The universe of travel blogs that comprise the gigantic, loosely organized travel blogopshere make Earth seem like a tiny place to explore in comparison. Travel blogs are an incredible source of information about and at your destination. Although you’re reading a travel blog right now, grasping just what a travel blog is and how they can benefit you can be a tough concept to wrap your brain around.
The travel blogosphere is best looked at through a telescope, not a microscope, and once you start putting the constellations together your begin to uncover a vast travel tool at your disposal.
Wait, What Is A Blogosphere?
Don’t be thrown off by that term, “blogosphere” simply means a large group of blogs that are related by topic. In this case it’s travel, but even that’s a pretty liberal definition as you’ll see shortly. There are no entry requirements to having a travel blog – there are many free and inexpensive options – but if you’re blogging about anything even close to travel you’re in.
- Lifestyle design and minimalism tend to fall into the travel blog camp.
There are also corporate travel blogs, those attached to some business entity, usually designed to promote a specific brand.
Some Of The Big Players In The Travel Blogosphere
There are over 7,000 travel blogs that focus on a variety of topics like photography, eco-travel, and others about specific destinations like Medellin Living. Much like living organisms, travel blogs are born, live, and die – with the average life cycle lasting about a year. Many travel blogs pop up around RTW trips and peter out once the travels come to an end.
Regularly updated travel blogs older than 18 months are the exception, not the norm.
Though many metrics can be used to measure travel blog success, there are a few personalities with large audiences you’re likely to come across quickly without much digging.
- Everything Everywhere – Named one of Time Magazine’s Best Blogs of 2010, Gary Arndt is a “one man National Geographic” who’s blog concentrates on photography from his travels.
- Nomadic Matt – A well-known full time blogger and backpacker, Matt Kepnes’ blog focuses on budget travel.
- Almost Fearless – Christine Gilbert has documented her transition from corporate manager to digital nomad to help others wanting to make the same leap.
To find even more blogs you can see what I was reading in 2008, 2009, and the full list. (Travel bloggers feel free to leave your links in the comments.) From the biggest sites to the smallest, most travel blogs are run primarily by a single person or traveling couple. Despite their prevalence, travel bloggers are interconnected enough to give the large online community a small-town feel.
How Travel Blogs Benefit You
The strength of travel blogs is in their variety. Chances are, on one Google search or another looking for travel information, you’ve stumbled upon a travel blog. The individual nature of travel blogs (not the corporate ones) generally means you’re getting unbiased, firsthand travel advice.
- Get Very Specific – Learn Ecuadorian slang, the best way to get around Kyoto, things you won’t hear about Angkor Wat, how to take great food photos (from a) moving vehicle, or how your pets can earn frequent flyer miles.
- Instant Information – Sure there are tools to help you create a travel budget but travel blogs (and bloggers) can tell you in real time how much it costs to travel in Lebanon, Guatemala, or what to order in Aleppo, Syria.
On top of that many travel bloggers are very accessible through contact pages, comments, Twitter, Facebook, or all of the above. As cheesy as it sounds, there’s a travel blog out there with the information, stories, or pictures for you to learn from or be inspired by.
Tapping The Resource
The state of the travel blogosphere is changing on many levels but one certainty is that it’s growing…and fast. Travel blogs are much like the modern version of paper newspapers and magazines with audiences in the hundreds of thousands. Blogging is steadily replacing conventional media because it’s a direct – however navigating the travel blogosphere isn’t – at first. Look directly to the right and you’ll see a few of my favorites under “Links”, check out this list of best travel blog lists, ask away in the comments below to get started.
You’ll not only get my response but probably those from several other readers as well for your very own gateway to personal travel advice, photography, and videos.
[photos by: Dave Bleasdale (blogosphere), ShaneRobinson (laptop on a plane), pieremario (you button)]
really nice intro discussion, Anil. And thanks for agreeing to talk to my friend about eBook publishing a bit.
Thanks Michael and you’re welcome ๐ I sent a reply back today, hopefully it’s a good start in the right direction.
Brilliant post Anil – this one is a must for anyone new to the community.
Thank you Matt!
great post mate, and I totally agree with your comment in regards to the travel blogging community having that small town feel.
haha, doesn’t it seem like we keep bumping into each other online and in many cases in person around the world!
Great post on how to get started.. it was a bit difficult for me to get an idea of what was going on when I started. well done.
Somehow and then the bits and pieces start clicking. Funny how something so fluid organizes itself.
Love the post Anil, and many thanks for the link to my list of top ten lists. ๐
Thank you Matt, my pleasure to link to your list of lists! By any chance will you be at TBEX this summer? We didn’t get to chat much last year and made a mental note to catch up since then!
really helpful blog, I’ll check out your lists thank you for the tips
Reminds me of Alice in Wonderland…how far does the travel blog rabbit hole go?
i know! just cleaned up my Google reader today was just impossible to read every day on my iphone lol, found this article most useful indeed, some wonderful Travel blogs out there, doubt id need any magazines subscriptions this year : )
I think it’s also important to note that, while the blogosphere exists in a virtual world, we are all real people. By getting to know each other through online travel communities and support systems, all of our blogs become stronger.
So, that being said, I just wanted to throw it out here that I can’t make it to TBEX 2011 but I have bought a ticket and am hoping to sell it. If someone else would like to take advantage of the face-to-face networking that can be so valuable in the travel blogosphere, feel free to get in touch with me.
Hi JoAnna,
Excellent point not to forget the people behind the sites. I think it’s the strength blogs have over other forms of media.
Sad to hear you’re not going to be at TBEX this summer ๐ I’ve tweeted out though to see if anyone might be in need of a ticket.
Great post — as someone who is hoping to use my blog to help my travel ambitions (meeting safe people, maybe earning enough for a ticket or two) this is a great introduction to the community. I feel like I am in good company. ๐
Good luck on both counts and I’m sure meeting people will be much easier than you might think. There seems to be a travel blogger everywhere and they tend to be an incredibly friendly bunch.
Nice intro… I’ve only started this whole blog thing for the past 3 months or so I found the community aspect as the least expected (but welcomed) part of it. It’s no longer only mom-in-law reading our blog now.
LOL – I would definitely put that in the life cycle of travel blogging – when someone other than family comments for the first time…I think we all remember that moment ๐
This is a really helpful article which would have been exactly what I needed 18 months ago. At the time I had stumbled blindly into this world with no idea quite how extensive it would turn out to be. But discovering such a world has prompted me to start my own blog and in turn find so much interesting and valuable first hand information. It has been a life-saver in getting through the last year and a half while saving for my upcoming travels.
It does seem like a smaller place when you first set up a site, then it seems like you can’t find anything other than travel blogs online!
Totally concur with the above comments about the community aspect of travel blogging. That’s entirely why we’ve kept ours (going on 4 years now.. wow!). The people we’ve been able to meet via our perpetual travels because of our blogging efforts has been absolutely amazing.
We are so thankful for all the efforts that our blogging community puts out there in sharing their experiences and resources.
Have you too noticed how much in ‘real life’ people tend to be like their online personalities?
For some, that is definitely true. We’ve also met a fair number who seem to only show a facet of themselves on their blog. We’ve been both positively surprised to discover folks who are much cooler in person than online, and the opposite as well.
Interesting to hear – hope we meet up one day somewhere to find out the same with each other!
What a wonderful intro into the travel blogging world, will help a lot of newbies! ๐
I hope it also helps open a window to other travelers who might not know about all of the adventures and information contained in the travel blogospgere.
Awesome post! Just wanted to give you a heads up on my blog on solo female travel with a particular emphasis on France and Australia: http://www.cestchristine.com
Cheers!
Thanks Christine, hadn’t had you on my links page but have since corrected that!
very interesting post!I am new in the travel blogging hobby but I hope to grow as a blogger!!
What’s the first goal Karina?
Haha, first goal so far to drop the blogger or wordpress and do some my own thing.
I need at least to write about where I have been in the past. over 50 places.
I have become addicted to the travel blogsphere and it is ruining my social life!! When I find myself with some spare time, there I am on Facebook or twitter and a quick 20 minutes soon turns into 3 hours!! Can I do cold Turkey? Hell no!! I love the posts, the photographs, the advice, the different characters, the destinations. reading travel blogs certainly does broaden your mind and open you up the real world. I have also noticed that most travel bloggers are really positive people and would not give two hoots if the world was going to end tomorrow. Is that because they are happy with what they have achieved in their life? Who knows.
haha, I think if I unplugged I’d get the shakes or something! You need to do tweet-up and meet some of them to balance out the effect on the social life ๐
Most travel bloggers do tend to be positive, it’s hard not to I suppose if you’re living your dream and hard to complain when you get to travel that much!
Great round up Anil! Very helpful for new bloggers and readers.
Thanks Sofia, btw loving your new video series ๐
Trying to get a foot in the door of any ‘online community’ is usually a challenge. They can be intimidating and unwelcoming places for new people – I’m speaking from personal experience. The travel blog community however are a friendly, helpful, welcoming bunch and we’ve even be lucky enough to meet some people in the flesh! ๐
Glad we found you all.
Julia
Cool kid clubs?? Now that’s never cool – travel blogosphere is pretty nice overall though and meeting you guys is one of the best parts about it!
Those are the ones!! Maybe we’re just not cool. ๐ I’m sure we’ll survive.
I deem you cool which means…not much really but I can’t be the only one!
Hi there Anil!
Iยดm new to the comunity and feel really welcome now that Iยดve read it!
As Iยดve just started blogging, my website looks rather on the amateur side, but Iยดm working on big changes to it and will have it up and running for my RTW starting 17th Feb.
Cheers!
Hi Anna! Definitely drop by and let me know when you’re ready with all the changes. I think all blogs go through some pretty intense redesigns as they evolve – yours looks much better than this site did 4 years ago!
Good luck and if there’s any help you need along the way feel free to get in touch.
Hi Anil, Wonderful post as usual…I didn’t know that my blog, along with few others, could be classified as an “exception” and not a norm! jajaja, its good to know that (see, now I laugh in Spanish). I wonder what will happen to all our sites say 10 years from now. Will the internet still exist in the form we know it today? I really doubt that.
We’re old school! I really wish there was a site to document all of the travel blogs alive and dead like a word graph or something. Finally now I know what the jajaja means, always thought it just a common typo ๐
In 10 years, I’m guessing much, much more interactive and personal. Of course everyone says that – but yes, it will be different; I too wonder where our sites will all be…
Good introductory post about blogging Anil. As I was reading I was also wondering if there was any database, blogbase or whatever of those that are still active and being updated- I guess not. There’s a plethora of information and resources out there…I too wonder what it will be like even 2 years from now ๐
The closest thing I know of to a complete list is the one on Gary’s site:
http://everything-everywhere.com/travel-blog-directory/
For quite a while I’ve considered creating a word map (for the life of me I can’t remember what those word graph things are called) to show who’s been around longest and those blogs that are dead.
Interesting point that travel blogs have a short shelf life. It kind of complements the points I raised in my post on RTW Travel and blogs, the instant nature of the updates and so on.
Travel blogs are much more useful to me than reading guidebooks, and my research patterns into holidays has changed in recent years. I like the personal perspective a blogger presents, and as you say, you can easily strike up a conversation.
Thank you for the Aleppo food shoutout ๐
I too have found I’ll go to blogs and Twitter for information first – it’s direct, fast, and most likely you have an idea about the person giving you the advice ๐
Great post, Anil! I agree – the community is huge, but can feel very personal. There are a lot of great bloggers out there that are also really nice people. So glad to have met many of them through you! Thanks too for the link. ๐
It’s become like a digital neighborhood hasn’t it? You’re welcome for the link btw!
Thanks for including Miss Minimalist – I think she’s GREAT! Nice write up…
Thank you for recommending her ๐
Nicely done with the explanations, tips and links. Reposting, stumbling, etc… now. ๐ Thnx
Thanks Maria, I appreciate them all ๐
Great post, very useful for both newbies and veterans ๐
Thanks! It’s tough to cover them both but glad I got a bit of each ๐
I am new to the community and thought I’d introduce myself.
Compliments on a great blog!
Una from Toronto
Lets-get-lost.com
Hi Una, thank you very much. Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help you out as you get started.
Hi,
Great introductory post here. I find it quite informative. I noticed the year it was written and heck, it’s still relevant to a newbie like me. I’ve just decided to venture into travel blogging and my research threw me here. I’d like to network with a few veterans and get any bit of advice I can. By the way, I’m a Nigerian. Any ideas on travel-blogging would do. Thanks.
Thanks, I appreciate that. Best advice I can give is to say write about what you know and are passionate about.