Is Travel Blogging Worth It in 2025?

Wondering if travel blogging is worth it? Maybe you’re weighing a decision on whether to embark on a dream of making money from travel blogging.

If you’re wondering if you can still make money (decent money) from travel blogging, then you’re in the right place.

I didn’t realize until 2023 that people were making serious money in the travel blogging world. I’m talking about thousands; sometimes tens of thousands of dollars per month.

I’d always thought before then that blogging was only a side hustle that you could earn a few cents per month on – and boy, was I wrong.

I started my travel blog at that time, and over the course of a year – I slowly grew my blog into a full-time income.

Nowadays, travel blogging is my full-time – and only- job. It pays the bills. It allows me to work from home while raising my kids. It sounds cheesy, but it really is a dream come true.

But, I have to admit that a lot has changed in the travel blogging world over the past year and a half. Many people say that its not the career it once was.

Some of the things impacting bloggers and their income are:

• Google algorithm updates
• Artificial intelligence (AI) which has both good and bad implications for bloggers
• The planned ending of third-party cookies

Is it still possible to make money from a travel blog? – Yes, it absolutely is. But it is not an easy road and despite what you may hear from the gurus and course sellers – not a get-rich-quick scheme.

Overall, yes I believe starting a travel blog is worth it if you feel like its your calling (I felt deeply that it was mine.)

I’m going to delve into what you need to know about blogging today so you can get an idea if starting a travel blog is:

• get an idea if starting a blog is a worthwhile investment of your time
• go into it with some realistic income expectations
• find out if it feels right for YOU

Whether starting a travel blog is worth it or not depends on each person – their passions, priorities, and what they want out of life.

What Makes Travel Blogging Extremely Difficult

I’m going to start with the negatives here. These things aren’t reasons to not start a travel blog, but they are things you need to keep in mind if you’re starting a travel blog in 2025.

1. It takes a long time to generate an income

Starting a travel blog isn’t like say, opening up a restaurant where you start earning money right on opening day.

It takes several months to start earning money from a blog. And once you do, we’re only talking about a few hundred dollars per month at the most.

In my case, I started seeing money trickle in around month 4 or 5. By 9 months, I was making around $1,000 per month.

Earning that kind of money from a personal website is awesome, but it also took more work to get there than I can describe. I’m talking 40 hours a week dedicated just to that – for several weeks – before I saw any money.

In my case, I needed travel blogging to work. I felt with every fibre in my body that I was meant to do it, and was determined to turn it into my full-time job.

So theoretically, if you’re putting in fewer hours than I was in the beginning then it may take longer for those few hundred bucks, or even a thousand dollars to come to you from blogging.

For that reason, you can’t go into it with specific expectations about income (ie: I expect to make this much, by this date) because every blog is so different.

Anyone who tells you that blogging isn’t extremely hard work isn’t being honest.

Read my post on how to start a travel blog will give you some tips on how to start up a travel blog and start making money in the beginning

2. It is very solitary work

Part of what I love about travel blogging is being able to stay home, and work on my own. Like a true introvert, this is heaven to me.

But I won’t lie- it can be pretty isolating, not just because I work alone. Some other implications of being a digital business owner is that:

• I don’t have any coworkers (I do have friends now who are bloggers, but its not the same as working for the same company and being able to roll our eyes at something the boss said)
• My friends and family don’t understand what I do.

These kinds of things make it hard to relate to others about work, and plus – like I said – you’re mostly working alone. This may not be for everyone.

3. Search engine algorithm updates

Even when your blog does start gaining traction and income starts rolling in, algorithm updates can change your traffic (for the better or for the worse) at any point.

Algorithm updates have been the norm with search engines for decades – this is nothing new.

But in September 2023, there was a devastating update that decimated several independent blogs. I heard of people losing huge chunks of their income (anywhere from 20-90%) overnight.

Updates continued every few months throughout 2024 – each time, I heard of more and more people losing substantial blogging income.

I should add that not every blog has been affected by these algorithm updates. Many blogs – including mine – have seemed to remain intact. Does that mean we’re safe forever? Not necessarily – I don’t know for sure, and nobody does.

I keep my head down, and keep writing and doing my best – and hope that the search engine gods continue to see the value in my work.

I’m going to clarify what algorithm update means for a blog, in case you’re new to blogging and haven’t heard of them before. Blogs rely on ad income from search engines sending traffic to their blog. If a search engine, such as Google runs an update that changes the rankings for articles – then your rankings will change, which means you could either gain or lose traffic. In many people’s cases, their blogs lost traffic from the recent updates.

4. AI

AI has a few different implications for blogs. If you ask me, I would say that it is mostly detrimental to independent blogs (there are a few people who would tell you otherwise) so it’s important to keep in mind how AI can both help, and hinder your blog.

How AI impacts blogs (good and bad):

AI as a writing assistant

AI has allowed bloggers to:

• combat writer’s block
• do research
• proofreading
• pump out more content than usual and therefore increase their traffic and income.

I don’t personally use AI to generate content for my blog, but I’ve heard many others say how useful it has been to them.

I believe though, that there are pros and cons to this.

The use of AI as a writing assistant for bloggers means that:

• There are more blogs. People that normally didn’t feel inclined to write, now suddenly could much more easily with AI tools. This means more competition, and content to compete with. There are some websites that are completely AI-generated.
• AI writing and research tools can scrape content and even mimic the style of other writers. As a blogger, you have to realize that there are AI tools out there to help others write better than you. With AI tools they can easily find out more things about your blog post than if they were to read it in full
• The better and more in-depth AI gets, the less relevant it may make us, as independent content creators. This is what I see as a the bigger picture when it comes to AI

AI can change how people consume information

AI tools like Chat GBT have provided another resource for people to find recipes, get advice – and yes, plan their trips too.

People are using Chat GBT to:

• design travel itineraries for them
• make recommendations for best restaurants and things to do
• suggest places to stay near key attractions
• tell them about the weather in the place they’re visiting

That’s my job you see, so obviously – Chat GBT is another source of competition for me as a blogger.

It’s worth it to keep in mind that Chat GBT can send traffic to a website too. (I see often that I get visits from Chat GBT.) But, I can’t deny that there is likely a fraction of traffic -and income- lost to people consulting Chat GBT instead of using a search engine that would otherwise send them straight to my site

5. The ending of third-party cookies

There have been talks for years now about getting rid of third-party cookies, which if and when it happens – may not be great for my wallet.

Google has plans to phase out third-party cookies. It has been postponed a few times, and I don’t know at this point when (or if) it will happen in full. But assuming they do get rid of these cookies, it could mean that:

• Advertisers may pay less to display ads on my site, because they know less about who’s going to see them
• I may make less money from affiliate marketing because it will be harder to tell where the purchases came from

I try not to think about the ending of third-party cookies, because it will definitely suck. But it hasn’t stopped me from continuing with my blog. As of now, I continue to see revenue from people booking hotels and tours, and making purchases through my links. And for that – I am grateful.

6. The competition

As a travel blogger, or any kind of blogger – you’re not just competing with other blogs, but with big publications too.

There is some amazing content out there by Travel and Leisure, Condé Nest Traveller, and even large blogs that have been around for over a decade.

This is why it takes so much time to start earning money from blogging – it takes a while for search engines to trust your website enough to start sending traffic to it.

How do they know that your content is better than other content that has been there for years?

In order to have your blog stand out of the competition, you need to:

• Write well-organized, original content that differs from what is already out there
• Say things that have not been said already
• Keep your readers engaged

If I’ve discouraged you – please stay with me: I’m going to tell you below why travel blogging has been a life saver for me; why its still worth it for some, plus a checklist to see if it will be worth it for you to start one.

What Makes Travel Blogging Worth It

Now that we’ve gone over the depressing stuff – lets move on to what makes travel blogging an amazing career – one that I am thankful every day for having started.

1. The passive income

I can take a day off, or a week off – and go on a trip. And my income will remain the same.

I love the freedom that travel blogging has given me. I’m so thankful to be able to:

• care for my kids when they’re sick
• rest when I need to
• go on trips without having to request time off

There are other ways to earn income passively besides having a website, but this is the way that is enjoyable for me, and makes the most sense in my life.

2. There are so many different ways to make money from travel blogging

One thing I’ve learned from travel blogging is that there are many ways to generate an income, and income diversification is key in the mid-2020s.

Travel bloggers can make money from:

• Ads on their site
• Affiliate marketing (people making purchases through their links)
• Starting a YouTube channel
• An email newsletter
• Social media influencing
• Providing services on their site, such as itinerary planning, or travel coaching
• Creating sponsored content. You can be paid to create content about an experience or a destination

So far, I have only done the first four – but I hope to try some of the others at some point. It’s inspiring in my travel blogging communities to see all the different ways people have generated income from their blog

3. The chance to inspire, and help others

I’ve always wanted to write helpful content for others. (I considered journalism as a career when I was younger.)

Travel blogging is a way for me to help other people. I help them by:

• Saving them a lot of time by doing hours of research, and displaying my findings in my blog
• Sharing what many people don’t know about a certain attraction or experience. From experiencing something firsthand, I can share what kinds of things are helpful to know going into it
• Breaking down the information into manageable chunks so they can easily consume it and learn quickly without having to read too much (I think my teaching background helps with this)
• Giving unbiased and honest advice. I know that my readers don’t all think the same way I do, and they have different tastes and interests. I like to show them their options in an unbiased way so they can make the best decision for them

4 Signs That Travel Blogging Is Worth It For You

. There’s a saying I heard when I was first getting into blogging: “The best time to start a travel blog was 10 years ago. The second best time is now.”

If starting a travel blog is a way that you want to express yourself, and contribute by help others – then I hope that you go for it.

I’ve given you all the downsides that are important to consider (things that a course seller may not be telling you) which are important things to keep in mind.

But if you really want to start a travel blog, then I think now is the time.

Here are some signs that you should start a travel blog, right now.

✅ You love to write.

I’ve said this in some of my other articles about blogging and am going to repeat it here too: If you don’t enjoy writing, then I don’t think travel blogging will be worth it or enjoyable for you.

In this day in age, the competition is more fierce than ever (with AI-generated answers, and many established larger website than yours.)

If the thought of spending hours writing, editing, tweaking and enhancing an article sounds extremely dull to you, then you may not enjoy blogging in this day in age.

More than ever, its important to publish content that is extremely helpful, well organized, engaging and original. It will be harder to do that if you don’t enjoy the writing process.

✅ You can be patient to wait for the results

A big part of blogging is patience. When you first publish a post, it can take days, weeks or months before anyone reads it. (This is especially true in the beginning, before you’ve gained some traction.)

And I’ve already told you how long it can be before you start earning money. Even when you do start earning money, it can be many months before it turns into a significant (thousands of dollars per month) kind of money.

Pro Tip: Read my post on how I went from zero visitors at the start, to 2k sessions in the first 3 months of blogging.

✅ You can think positively and create healthy habits for success

This seems like its not related to travel blogging, but its so important.

Adjusting my mindset, and limiting beliefs has helped me on this journey to becoming a full-time income-earning travel blogger.

I don’t think I could have done it without these helpful tips:

• Creating good habits
• Taking care of my health
• Leaving or unfollowing Facebook groups and subreddits that are toxic and negative
• Limiting my time on time-wasters, like social media scrolling, in general
• Reading self-help, money mindset and career change books
• Keeping my goals in mind and writing them down every day

✅ Travel blogging feels like a calling

Travel blogging wasn’t the first job I pursued with the attempt to become my own boss, and ditch the 9-5 and have freedom in my life.

I was dreaming of this lifestyle for years, and I considered many other jobs – social media management, freelance writing, digital marketing and others.

When I found out that I could make money from a travel blog. I felt strongly in my gut that I was meant to do this. That I was born to it, and contribute to the world by making a difference in this way.

Some signs that starting a travel blog is a calling for you:

• The opportunity feels like more than just a way to quit your job and get paid to travel.
• The actual act of writing, publishing and sharing helpful information with others is something you really, really want to do

You see, if you really want to blog about travel – then it’s more than just an escape from something else you’d rather not be doing. (Such as your 9-5.) You want to blog. You want the hard parts of it, as well as the perks that it brings.

Some of the best career advice I ever read came from Elizabeth Gilbert’s book, Big Magic.

It’s not just about what job you want to do. It’s about what flavour of sh*t sandwich you’re willing to eat.

Let me explain: Every job will suck sometimes, travel blogging included.

But I accept the hard and annoying parts of travel blogging, because the whole thing feels like something I’m meant to be doing and I love what I do so much. I wasn’t able to say the same for my original career (as a teacher.)

My advice: Scroll up and re-read the hard parts of travel blogging that I’ve told you about. If those things don’t even make you second-guess wanting to do this, and you still feel so energized at the thought of starting your own blog – then that’s a big sign you should do it!

Starting a Travel Blog FAQ

Here are the most commonly asked questions that are being asked on Google about travel blogs and how worth it it is to start one

Is travel blogging still relevant?

Travel blogging is still relevant because places and experiences constantly change. Travel bloggers (usually) write about things that they’ve experienced firsthand and can give you a more no-nonsense idea of what the experience entails and whether its worth it or not.

Is travel a good niche for blogging?

Travel is one of the best niches for blogging, in terms of income. There are a lot of ways to make money from travel blogging that don’t exist with other types of blogs. I have both, a travel blog and a non-travel blog. The income opportunity from my travel blog is a lot greater than for my blog that has nothing to do with travel.

Do travel bloggers make money?

Travel bloggers are still making money in 2025. They make money from ads, affiliate marketing, sponsored content, and social media influencing. How travel bloggers make money differs a bit from blogger to blogger, as we all have different strengths and interests. But yes, making money from travel blogging is still possible.

Final Thoughts on Whether Travel Blogging is Worth It Or Not

My goal for this article was to give you honest, thoughtful advice on the realities of travel blogging in the mid-2020s.