We wake up, freshen up, get ready for work or studies, and off we go. Most of us live the same pattern; follow the same routine and monotony without us even realizing it. Sometimes, we realize that and all we want to do is escape from the routine that has so much entrenched our feet in one place. We know a few people that just get on their bikes or in their car and go off visiting new places. We see their photos on social media and a travel blog and envy it.

Travelling is more than covering miles, it helps us gain perspective on life, gives us a break from the monotony that has engulfed and taken us in its shell. Travelling gives us peace and comfort; psychologists say it helps one introspect and figure out what one actually holds important in life. You might be one of those that do realize it, and do see travelling as much more than a leisure activity.

travel guide

If you are one of those people, that your friends ask advice from whenever they are looking to go on their next adventure and do not know which one would be the best worth their time; you know how fulfilling travelling is. If you are curious about how to make money off your knowledge and passion, you must have heard about travel blogging and how people are doing really well writing and making money off it.

If you are looking to start a travel blog, here are a few tips that ought to help you:

  1. Set Up A Plan

First things first, you have to realize which type of traveller are you. Are you one of those that own a cruiser bike or a car? Do you like to travel in ships or in airplanes?  Do you prefer mountains or beaches?
Bikers tend to like long peaceful routes or it might be that they like rugged terrains that a car wouldn’t be able to pass without puncturing one of its tires. It might be that you do not own any vehicle and just love to walk or trek through the destinations. You have to first realize which type of traveller are you and then start a blog focusing on the same. You will be able to attract like-minded travellers to your blog and read about your experiences. People love to read about first-hand experiences than a collection of experiences that you might have gathered from the internet and travel magazines.

2. Cater To an Audience

When you have focused on the type of traveller you are and the destinations you like to visit; you can then move on to decide which type of  audience would you want to cater to. It might be that you will want to focus on students who are looking to travel on cheap bucks and get more than money’s worth of experience. It also might be that you would want to cater to well-settled older people who have already tried out the popular destinations and are looking for hidden gems that most people do not know about. You can then start and write a blog with some title like ‘5 places in Vietnam that are worth your money’ or ’10 most peaceful locations in the mountains of India’.

3. Choose a Name and Set down To It

After you have decided the target and the content; you can set down to choosing a name for your blog that is attractive enough to make a curious person visit your blog. If you are finding it difficult, you can seek help from websites like BOAH and PaperDoers. An interesting name gives you a head start that no other marketing gimmick would be able to give. After choosing a name for the blog, go ahead and write about yourself choosing to mention the places you like to visit, the destinations you have been to, and what is it that makes travelling so interesting.

4. Find A Theme

Most bloggers choose to set up their blogs on WordPress as that is easier and cheaper.  It allows you to customize the look of your blog and choose among tons of variants for the themes. For most people, the content isn’t all that matters but how it is portrayed is what makes the visitor want to spend time on the blog and go through articles. The font of the articles, the spacing and the paragraphs, the colors and the images; all go into the look and feel of the blog, so you must lit a spark to that creative part of your brain and create a beautiful page. You can go to WordPress-themed websites that have managed to do the same, such as Chicago Sun Timesand TrustedTutors.

5. Create the Content

One hope to write well and good; one wishes to write honestly sharing his/her unique experiences. Sometimes, that is just not enough. You need to figure out what would make the reader engaged in your content. They might be looking for some details which you may often forget to write in. They might want to know in-depth details of the experiences or how to set about in a cheaper price or might just want to know if the place is better to visit in day or at night. You need to research what the reader is really looking for and work on that. An honest account, with an interesting style of writing, and delivering unique content with all the details put in; that might be the formula for a successful travel guide. If you need a helping hand in writing the perfect content, then here are some tools that will help you instantly –

    1. ThanksForTheHelp – Originally started as academic aids for students, it has grown into full-fledged writing company.
    2. EWU– Though its name is a misnomer but it does a decent job at writing blogs.
    3. OAW/ TAE–  They do decent job when it comes to writing.

6. Advertise Your Travel Blog

Advertising doesn’t mean spending big bucks to promote your blog. It means getting the blog to the people who would be interested to have a read in your articles or need the advice you are putting out there. There are plenty of ways to do that; your social media accounts can be a big help in boosting the number of visitors to your blog and get it on track. You can also try talking about your blog with other traveller groups online or different blogs dedicated to the same subject.  There are unique ways you can find to promote your blog; like attending a meet of fellow enthusiasts, clicking photos of it, and submitting an article about it to curate interest among people. CDR went the same way by meeting people who were regular visitors of the website and writing articles about the meetings and what interested them in the website and its postings.