Should You Start a Travel Blog in 2025? My Honest Thoughts

I’m saying it more and more lately, but getting started with travel blogging is easier now more than ever.

I’ve been in the blogging industry for a decade, and the strides that have been made to make it easier to start, grow, and monetize a blog is bewildering. 😵‍💫

From AI-powered affiliate tools (that make you more money), SEO-optimized child themes (that help you create prettier blogs faster) to website speed (that makes ranking easier and simpler), there are so many groundbreaking, industry-shaping tools for bloggers nowadays.

In fact, I think most things about blogging have changed, except for one thing: high-quality, value-driven, original content.

While SEO tactics and affiliate marketing hacks have undergone many changes, producing quality content hasn’t.

If anything, this gives me even more hope and optimism for the future of travel blogging.

Now, we’re seeing travel blogging get shaped by AI in real-time. And we get to decide how we will adapt to it–if we adapt at all.

Why You Should Still Consider Travel Blogging in 2025

Allow me to walk you through my thoughts about this.

If you’re really on the fence as to whether or not you should start a travel blog, read this with an open mind.

1. Travel Blogging Isn’t Dying, It’s Evolving (& Growing!)

Every quarter, every Christmas, every summer “slump,” bloggers cry out on Reddit and Facebook threads complaining that blogging is DEAD. 💀

But, not according to data. Travel blogging is actually on the rise…

“The global travel blogging market was valued at approximately US $4.72 billion in 2024, with analysts projecting a CAGR of ~12.5% through 2032.”
– Future Data Stats

2. Readers Are Craving Storytelling-SEO Hybrid Content

While evergreen SEO is still a powerhouse, something else interesting is happening. Storytelling.

With the rise of AI-generated blogs, readers are wanting to connect. They are craving slower travel. Sustainable travel.

And despite Google “killing” blogs with its AI Overviews, the reality is clear: well-structured, helpful blog posts still rank high.

Google and other SERPs (search engines) NEED our content!

Bloggers are the tree roots. Google is the stump. To kill off bloggers would be to kill the entire tree. Ya see?

So, take heart. Readers still need you. Google still needs you!

Don’t forget that as you go to write your travel blog posts rooted in real-life experiences (not just SEO or keyword hacks).

3. Affiliate Marketing Is Actually Thriving

Long gone are the days of spammy Amazon links littering every post.

That was blogging in 2015–2018.

Now, travel bloggers are earning more steady income through REAL recommendations for hotels, tours, and other travel affiliates by writing trust-based content.

This is what I teach in my course! And I’ve seen this first-hand on my own travel blogs.

One well-written post that truly helps readers plan their trip can earn $300–$1,000+ a month in passive affiliate income.

And now, with AI-powered tools like Travelpayouts and Stay22, earning from travel affiliate programs is even easier.

This is how I earn over $3,000–$4,500+ per month in just hotel and tour commissions.

4. Traditional Travel Writers Are Starting Their Own Blogs & Personal Brands

Travel writers and traditional media journalists are seeing how lucrative travel blogging really is.

Why send off an endless amount of pitches just to scrape $3k per month when you can make $3k per month in passive ads (literally doing NOTHING?).

Not only is travel blogging more lucrative than freelance writing (typically, as in, it is truly scalable), but it is also becoming perceived as a must-have for a portfolio.

If you can show your skill with SEO, ranking, and how to write a well-structured article, this just solidifies your authority on the interwebs even more.

Building your own six-figure blog business, read by millions (hello, 😏) on your own deserves a pat on the back.

5. Social Isn’t a Sustainable Income Source (for Most)

Instagram and social media are a different ball game.

It CAN pay your bills regularly IF (if is key) you build systems and consistency. Just look at my friends over at The Lover’s Passport.

But having followers just for followers means nothing unless you are selling digital products or receiving regular paid brand deals to promote products/services/campaigns to your audience.

Smart travel bloggers are using social as a funnel to their longer-form content that they have better control over: a blog, email list, YouTube, digital products.

But having a large social following as the end goal makes no sense. 👎

With travel blogging, the content you put out one year ago can still earn you passive income. Social posts can become use-less (literally and as in undiscoverable, unmonetizable) within less than 24 hours.

I always see travel [social] content creation as a churn-churn, active, fun, short-term game, whereas travel blogging is the more hum-hum lucrative, quiet, long-term game.

6. Your Impact, Your Voice, Your Stories… Matter!

One of the best reasons to start a travel blog and keep going is because, well, words matter!

And how freaking cool is it that you can have long-lasting postiive impacts on the people and places you care about through your lived experiences, your words, your lens?!

I think that’s why I started travel blogging in the first place.

There are MORE reasons to start a travel blog this year, obviously, but ya girl has other blogs to write.

So… Is It Too Late to Start a Travel Blog?

No. But it is too late to start a travel blog without intention. It is too late to do what everybody else does.

The “copy-paste what everyone else is doing” era is over. AND THANK F*ING GOD.

What works now (and has always worked) is being real, detailed, original, and helpful.

If you can do that—and build a travel blog aligned with your voice and values—you’ll still find success.

In fact, I’d argue that travel blogging today is less about SEO and more about sustainability:

• Sustainable traffic (via the whole house; organic SEO and Pinterest and socials)
• Sustainable income (via affiliates + digital products and courses)
• Sustainable energy (because you’re blogging about what matters to you and is actually helpful, not writing just for keywords)

How to Get Started As An Aspiring Travel Blogger

If you’re just starting out or trying to find your direction again, here’s what I recommend:

• Choose your topics/niches/posts intentionally; write what you care about
• Learn foundational, evergreen SEO (so your content gets seen)
• Build a blog that’s aligned with your lifestyle (not a hustle–and–ghost niche site)
• Diversify your income with affiliates, ads, digital products, and newsletter funnels
• And most importantly… don’t give up. Sustainable travel blogs (the ones that outrank, the ones that survive the algos) are built with intention, not burnout or keywords! (Or backlinks, just to make sure you’re paying attention.)

And if you need extra guidance and support, consider enrolling in a blog course and community like Bootstrap.

So, my concluding thoughts?

The travel blogging world has changed. For good.

But that’s not a bad thing! It’s not gone. It’s still here… and thriving.

It’s an opportunity to slow down, get intentional, and create a digital home that truly supports the way you want to earn, write, and connect with others!

Have any doubts about whether or not you should start a travel blog? Let me know in the comments!