simply embark on a quick journey through our 15 multiple-choice questions, and presto – your customized action plan will pop up on your screen faster than you can say “bon voyage”.

And to make sure you don’t misplace your itinerary, we’ll also email it to you as a handy backup. 

It’s the perfect starting point to plot your course towards a successful, profitable travel business.

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DOES THIS SOUND LIKE YOU?

Posting on social media only to hear crickets?

Sending out quotes only to be ghosted?

Burning the candle at both ends but still overwhelmed and exhausted?

Always super busy but not hitting your goals?

No clue where to find the type of clients who want to book the type of travel that you want to sell?

IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT. YOU ARE NOT A MARKETER.

6 steps that will change the trajectory of your business.

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GETTING NEW CLIENTS IS SIMPLE, NOT EASY

Hey there friend! So, you've got a knack for planning trips, maybe even unofficially for friends and family, and now you're thinking, "Hey, why not turn this into a career?"

But let's keep it real – you didn't go to business school, and marketing lingo might as well be Greek to you.

As you dive into the excitement of making travel dreams come true, you quickly realize that just having a website won't magically attract clients.

That's where we come in.

Here's your game plan:  

Dive into our vibrant Facebook communities, where you'll find support and valuable insights from fellow travel enthusiasts turned entrepreneurs.  

Explore our 6-Step Travel Business Blueprint, pinpointing areas where you may need guidance or resources.  

Discover our top free resources, including our enriching podcast episodes, informative blog posts, and comprehensive marketing training.  

​Get ready to learn the ropes of consistently bringing in new clients and turning your travel passion into a thriving business.

We're here to help you every step of the way!

PS. I'm the absolute BEST person to guide you through your entrepreneurial journey in the travel industry. Here's why...

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FORECAST YOUR COMMISSION

In the travel industry, most businesses are flying blind without clear commission goals, missing out on the roadmap they need to succeed – it's like driving without GPS.

We're here to help you set those targets and reverse engineer your strategy, giving you clarity on client acquisition, email subscribers, and average bookings per client, all customized to your niche and suppliers.

MAP OUT YOUR SALES PIPELINE

Once commission goals are set, it's essential to map out your strategy to reach them, much like needing directions on a GPS to reach your destination.

Without this step, you're essentially engaging in random acts of marketing, hoping something will stick.

This involves creating a detailed marketing and sales plan that outlines the steps needed to achieve your goals.

CREATE A CONTENT PLAN

The next crucial step is to develop a content plan.

Every travel business must consistently produce content for three key reasons:

To establish themselves as a trustworthy expert in the industry

To articulate why travelers should opt to work with a professional rather than booking independently

To inspire and educate their audience about destinations and experiences that align with their commission goals.

By strategically crafting content that fulfills these objectives, businesses can effectively engage their audience, build credibility, and drive conversions.

GET YOUR WEBSITE UP PAR

Ensuring your website shines is crucial, as it's your digital storefront where potential clients quickly form opinions about your business.

You hold the power to sway their decision by crafting a captivating user experience. Boosting traffic through SEO, social media, and email campaigns, along with optimizing conversion elements, like clear calls-to-action, can turn visitors into loyal customers.

Balancing efforts to attract and convert leads elevates your online presence and leaves a positive first impression.

START PROMOTING & ADVERTISING

Many travel advisors struggle to market themselves effectively, often resorting to price competition or passive waiting for business to find them.

They post on social media or launch websites, hoping for results but often left wondering why they're not seeing any.

What they truly need is proactive, strategic promotion to reach the right audience. While this may require investment, starting out, there are creative ways to gain visibility.

By adopting a proactive marketing approach, advisors can attract their ideal clients and cultivate a thriving business.

MEASURE & ANALYZE YOUR DATA POINTS

Feeling like your marketing isn't hitting the mark? It's like not feeling well but not knowing why until you get your blood drawn—the labs reveal the issue, and then experts step in.

As a travel agency, understanding your clients' motivations is key.

That's where data comes in.

With our advanced analytics tools, we uncover hidden patterns in your marketing metrics, guiding you to fine-tune strategies that resonate with your audience and drive results.

REACH YOUR GOALS WITH THIS BLUEPRINT

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Seeking a dose of business-changing magic to boost your spirits? Look no further than the Travel Marketing & Media® podcast.

Our bite-sized episodes, each running between 20-30 minutes, are like audio gold, offering actionable tactics for your travel business.

Whether it's refining processes, crafting compelling messaging, exploring new marketing strategies, or discovering handy tools, our podcast delivers insights you can put into practice today.

Join thousands of travel agents and advisors who download our episodes weekly. If you've ever yearned for an on-demand business coach, our podcast is your solution!

IT'S TIME TO MAKE SOME CHANGES

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Shopping Cart

Shopping cart items, 25 social media content ideas for travel.

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On social media, the content you post is critical to engaging your audience and creating a solid fan base. Yet, many travel professionals struggle with knowing what to post. Whether you are wondering what to say on Twitter, Facebook, blogs or any other channel, here are some travel content ideas to help get the creative juices flowing:

I’ve said it many MANY times : travel is an experiential product and the best way to get people thinking about travel is to show them fun places to go and fun things they can do while they are there. If you can, share personal or client photos of destinations you want to sell. They don’t need to be professional shots and often work even better if you’re in the photo doing something silly! I’ve had many travel agents report that they sell at least one or two packages they wouldn’t have otherwise every time they post photos of a trip they took.

If you don’t have photos of your own,  Flickr  is a great spot to find amazing shots of every type of destination around the world. Do a quick search and link (don’t steal!) to particularly amazing photography that you think your audience would enjoy.

Videos are also a great way to inspire customers to travel and usually works even better than photos because of their interactive nature. Once again, you don’t always need a professionally shot video to attract attention. A home video of a particularly memorable moment, useful information (like the view of a new cruise ship cabin), fun activities or footage of a new resort will do the trick. Got a knack for humor or publicly humiliating yourself without worry? Great! Use it to your advantage when you create your videos. The funnier the better!For those who are a little camera shy, don’t despair!  YouTube  is a great resource for videos of all kinds.  With a little imagination you can search and find some pretty amazing clips.

3. Useful links

The latest traveler alerts, a list of recommended items to pack, articles about the hottest trends in travel – think about what would be useful for your readership to know and you’ve got some sharable content. This is your chance to show off your expertise as a travel professional and provide your potential customers with information that they may not find otherwise.

Not sure where to find this information? Blogs, news sites, and trade press have articles that can fit the bill. You can also use  Google Alerts  to monitor the web for articles on just about any topic.

4. Blog posts

This one should go without saying, but too many people don’t think about it. If you publish regular blog posts, PLEASE remember to post links to them on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc if you have accounts there. Most blog platforms will allow you to connect your blog to other social channels automatically if you have trouble remembering to post.

5. Destination fun facts

Everyone loves a good bit of trivia or little known facts! It’s entertaining, informative and can again help position you as an expert in your field. Many tourist boards and hotel properties have fun facts available through their marketing department. Just ask to see if they can help you out.  Otherwise, the web is always a good alternative!

Engage your audience by asking them questions about things like their favourite vacation spot, what type of perks they like to get from their agent, what makes their holiday a perfect one, etc. Get them talking to you AND use the opportunity to do a little behind-the-scenes market research to find out what you can do to win and keep their business.

7. Event announcements

Are you attending your local travel show or hosting a consumer evening? Let the world know where you will be and when! Invite your fan base to come see you.  You might be surprised by how many of them show up…and bring a friend!

8. Top 10 lists

Quick, useful and always a good way of giving quick recommendations on destinations to see, things to pack, attractions to visit and more. You can either compile your own top 10 or link to someone else’s. Bonus points if you create your own with photos or video!

9. Community work updates

People like to know that you care about your community.  If you or your team partake in community service or charitable work, share information like updates about your latest donation, photos of your team volunteering, or news about your favourite charity.

10. Contest announcements & updates

Contests are ALWAYS a popular thing. If you choose to run one, you can build anticipation and buzz by posting regular updates. Whether you talk about the prizes, highlight funny entries, countdown the days until the winner is announced or something else, you’re sure to get attention (and probably new followers/fans/readers) really quickly.

11. Travel updates

Here’s another great opportunity to showcase your expertise as a travel expert. Share updates about your favourite suppliers (new bathtubs in every cabin? Service upgrades at a resort? New designer bag with every purchase? Ok…maybe not the last one, but you get the point) or important travel updates about specific destinations (everything from new passport requirements to travel warnings).

12. Ship inspection information

If you are a cruise expert and visit ships while they are in port, by all means, share pictures and reviews with your fans.  They WANT to hear your expert advice to know which ships are worth sailing.

13. Fam trip reports

I know too many agencies who require these reports from staff and then stuff them in a folder where they will never be seen again. You are experiencing travel while on these Fam trips and NEED to share those experiences with your fan base. This can be in the shape of photos, videos or blog updates. It doesn’t really matter. Either way, tell them what you liked, didn’t like, recommend and find amazing. If you do a good job, you may get a booking or two out of the experience.

14. Client stories

Ever get an email from a client who tells you how GREAT their trip was or wants to let you know about something funny that happened? If so, ask for their permission to share it with everyone. It acts as a testimonial for you and can be entertaining all at once.

15. Answers to common questions

If there are travel questions you get regularly, use the opportunity to share the answer with a wider audience. It may even prompt your fan base to ask you more questions and start engaging. Again…show everyone that you know your stuff and the bookings will follow!

16. Opinions

If something is happening in the travel community and you have an opinion to share, you can use your social channel to do so.  However, I would caution you to think twice about being excessively controversial or political as it may turn some people away. Some controversy is ok, but too much can be hard to handle for some people.

17. Travel tips

These can be quick tips or longer blog posts about your recommendations. Just like the fun facts, top 10 lists, and other ideas listed here, they help position you are the expert that your are while being useful.

18. Behind-the-scenes updates

If your teams is planning an event or preparing something big, there is always interest in seeing you have fun behind-the-scenes.  Be creative here with photos, videos, stories and staff comments.

19. Favourite quotes

Inspiring travel quotes are fairly easy to find (Google to the rescue!) and quick to post. If you are out of inspiration for the day, a quick quote can keep the engagement going with minimal effort.

20. Staff picks

Get your whole team involved in recommending hotels, resorts, cruises, activities or whatever else you can think of. This can be really fun for everyone and helps showcase your agency as a whole.

21. Interviews

Think written or video interviews with people on your team, a destination representative, hotel partner, etc.

22. Funny Stories

Whether it’s a cartoon, a funny video, an anecdote or the joke of the week, humor always goes a long way!

23. Updates from the road

This is where you bring out your inner journalist.  If you have access to an internet connection or a smartphone while on the road travelling or attending events, you can provide live updates.  This works particularly well on Twitter or Facebook where updates can be quick and short. Blog posts take some thought, but you could still provide one update per day once you have a chance to slow down a bit in the evening.

24. Milestones

Did you just get a new specialist certification? Did your agency win an important award? Maybe you got featured in the local newspaper. It’s time to let everyone know so they can share in the joy and find out how fabulous you really are!

25. Travel deals

I saved this one for last because it seems like the most obvious choice, yet it’s not always the best one. Depending on your sales goals, you may not want to attract the bargain hunters looking for the best deal. I’ll leave it up to you to decide if deals are a good choice for you.

It’s not as hard as it may seem. Many of the ideas above are already available within your agency or on the web.  A simple Google search or using  Google Alerts  can help you stay in the loop and find interesting content quite easily and without gobbling up your precious time.

Now it’s your turn…

Have you had success with any of the ideas above? Or perhaps I’ve missed a few good ones that you’d like to share?

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The Role of Social Media in Travel Marketing: Best Practices and Case Studies

Category: Travel

Date: February 6, 2024

The Role of Social Media in Travel Marketing: Best Practices and Case Studies

Back in 2016, then Marriott’s chief global marketing officer, Karin Timpone spoke to CNBC about their social media travel marketing service and incorporation of geo-fencing technology. 

If someone posts a photo from one of its properties, her team will reach out and contact the front desk to let them know. The hotel will often then reach out to the customers and offer complimentary upgrades — something to show that Marriott values their presence. 

Earlier, a music video for “I’ll Show You” featuring Justin Bieber at the Fjadrárgljúfur canyon in Iceland. A few years later, tourism to this once-quiet town nearly doubled. The video on YouTube has over 500 million views since 2015. 

Given the general rise in income levels and jobs going remote, people find more time to take frequent travel breaks, showcasing the need for effective digital marketing services to tap into the growing travel market

And social media has only accentuated this trend , 

  • By hosting engaging travel content and motivating reviews
  • By increasing travel FOMO (Fear-Of-Missing-Out)
  • By minimizing unpleasant surprises at the destination

Given the scope of social media in travel marketing services , this blog discusses best practices followed by interesting case studies for inspiration. 

The Power of Social Media in Travel Marketing

  • Expedia’s 2023 Traveler Value Index noted almost 35% of travelers turn to social media for holiday inspiration. 
  • Furthermore, 75% of respondents chose a specific destination inspired by social media as per Amex’s 2023 Global Travel Trends Report .
  • Travel Live Streaming is becoming increasingly popular on social media, with 60% of travelers saying they have watched a live stream of a travel experience. 
  • 74% of travelers use social media while traveling, while 92% of consumers trust word of mouth and UGC more than other forms of advertising, thus making UGC on social media crucial for any travel marketing campaign. 

Best Practices for Successful Social Media Travel Marketing

Top 5 things travelers use social media to research – Destinations, Hotels, Activities, Attractions, and Restaurants. Let’s list out travel marketing best practices to get the most attention from social media users. 

Choosing the Right Platforms

Creating engaging content, building a consistent brand presence, utilizing paid advertising, monitoring and analytics.

Identify the social media platforms that align with your target audience. 

Popular Vacation Inspiration Social Platform

Demographics

Millennials, GenZ

Highly visual

Boomers, Millennials

Moderately visual

TripAdvisor

Millennials

User Generated Content

Extremely visual

Boomers, Millennials, GenZ

Detailed & Informative

B2B travel marketing

Take a que from social media strategy of Marriott Hotels . Their Instagram account features stunning photos of their hotels, while their Twitter account is more focused on sharing news and updates.

Invest in high-quality, visually appealing content, including photos and videos. Use storytelling techniques to capture the essence of your travel experiences.

Encourage user-generated content (UGC) by running contests or using branded hashtags. UGC refers to any content that is created and shared by users or consumers of a product, service, or brand rather than by the company or organization itself. 

Travel marketers can leverage UGC in the following way: 

  • Display UGC on their social channels to engage other users as it signals authenticity.
  • Monitoring UGC can become your informal market research to upgrade your services in-time. 
  • UGC also helps build employer brand which results in team retention.

Furthermore, you may leverage the new YouTube app feature that lists video recommendations according to thumbnail color. As a travel marketer, you can explore more such strategies to increase views on YouTube here .  

The Role of Social Media in Travel Marketing Best Practices and Case Studies Example 3 - ColorWhistle

Highlight safety measures and sustainable practices in your travel marketing, as these have become critical concerns for travelers post-pandemic.

Take inspiration from our previous blog where we have discussed Innovative Travel Marketing Campaigns From Around The World . 

In a bid to blindly replicate brand marketing successes on social media, many end up creating “self-congratulating” content.

Recreating trendy content give a false impression to the marketing team about better reach. The truth beholds, unless original thought is put to market product/service, the social media marketing will lead to poor brand awareness, let alone lead generation. 

Consistency is Key. Develop a content calendar to maintain a consistent posting schedule. Consistency helps keep your audience engaged and informed.

Share travel stories, itineraries, and personal experiences. Storytelling creates a deeper connection with your audience. Use live streaming feature to promote your brand often. Learn more tips on travel live streaming here . 

You can use hashtag strategy to expand your content’s reach. Create a branded hashtag for your campaigns and encourage followers to use it.

However, we feel social media hashtags are overused. Hashtags are annoying and they hijack conversations. Moreover, users may relate social media posts with many hashtags as spam.

Here is an interesting blog by Hannah Macready where she discusses the best use of hashtags for your social media campaigns in 2024 and beyond. 

Partner with social media influencers who align with your brand and target audience. Influencers can provide authentic recommendations and reach new followers. 

Look for long-term association with the right content creator on social media for consistent engagement of new and existing users. Influencer marketing tools like Ylytics , HypeAuditor , and others can help you find the right social media influencers. 

How Travel Marketers Want People to Search on Google?

The Role of Social Media in Travel Marketing Best Practices and Case Studies - ColorWhistle

Enter a search query -> Your brand website ad appears -> Book your services

But How Do People Actually Search?

Enter a search query -> Google analyzes and displays results per keyword -> Visitor clicks -> Interrupted by WhatsApp chat -> Sleeps.

… a week later…

Notices a display ad from your brand -> Visits the landing page -> Bookmarks it -> Checks out the brand profile on Instagram -> Share it with spouse -> Logs out

… 2 days later in the office…

Visits your site -> Confirm their bookings.

Use paid advertising options on platforms like Facebook and Instagram to target specific demographics and promote your travel offerings. Consider retargeting ads to re-engage users who have shown interest in your travel products or services.

The Role of Social Media in Travel Marketing Best Practices and Case Studies (CPC Statistics) - ColorWhistle

Use geo-targeting to reach users in specific locations, especially if you’re promoting local or regional travel experiences.

Also, read>> Facebook Ad formats

Also, read>> YouTube Ad formats

Also, read>> Instagram Ad formats

Use analytics tools provided by social media platforms to track the performance of your posts and campaigns. Adjust your strategies based on data insights, focusing on what works best for your audience.

Continuously monitor social media trends and adapt your strategy to incorporate new features and technologies. Keep an eye on emerging platforms that may provide new opportunities for travel marketing.

It is important to develop a crisis management plan to address any negative incidents or crises that may arise on social media. Swift and appropriate responses are crucial.

Further, experiment with different types of content, posting times, and ad creatives to determine what resonates best with your audience. 

Latest Trends in Social Media Travel Marketing

  • Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) for immersive advertisements and travel previews.
  • Live streaming for real-time travel experience.
  • Showcasing eco-friendly destination and promoting responsible tourism.
  • AI-powered chatbots and recommendation engines.
  • Social commerce and booking directly on social media platforms.

VietJet Air is not afraid to experiment with new formats and strategies. For example, they recently launched an augmented reality (AR) campaign that allowed users to virtually experience their flights.

You can connect with us for more AI-related marketing solutions . 

Case Studies: Success Stories in Social Media Travel Marketing

Let’s explore a few success stories in social media travel marketing through case studies. The selected case studies highlight how effective social media strategies can help travel brands engage their audience, encourage user-generated content, and create memorable and impactful marketing campaigns. 

  • Airbnb – #LiveThere Campaign
  • Icelolly – Facebook Marketing Automation
  • Royal Caribbean International – Targeted Ad Campaigns
  • Expedia – #ThrowMeBack Campaign

Each campaign leveraged the power of storytelling, user participation, and visual content to connect with travelers and promote unique travel experiences.

1. Airbnb – #LiveThere Campaign:

Airbnb wanted to differentiate itself from traditional hotels and emphasize the idea of “living like a local” when traveling.

Social Media Strategies Implemented

  • Launched a series of visually stunning Instagram and Facebook posts showcasing unique properties and travel experiences.
  • Encouraged hosts and guests to share their stories, photos, and videos using the hashtag #LiveThere.
  • Collaborated with travel influencers and celebrities to create authentic content.

Results and Outcomes

  • The #LiveThere campaign garnered over 3.5 million Instagram mentions.
  • Airbnb’s Instagram following grew by over 300% in a year.
  • The campaign effectively communicated the brand’s message of unique and authentic travel experiences.

It may have worked for Airbnb back in 2017 but will be work for your travel business in 2024 and beyond? No one can be sure but you can surely take some inspirations out of it and improvize over it.  

2. Icelolly – Facebook Marketing Automation:

Icelolly experienced a temporary decrease in conversion rates across their social media platforms. As a response, they incorporated the Facebook extension into their Engagement Cloud.

  • Implemented an omnichannel strategy to unify data from a single social media platform with the website. 
  • Delivered tailored ad notifications through social media feeds to individuals who have subscribed to destination price alerts.
  • Conversion rate was generated by 17% through Facebook
  • Retargeting ads was increased up by 3%
  • Open rate was generated by 35%
  • CTR was increased by 201%
  • Conversion was increased by 45%

3. Royal Caribbean International – Targeted Ad Campaigns: 

Royal Caribbean International, a global cruise line, sought to increase engagement and conversions through its social media marketing efforts.

  • The cruise line implemented marketing automation tools to segment its social media audience based on factors like travel preferences and past interactions.
  • They used automated chatbots to respond to common inquiries and facilitate booking processes on social platforms. 
  • They launched targeted ad campaigns on Facebook and Instagram, retargeting users who had shown interest in specific cruise itineraries.
  • Significantly improved response times and engagement on social media platforms.
  • Enhanced conversion rates, with more users booking cruises directly through social media channels.
  • Increased brand loyalty as travelers received personalized recommendations and timely responses to inquiries.

4. Expedia – #ThrowMeBack Campaign:

Expedia aimed to inspire travelers to relive their favorite travel memories.

  • Encouraged users to share their old travel photos with the hashtag #ThrowMeBack, along with a caption explaining the memory.
  • Curated and featured some of the best user-submitted photos on Expedia’s social media accounts.
  • Over 15,000 users participated in the #ThrowMeBack campaign, sharing their travel memories.
  • The campaign generated increased engagement and user interaction on Expedia’s social media platforms.
  • It created a sense of nostalgia and encouraged travelers to book new trips to create more memories.

Challenges and Pitfalls in Social Media Travel Marketing

Social media travel marketing offers significant opportunities, but it also comes with various challenges and potential pitfalls that marketers should be aware of, like 

  • Platform Algorithm Changes: Social media platforms frequently update their algorithms, affecting organic reach and engagement. Marketers need to adapt strategies to stay visible to their audience.
  • Privacy and Data Protection: Stricter privacy regulations (e.g., GDPR) require marketers to handle user data responsibly. Mismanagement can lead to legal issues and reputational damage.
  • Ad Saturation: Social media users may become overwhelmed with advertising, leading to ad fatigue. Marketers must strike a balance between promotion and providing value to the audience.
  • Language and Cultural Sensitivity: Misinterpretations or insensitivity to local languages and cultures can lead to backlash. Marketers must research and tailor content appropriately for different regions.
  • Changing Travel Behavior: Travel behaviors and preferences change over time, influenced by various factors like technology, health concerns, and economic conditions. Marketers need to stay updated and adapt accordingly.
  • Over-Tourism Concerns: Social media can contribute to over-tourism by popularizing specific destinations or attractions, leading to overcrowding and environmental issues. Travel marketers must promote responsible tourism.

Hike Up Your Marketing Efforts with ColorWhistle

If your goal is to motivate shoppers, fans, and advocates through genuine content that has a track record of success, we are here to provide assistance. 

ColorWhistle’s expert travel-focused designing and marketing assistance can boost your social media efforts. Further, our experienced digital marketing service team can elevate user experiences on multiple touchpoints. You can write to us or call us at +1 (210) 787 3600 anytime to enquire more. 

Kindly leave your comments down below if you found the information in this blog useful and wish to learn more

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Exploring the World Through AI and VR in Travel Industry - ColorWhistle

Exploring the World Through AI and VR in the Travel Industry

Manav Gupta

About the Author - Manav Gupta

Manav Gupta is a full-time CopyWriter at ColorWhistle, where he works to benefit both professionals & enthusiasts in the field of Digital Marketing, Branding & Web Development by creating engaging content. Prior to joining ColorWhistle, Manav was responsible for managing & executing content projects ranging from sales collateral to web content, ad copy to letters, business proposals to sales plans, and training manuals. A graduate of a reputed university, Manav holds an honors degree in Engineering. When not hard at work creating meaningful content, he enjoys perfecting his knowledge of music, playing cricket, and volunteering to build a carbon-neutral society.

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5 Ways to Successfully Pivot Travel Marketing During Covid-19

SkiftX + Skift

SkiftX + Skift

May 21st, 2020 at 10:55 AM EDT

In today’s ever-evolving landscape, travel marketers face a myriad of challenges. Crafting informed and empathetic messaging in times of crisis is no mean feat, but the brands that remain active with thought leadership content will secure the best position on the starting line when it’s time to rebound.

This sponsored content was created in collaboration with a Skift partner.

This new series from SkiftX, Skift’s in-house content studio, highlights the work we’re doing and our vision for the future.

The Covid-19 pandemic has upended the global travel industry, and the road to recovery will undoubtedly be a long one. Fear is still widespread, yet an eagerness to return to public life is mounting. This contrast between navigating today’s complex reality, while simultaneously planning for a future rebound, perfectly articulates the conundrum faced by travel marketers today.

Simply put, travel brands are asking themselves: “How do we focus on finding solutions for the short-term while forging a path forward for the long-term?”

The answer is not simple. A recent research report by Skift, U.S. Travel Marketing During Covid-19 , shows that nearly 90 percent of travel marketers have slashed their budgets. However, doing so without an optimization strategy puts brands at risk of losing marketing talent and opportunities to keep up with consumer needs and shifting behavior.

As travel marketers, our knee-jerk reaction in times of crisis is to retrench — to pause, delay, or take a backseat until “things have settled.” But SkiftX has already made its advice clear — do not go into hiding.

We’re not alone in the belief that staying active is critical to future success. “First and foremost, remaining visible throughout the pandemic has been a critical objective for our holistic engagement efforts across all key stakeholders,” Kristie Goshow, CMO of Preferred Hotels & Resorts, told Skift . Additionally, an IPA study into advertising during a recession found that brands that increase media spend in downturns grow 4.5 times faster .

As the world economy slowly reawakens, it’s clear that brands need to secure the best position on the starting line once it’s go-time. Leading through this crisis by successfully pivoting marketing messaging by showcasing intelligence, empathy, flexibility, and an inclusive and collaborative attitude will go a long way to not only survive, but thrive. Here, we look at five ways brands can do so:

1. ACKNOWLEDGE THE SITUATION AND CONTEXTUALIZE YOUR MESSAGE

It can be challenging to know what exactly to say about Covid-19 and when to say it, but one thing’s for certain: Messaging that makes sense and empathizes with your customers’ needs will humanize your brand and harvest deeper emotional connections. In fact, Skift research shows that 76 percent of travel marketers have launched Covid-19-related communications to customers.

covid-19, travel marketing, puerto rico virtual vacay

Discover Puerto Rico’s “virtual vacay” helped the DMO pivot from a “visit now” to a “visit later” message.

Some of the best examples of messaging pivots during Covid-19 have come from tourism marketers. Skift has already written about the destination marketing organizations striking the right tone , and the common denominator in the majority of these campaigns is empathy. Discover Puerto Rico’s “virtual vacay” is one example of a standout campaign. The DMO pivoted from a “visit now” to a “visit later” mentality, helping would-be travelers experience the destination from home. Ultimately, travel brands should craft messaging that empathizes with the current situation while reassuring travelers that their destinations will be waiting with open arms once it’s safe to travel again.

2. Turn Insights Into Action

Consumers are craving information and advice on how to navigate the path forward in uncertain times. Travel brands are looking for the same thing in a B2B setting. They shouldn’t pretend to know it all, but they should work furiously to service the industry’s desire for direction and leadership. A standard marketing campaign might take months to get off the ground, but during Covid-19 travel marketers need to turbocharge their efforts and react in real time. Pivoting marketing messaging to address what customers want now is one of the quickest ways to stand out from competitors.

SkiftX has been working with our partners to turn insight into action and position them as thought leaders that can provide tangible solutions. We recently published content in partnership with Publicis Sapient on how travel brands can learn from past events and prepare for a post-pandemic world , as well as on what Covid-19 can teach the airline industry about sustainability. We also developed a whitepaper in collaboration with Bold360 on how travel brands can manage customer engagement in times of crisis .  The audience engagement levels of these campaigns have gone above and beyond our typical benchmarks, clearly illustrating that content that directly addresses the pandemic and offers practical tips on how to tackle today’s challenges is resonating with Skift readers and the overall travel industry.

In an interview with Digiday president and editor-in-chief, Brian Morrissey, Skift founder and CEO Rafat Ali spoke to the importance of “wearing your pain on your sleeve.” For Skift, offering an inside look at our survival strategy allows us to break down barriers between “us and them” and makes this journey a collective one.

In a pre-Covid world, Skift was gearing up to launch its content subscription model, but once the pandemic hit we knew we couldn’t implement a paywall when our audience needed us most. This begged the question: How to approach asking readers for money?

We pumped the breaks and quickly shifted gears to ‘pay what you want’ virtual event content, in turn creating new opportunities to make up for overall lost revenue. Pivoting to a voluntary contribution model when coronavirus really took hold, empathized with the travel industry and communicated our message and purpose loud and clear.

covid-19, travel marketing, skiftx

As an extension to this, we launched a 24-hour marketing campaign, “Skift Goes Dark”. On April 15, our owned channels were blacked out to give the industry a taste of what the world of travel would be like without us. We also gave our newsroom journalists a well-deserved mental health day. The campaign drove an uptick in contributions, website visits, and social engagement. In short, travel marketers should strive for messaging that’s simple, bold, and cuts through the noise.

4. Prioritize Native Storytelling

Native storytelling should be a priority for travel marketers during Covid-19 and beyond. This means developing marketing messaging that’s authentic to the form and function of the platform on which it’s published and reaching audiences where they already are. Is your audience attending more webinars and virtual events? That’s where you want to be. Do your customers have more time to read dedicated emails? That’s where you should focus your efforts.

For example, when the impact of Covid-19 was growing in severity, Skift quickly pivoted its events strategy to adapt to how our audience was consuming content during their work days at home. We added more than 10 online summits to our event lineup, transformed this year’s Skift Forum Europe into a virtual event, and launched “The Long View,” a new livestream series with Rafat Ali. “I’m very excited to see what a hybrid physical and virtual event will look like,” Rafat told the Wall Street Journal . This new event lineup has given us a new platform to decipher and define the industry’s biggest challenges, and in turn, offer our partners the opportunity to engage with our audience in new and meaningful ways. Travel marketers need to adopt a similar approach: listen to the audience, pivot quickly, and adapt in real-time.

5. Add to the Conversation, not Just the Noise

As we live through Covid-19, travel brands need to respect what audiences want right now: human connection. This is about people-centric communication: Let leaders be vulnerable and lead in their own voice, and make sure your brand has something original to say, and say it with soul.

Case in point is the letter “The Day the World Stopped Traveling.” Skift’s founder, Rafat Ali wrote in mid-March. It’s at once an outpouring of Rafat’s internal monologue and a stark reminder that sometimes, things are just bigger than us. It’s voice is fragile but resilient: “As a small business, we are not immune to the hurt everyone in travel is going through.” Addressing the industry in such a raw way humanizes the Skift brand and helps us live up to our purpose: to shift, transform and grow as the world around us changes.

This open letter from Intrepid Travel CEO, James Thornton, is another example of heartfelt messaging. “We’ve had to make countless impossible decisions on the fly. Decisions that have ended decades-long careers, decisions that have left families and staff around the world without incomes, decisions that have broken hearts and caused all of our staff and friends a lot of pain,” wrote Thornton. It represents the anguish of an industry leader grappling with the devastating effects of the Covid-19 on his business and the personal lives of those who work for him.

Travel marketers be warned: A wait-and-see approach is not going to weather this storm. “To win in this crisis, leading CMOs need an agile strategy that allows their team to detect, adapt to, and respond to changes,” offers vice president of Skift Research, Haixia Wang. If you take away one thing from this article, let it be this: Don’t wait for the perfect time to make your big move. That’s going to be too late.

Partner with SkiftX to help your brand pivot its marketing messaging during Covid-19. Visit us at skiftx.com or email us at [email protected] .

Lisa Omagari is SkiftX’s Editorial Director

Have a confidential tip for Skift? Get in touch

Tags: brand marketing , content marketing , coronavirus , covid-19 , pivot , skiftx , SkiftX Creative Studio , travel marketing

5 Awesome Travel Marketing Campaigns

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Building a clever and memorable travel marketing campaign can be a challenge for most travel marketers. Especially with numerous travel agencies, airlines, and hotels, the competition for brand awareness can really heat up.

A lot of marketing campaigns are a dime a dozen, especially when they attempt to leverage a multichannel approach by bridging both online and offline platforms.

We searched far and wide for some of the most compelling travel marketing campaigns out there. You’ll notice a common trait amongst these marketing campaigns, which is they all share is a multichannel approach. Whether it’s social media, video content, display, email or direct marketing, using an integrated approach helps travel marketers build a campaign that compels consumers to go on their next travel adventure.

Here’s a roundup of five travel and tourism marketing campaigns you should check out.

Westin Hotels & Resorts – You Need Better Vacation Days

Westin Hotels & Resorts is a leading wellness and hospitality organization with over 200 hotels in nearly 40 countries.

What’s different about Westin Hotels & Resorts from other organizations is their position on empowering the well-being of their consumers. Most notably, right on their website homepage is the message of “Empowering Your Well-Being.” Even when you’re looking to book a stay, the message includes “Stay Well at Westin.”

Westin Homepage

In true Westin fashion, one of their recent travel marketing campaigns aimed to put vacations back on the forefront for busy professionals.

There was a lot of media coverage on how Americans were leaving too many vacation days on the table. According to a study by Oxford Economics , American workers on average used just 16 of their available 21 vacation days. This added up to about 169 million vacation days and $52.4 billion in lost benefits.

To help busy professionals take their vacation days back, Westin launched the You Need Better Vacation Days campaign . They promoted something called the “Out of Officer Generator” which was a digital tool that made a custom, tongue-in-cheek automatic response for your email inbox and social media channels.

Westin OOO Generator

Why make your own out of office reply when you can generate a funny, quirky one?

Westin OOO Message

People were able to visit the website and generate their own out of office replies. Similar to the example below, Westin’s humor really shined through. In a humorous way, Westin was able to poke fun at a growing challenge for many busy professionals.

Are you going to take time off and travel? Westin thinks so.

Travelocity – Where the Gnomes Roam

Travelocity is an online travel agency most notably known for one of their popular integrated marketing campaign with the Roaming Gnome .

Essentially, the Roaming Gnome is a lawn ornament placed in some of the most beautiful locations across the globe. Travelocity’s Roaming Gnome became a social media star and eventually the smiling face of the brand.

With a strong presence on Twitter, Facebook, and his own blog, the Roaming Gnome’s travel adventures have been well documented. In one of Travelocity’s most recent adventures called Cabin Fever: Finding The Cure , the campaign promoted winter getaway deals on Travelocity including skiing and beach locations.

Travelocity Roaming Gnome

According to Victoria Tryger, CMO of Travelocity North America, “Using the gnome is a fun way to get them inspired and to interact with our brand. It all ties into a big sale; it is all about encouraging consumers to get out and take their ski or beach vacations.”

The campaign promoted consumers to interact with the gnome and vote for his three winter trips on Travelocity’s social media pages. The website also collected user-generated content of other travelers sharing photos of themselves on their winter trips as well.

Roaming Gnome

Outside of this specific winter campaign, fans of the Roaming Gnome can follow his ongoing travels on Twitter. Catch him roaming the streets of Austin, Texas or sipping on a Pina Colada on the beaches of Puerto Rico.

Recently, he teamed up with Thrifty Car Rental for a road trip which he documented on social media for followers to tag along.

The documentation of the road trip included photos of landmarks and tips on things to do. His adventures generated nearly 800,000 impressions, 106,000 engagements just on social media alone. In total, the campaign generated 1.5 million impressions through social media, website, email and digital advertisements.

Booking.com – Wing Everything

Drop everything, pack your bags and let’s go on an impromptu road trip. Booking.com’s campaign called Wing Everything campaign captures the spontaneous impulse to make the most of your summer to go on a holiday adventure.

Sean Condon, Wieden+Kennedy’s Creative Director mentioned “It has Booking.com’s typical energy, spirit, and boldness. It also has a very distinct point of view on summer, a theme that all too easily dissolves into cliché.”

The main component of this marketing campaign is a fast-paced 30-second video with jazzy hitting drums, quick video cuts, moving visuals and a lot of summer vacation fun. Created by the talented folks at Wieden+Kennedy, the video can be seen on Booking.com’s digital hub which also includes user-generated content from real travelers. This campaign was run across different locations such as the U.S. and U.K. through different mediums such as print, radio, digital and social media.

Now, we’re not saying you should drop everything and hop on a plane, but if this video makes you do so then kudos to Booking.com.

Club Med – Escape a la Club Med

Club Med is one of the largest global travel agencies which has been around since 1950. The Club Med brand has really become a household name lately with their content strategy.

One of Club Med’s most notable travel marketing campaigns is Escape a la Club Med which drew on the idea that people today need to slow down and disconnect. This messaging was demonstrated through one of their marketing taglines “swap the computer screen for the sunscreen.”

Through a multi-channel approach which included their website, email, social media and direct mail, they delivered a message that helped them stand out. As Alicia Javelin, head of Content and Product Marketing pointed out, “We really wanted to state things in a fun way, to be a bit different in tone, maybe even a little bit quirky.”

The video below is just one example of a compelling piece of content that tells the Club Med brand story.

WestJet – Christmas Miracle

WestJet has been leading the path in travel and tourism with content marketing over the past few years. Their Christmas Miracle campaign stood out to deliver a memorable and heartfelt experience for customers and employees.

By leveraging content marketing, WestJet created their 2015 holiday campaign called “WestJet Christmas Miracle.” Through the use of video content, the goal of the campaign was to encourage 12,000 WestJetters to perform 12,000 random acts of kindness on December 9th over a 24 hour time period and submit them through social media.

This campaign involved everyone within the WestJet network, 101 bases in total and evolved quickly over the globe. Their own employees were encouraged to participate in the campaign. 12,000 WestJet employees were given Blue Santa hats, instructions to perform miracles, and supported with a budget to activate these little miracles across airports.

Start Your Next Travel Marketing Campaign

We hope these five travel marketing campaigns inspire you to kickstart your next campaign, if not then hopefully it encourages you to disconnect and travel the world. What are your favorite travel marketing campaigns? Share them in a comment or Tweet us @PostBeyond .

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Examples of Great Travel Blog Post Titles That Will Inspire You

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Sometimes we only need a little bit of inspiration to get started with writing an article and other times we need a lot. The main thing is that sometimes we just write and write and hope for the best afterwards. This is probably not the best approach or what you should strive for if you want to improve your travel blog and keep fresh content coming in. And topping it up with great well written blog post titles can help even more when trying to find new angles for your next piece of content.

We’ve used our Blog Title Generator to create a nice list of Blog Title Examples for Travel Websites. Check them out below and start creating your own with our free generator. I hope this helps.

How to use StoryLab.ai’s Blog Title Generator (image below):

Travel Blog Post Examples - AI Blog Title Generator Example

Optimize your Travel Blog Titles for SEO

In addition to crafting an attention-grabbing blog post title, it is essential to incorporate the appropriate keywords and optimize it for search engine optimization (SEO). Ideally, you should place your primary keyword at the beginning of your H1 and Meta Title. In this particular article, we have included our main keyword, “Travel Blog Post Title Examples,” at the start.

Avoid guessing the most suitable keywords to use. Instead, utilize tools such as SEMRush to determine the exact terms people are searching for. Enter your topic, access a wealth of data, and choose the best keyword based on volume and difficulty. Give it a try at no cost and get the data you need.

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Examples of Great Travel Blog Post Titles

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San Francisco slammed for $5M a year program to give free alcohol to the homeless: ‘This isn’t working’

A program that offers free booze to the homeless alcoholics that roam San Francisco caught flak this week when a tech CEO questioned the logic of feeding the addictions of the city’s street dwellers.

Adam Nathan, founder and CEO of the small business AI marketing tool Blaze and the chair of the Salvation Army San Francisco Metro Advisory Board, posted a thread on X slamming the program after watching a string of unhoused drunks line up for their shots, stating it “just doesn’t feel right.”

“Did you know San Francisco spends $2 million a year on a “Managed Alcohol Program?” It provides free Alcohol to people struggling with chronic alcoholism who are mostly homeless,” Nathan wrote on the social media site.

His estimate was actually just 40% of the total cost — the four-year-old “managed alcohol program” actually costs the city $5 million a year, the San Francisco Chronicle reported .

The program as described by the Chronicle sees nurses dispense “controlled doses” of vodka and beer to street people at specific times of the day. Intended to keep the homeless off the streets and out of jail or the emergency room, it’s run out of a former hotel in the city’s Tenderloin district.

The program started with 10 beds and has now grown to 20, the Chronicle reported. Over the four years, it’s served 65 clients total, the report said, with the goal of keeping the participants out of the ER and reducing calls to cops.

Nathan said he took a close look at the high-octane giveaways.

“Inside the lobby, they had a kegs set up to taps where they were basically giving out free beer to the homeless who’ve been identified with [alcohol use disorder],” he wrote. “It’s set up so people in the program just walk in and grab a beer, and then another one. All day.”

“Providing free drugs to drug addicts doesn’t solve their problems. It just stretches them out,” Nathan continued. “Where’s the recovery in all of this?”

He noted in his post that there is a harm reduction approach called “safe supply,” that some areas like Canada’s British Columbia use to provide free opiods to users so they don’t overdose on fentanyl.

But the results of those efforts have been mixed and sparked “huge debate,” Nathan said.

“I’m no doctor or ‘expert’ on issues of drug policy,” he continued. “But I am a taxpayer. When did this Managed Alcohol Program get approved? Where were the public hearings? Why is it hidden away in an old hotel?”

The Salvation Army runs numerous recovery programs that focus on abstinence.

Nathan told the outlet that locals are not adequately informed about the program because San Francisco’s health department is worried over how “the program will be perceived by the public, and that to me was validated by the reaction to what I tweeted.” 

The city’s health officials retorted that Nathan spread misinformation and that the alcohol on the premises isn’t readily available to anyone who walks in.

“As a Democrat, I’m all for directing more govt funds to programs that achieve their objectives and provide public benefits,” he said in a follow up post after the Chronicle’s story, pointing to President Biden’s infrastructure bill, the bipartisan CHIPs act, healthcare subsidies for low income people as examples. “But this isn’t working.”

He said the city’s health department “is not helping people get better, it’s about keeping people sick,” and added, “We are living in the upside down.”

San Francisco slammed for $5M a year program to give free alcohol to the homeless: ‘This isn’t working’

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A reader seeks help as her employer of 24 years is bringing in a new clock-in system to pay her by the minute. Read this and all the latest personal finance and consumer news in the Money blog - and share your own problem or dispute below.

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Young homebuyers are being forced to gamble with their retirement prospects by taking on ultra-long mortgages, according to a former pensions minister.

Sir Steve Webb described data - supplied by the Financial Conduct Authority to the Bank of England - as "shocking".

It suggests that more than one million new mortgages have been issued over the past three years with end dates beyond the state pension age.

The ex-Liberal Democrat MP, who is now a partner at the consultancy firm LCP, voiced fears that borrowers could be forced to raid their pension savings to clear their mortgage in a worst-case scenario.

Sir Steve saw the potential for harm in any case, as longer-term mortgages deprive people of a period running up to retirement when they could be mortgage-free and boosting their pension.

What does the data say? 

  • 42% of new mortgages in the fourth quarter of 2023 - or 91,394 - had terms going beyond the state pension age;
  • In the final quarter of last year, people aged 30 to 39 accounted for 30,943 new mortgages lasting beyond state pension age;
  • People aged 40 to 49 accounted for 32,305;
  • Under-30s made up 3,676 of these mortgages;
  • People aged 50 to 59 accounted for 18,854, and there were 661 who were over 70.

Mortgage rates have been rising since the end of 2021 when the Bank of England began action to tackle rising inflation.

Taking home loans with longer maturity dates tends to be more attractive when interest rates are high, as monthly repayments are lower.

You can read more on this story below...

Waitrose has become the only supermarket to receive a royal warrant from the King. 

The recognition means the company has regularly provided the royal household with products for at least five years. 

It also means it can use the King's coat of arms on packaging, as part of advertising or on any stationary it creates. 

Waitrose was first granted a royal warrant in 1928 for supplying King George V with groceries and cleaning materials.

"We are honoured and proud that His Majesty has granted us his warrant," James Bailey, executive director of Waitrose, said. 

"It means the world to all of us, and our farmers and suppliers. There couldn’t be a more powerful symbol of our commitment to service and quality, and our determination to have the highest environmental and animal welfare standards." 

Waitrose was previously granted a royal warrant by the late Queen in 2002 and the King when he was Prince of Wales in 2010.

The Queen has also granted her first royal warrants, picking seven companies, including luxury department store Fortnum & Mason and the florist that supplied her coronation flowers, Shane Connolly & Company. 

The royal nod could be bad news for customers, however, with a brand finance expert telling Sky News that having a royal warrant allows firms to charge a price premium.

David Haigh said his company's research estimated this to be "between 10% and 25%".

A royal warrant says a company or a product is luxurious, high quality and sustainable, he explained. 

He estimates the scheme is "worth billions to UK companies and… therefore it's a very high value to the UK economy".

"And one of the reasons for that is that a lot of foreign tourists and buyers have a preference for royal warrant holder products. We found that 100% of Chinese buyers would pay in excess of 10% for a royal warrant holder product."

Read more on the Queen's choices here :

Gordon Ramsay's restaurants tripled losses to £3.4m last year, as the chef warned businesses in the industry were facing a "challenging" climate. 

The chef's group spent millions opening five new restaurants in 2023, including a Lucky Cat in Manchester, a Bread Street Kitchen in Battersea Power Station and a Street Pizza in Edinburgh. 

Sales at his wide-ranging establishments rose, however, by 21% to £95.6m in the year to August, according to The Telegraph. 

"It's been a really hard-fought year, but at the same time an exciting year, and in tough times it amazes me how strong and vibrant our industry is," Ramsay told the news outlet. 

"It's challenging out there and businesses are battling to stay afloat, rising costs, rent and food costs, multiple strikes. It's a battle" 

He was optimistic, however, saying there hasn't been "so much passion and vibrancy" in the industry since he opened his first restaurant in 1998.

"We've still got something wonderful to celebrate, and I truly believe the industry has never been so exciting."

Once the UK's favourite alcoholic beverage, beer's popularity seems to be fading among the younger drinking generation... 

In fact, only 30% of people aged 18 to 24 ever drink it, according to a study commissioned by the Society of Independent Brewers. 

Instead, younger drinkers say they prefer drinking spirits, wine and cider. 

Pub visits appear to be suffering as well, with almost a quarter of the 2,000 people surveyed saying they have never visited their local. 

SIBA's 2024 Craft Beer Report paints a more positive picture for small and independent brewers, however, with more than 55% of beer consumers saying they now drink "local craft beer". 

It also found average beer production volumes among independent breweries has risen by 14% since last year - a return to pre-pandemic levels for the first time in 4 years. 

"Demand for local, independently brewed beer in the UK is strong, with independent brewers reporting production volumes up by 14%, meaning they have returned to 2019 volumes again," Andy Slee, SIBA's chief executive, said. 

But, he said, it's time for "cautious optimism" only, with the industry still plagued with a number of issues. 

"The short-term issue for small independent breweries isn't demand; it's profitability, rising costs and financial pressures such as lingering COVID debt," he said. 

"Far too many breweries are simply trying to survive rather than thrive, so while there are many positives signs highlighted in the report, for now it's cautious optimism."

Earlier this year, our Money reporter Emily Mee explored whether the UK's big night out culture was dying out. 

Nightlife experts warned we're losing one club every two days at the moment - and if we stay on this trajectory, we will have none left by 2030.

You can read more about her findings here...

A total of 583 skyscrapers are "queuing up in the pipeline" to be built across central London, a development thinktank has said. 

That is more than double the 270 built in the past decade. 

In the eastern borough of Tower Hamlets alone, 71 tall buildings were completed in that time that time, the report by New London Architecture found. 

A further 24 were in the City of London and 27 in Canary Wharf and Isle of Dogs. 

The report said the rapid change has been fuelled by a "burgeoning demand" for office and residential space, overseas investment and a supporting planning environment. 

"Tall buildings have changed the face of London substantially over the last 20 years and will continue to do so - the pipeline that NLA has tracked means there is at least 10 years' supply that has already been defined," Peter Murray, the organisation's co-founder, said. 

"London's population continues to grow, passing the 10 million mark at the end of this decade.

"We'll still need tall buildings; and NLA will continue to keep a close watch on what's going on." 

Restaurants might only be able to open three or four days a week due to staffing problems, Michel Roux Jr has warned. 

Speaking to The Telegraph as he gears up to open his new restaurant Chez Rouz, the Michelin starred chef admitted the industry needs to change to accommodate flexible working hours. 

"Just because I worked 80 hours a week or more doesn't mean the next generation should," he said. 

"Quite the contrary. That is something that we have to address in our industry."

But, he warned that the move will come at a cost... 

"It will mean ultimately that going out is going to be more expensive, and that maybe your favourite restaurant is no longer open seven days a week - it's only open three or four days a week," he said. 

The industry is known for its long, unsociable working hours, and Roux Jr explained that the real issue hit after the pandemic, with people no longer wanting to work weekends. 

"People don't want to work unsociable hours and would rather work delivering parcels as and when they want to. It's as simple as that," he added. 

Earlier this year, Roux Jr said goodbye to his famous restaurant Le Gavroche in London. 

It had been opened by his father Albert Roux and uncle Michel Roux in 1967. 

Now, he said it's "brave" to open a new restaurant, with the market "very, very tough". 

"I really feel for anyone that is brave enough to open up a restaurant now. It's incredibly difficult," he added. 

Chez Rouz at The Langham in Marylebone, central London, is due to open on 22 May. 

By James Sillars , business news reporter

A pause for breath on the FTSE 100 after a 3% gain over the course of past week that took the index to a fresh record closing high.

The rally of recent weeks - significant for London's standing and pension pots alike - has been broad based and reflects several factors.

A major driver has been sterling's weakness versus the US dollar.

The US currency has been strong as the Federal Reserve, its central bank, has hinted it will be some time yet before it begins to cut interest rates.

Language out of the Bank of England last week sparked a flurry of bets that UK rates could be cut as early as next month.

A weaker pound boosts dollar-earning constituents on the FTSE 100 because they get more for their money when dollars are converted to pounds.

Also at play is the view that UK stocks represent good value, as they are cheaper compared to many of their international peers.

A few moments ago, the FTSE 100 was trading 6 points lower at 8,423.

A major talking point is the possibility of the Chinese fast fashion firm Shein listing in London.

According to Reuters, the company has shifted its focus to the UK after receiving a lukewarm reception in the United States.

The news agency, citing two sources, reported that Shein was stepping up its preparations for an initial public offering in London that would be expected to be one of the biggest carried out globally this year.

By Emily Mee , Money team

No one likes the date in their calendar when their MOT rolls around. 

But to make things a little less stressful, consumer expert Scott Dixon - known as The Complaints Resolver - has given us some tips on what to look out for to help your vehicle pass with flying colours. 

Some of the most common failures are faulty steering, brakes, suspension, worn or damaged tyres, cracked windscreens and faulty lights. 

Mr Dixon recommends you get your car serviced a couple of weeks before your MOT, in case there are any complex or costly issues. 

This will give you time to get them fixed and get your car through first time without any advisories. 

Aside from taking your car for a service, there are also some easy checks you can run yourself... 

Listen for unusual clunks while you're driving - this could be a sign of a damaged suspension. 

You could also check by pushing the car down on each corner. It should return to normal without bouncing a few times. 

Another option is to look with a torch under the wheel arch, as this should reveal any obvious defects. 

Blown bulbs are a common MOT failure, but they're cheap to fix. 

Walk around your car and check all the bulbs are working - this includes the headlights, sidelights, brake lights, indicators and the number plate bulb.

Mr Dixon says it's "not an easy job" to change the lightbulbs yourself on most modern cars, as the MOT will also check the positioning of the light. Therefore he recommends getting this done professionally. 

Squealing or grinding noises may be a sign your brake pads need replacing. 

You should also check whether your car stops in a straight line, or whether it pulls in different directions. 

Don't forget about the handbrake, too. Test it out on a slope and see if it securely holds the car. If it doesn't, you should get it adjusted. 

It's easy to check if your wipers work okay, but you should also make sure to inspect the blades for tears and rips. 

They should be able to clean the windows with no smears. 

Mr Dixon says you don't need to pay Halfords to change your wiper blade as you can "do it yourself in seconds". All you need to do is look for a YouTube tutorial. 

He also recommends buying the Bosch wiper blades, as he says these are good quality and will also be a sign you've looked after your car well when you come to sell it. 

One thing to look out for is tread depth. You can do this by looking for the "wear bar" that sits between the tread. 

If it's close to 1.6mm and is low, you should get the tyre replaced so it's not flagged as an advisory. 

Also check for perished tyre walls, which can happen when a vehicle is standing for any length of time. 

Uneven tyre wear is another potential issue, and if there are signs of this you should get the tyre replaced and tracking and suspension checked. 

These must be in good condition and working order, with no tears or knots. 

Registration plates

Your number plates should be clean and visible with a working light bulb at the rear. You may need to give them a wipe and replace the bulb if necessary. 

This should be in good condition, without damage such as loose bumpers or sharp edges. 

Mr Dixon advises against using automatic car washes during your car's lifetime, saying they "wreck your car". 

"It's not just your paintwork but they can also damage the wiper blades and the bodywork," he says. 

Check for warning lights

You'll need to take your vehicle to a trusted garage or mechanic for this. 

Exhaust emissions

Some diesel vehicles can fail their MOTs based on emissions. To avoid this, you can buy a fuel treatment pack and take your car for a good run to clear the fuel lines and tank.

Driving for at least 30 to 50 minutes at a sustained speed on a motorway or A-road should help to clear the filter. 

You should make sure the driver's view of the road isn't obstructed, so check for stone chips at eye level and remove any obstructions such as air fresheners and mobile phone cradles. 

What else should you think about? 

Make sure your car is clean beforehand, as a tester can refuse to do your MOT if the vehicle is filthy and full of rubbish. 

Giving your car a clean can also give you a chance to inspect it, Mr Dixon says. 

Another thing to do is to check last year's MOT for any advisories that might crop up this time. 

These potential issues will still be there - so it's best not to ignore them. 

You can check your vehicle's MOT history using  https://car-check.co.uk . 

Every Monday we get an expert to answer your money problems or consumer disputes. Find out how to submit yours at the bottom of this post. Today's question is...

I have worked at a bank for 24 years - the facilities are outsourced. This new company is bringing in a system where the staff have to click in and out and are then paid by the minute? Is this allowed? Amber

Ian Jones, director and principal solicitor at Spencer Shaw Solicitors, has picked this one up...

Your rights depend on your contract and what it says about payment. Does it specify an annual salary, or payment by time? Does it allow for changes to how payment is calculated?

If the contract does not allow for this type of payment, your employer may be trying to vary the contract of employment unlawfully.

If you're directly employed by the bank, and your pay arrangements are changing because of a new monitoring system, this would be an internal contract variation. If you work in the facilities department and the new contractor is taking over as your employer, the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations (TUPE) 2006 may apply. 

In this case, your current terms, conditions and previous service will transfer to the new employer.

TUPE may make the issue sound more complicated but, in practice, either way the changes will be valid only if the employee agrees to them.

If you have not agreed to the change, then this could be a breach of contract. This could give rise to a successful claim in the civil courts or the employment tribunal. 

If the breach is serious (for example, you're paid less than agreed in the original contract) and you resign in response, this could amount to constructive dismissal for which a claim can be made in the employment tribunal. 

It would be sensible to get the contract reviewed by a solicitor for advice. But act swiftly - if you continue working for the employer, you are effectively waiving the breach and accepting the change to your contract.

To make it possible to pay by the minute, employees may be monitored while at work. When collecting and processing data and using it to make a decision, the employer must comply with data protection laws. If not, the employee could be entitled to compensation, depending on the breach, or the employer could be at risk of a sanction by the regulator the Information Commissioner's Office.

This feature is not intended as financial advice - the aim is to give an overview of the things you should think about.  Submit your dilemma or consumer dispute via:

  • The form above - make sure you leave a phone number or email address
  • Email [email protected] with the subject line "Money blog"
  • WhatsApp us  here .

Please make sure you leave your contact details as we cannot follow up consumer disputes without them.

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