How to Start a Travel Blog and Make Money?

Have you ever thought about launching your own blog? Have you ever wondered what it takes, to start a blog and successfully build it over a time that helps you in making money online or generating passive income for you? The truth here is that you are not alone.

There are millions of people who are trying their hand at blogging. However, very few of them can actually generate a substantial income from their efforts. In fact, starting a blog is not a challenging task, but generating traffic and making a good profit amount from it is definitely a tricky task.

If you are looking for an easy, step-by-step guide to learn how to start a travel blog, how to make a successful blog, and earn money from it, then you have come to the right place. Here in this blog, you will learn how to start a blog and what you should do to grow it, and learn how to monetize it.

But, before diving deep let us first understand what is a blog, should you start it, can you start a blog without any technical experience, is it possible to make money from a blog even today?

What is a Blog?

A blog is simply a regularly updated website where fresh content is frequently published, typically written in an informal or conversational style. The main goal of it is to attract readers and generate an online income. Just like, you are reading this blog right now.

Should You Start a Blog?

Yes of course! Starting a blog is one of the easiest and most accessible ways to start your own business and earn an online income. You need not be a professional writer or web developer for it. You do not need any credentials, years of experience or degree in a particular field to start your own blog and become successful with it. No matter what your age, location, or experience, you can start and build a profitable online business.

Can You Start a Blog Without Any Technical Experience?

Even if you do not have any technical experience with how to make a website, starting a blog is quite easy in 2020.  This guide was created with ease of use in mind. We will walk you through every step of the way here today.

Is it Still Possible to Make Money from a Blog Today?

Now, if you are all set and ready to take the leap and learn how to start a blog that can grow into a source of real online income, then let us dive in.

What do You Need to Start a Travel Blog?

The biggest key to making your travel blog successful is that treat it as your business from the start. To start a travel blog you need there are main 3 things.

• A domain name
• Web hosting account
• Your complete attention for 30 minutes.

Yes, you read it right. You can start your professional-looking travel blog in less than 30 minutes. For that, read on. We will walk you through the procedure every step of the way. Let us check out the steps.

10 Simple Steps to Start a Blog

#1 Start With a Travel Blog Name

Probably the harder, but one of the most vital first steps, when you think to start a travel blog, is selecting the right name. To encapsulate your brand and message in one short name, we recommend you to make it short, simple, and memorable.

Your travel blog name is what people will refer to you as and how they will search for you. If it is long-winded and difficult to remember, people will forget it which means fewer organic visits and shares. So, whenever you choose the name of your travel blog, think long-term.

There are many travel bloggers who have limited their growth due to their name choice. For example, if you choose SoloTravelRocks.com – what about the next stage of life when the husband and kids come along. Or if you choose anything with “budget” in the name then it can be limiting. Why? Because what happens if you get tired of sleeping in hotels, eating beans, and rice, and want to change into lavishness travel?

So, one thing you should keep in mind that – the name that you are choosing is might not be a reality now, but you should keep the doors open for growth and change. The reason behind it is quite simple – when you do so, you can evolve with your travel lifestyle. Remember, rebranding is a time-consuming and costly process.

You might be want to go niche-specific which is completely fine but be sure to research and plan for it carefully. Let us move to step two of how to start a travel blog. 

Disclaimer: This blog post includes some affiliate links which will give a commission to me costing you zero. These links are for the best software and tools that you require to start a successful blog. Read affiliate Policy.

#2 Start Your Travel Blog with Solid Planning

If you jump into starting a travel blog without any planning then it can lead you in the completely wrong direction. It can mean you get everything wrong from branding to messaging to communicate to site design. So, it is of utmost importance that you brainstorm, mind map, and formulate your thoughts into what you want your travel blog to represent.

Some things that you must consider before you start are as follows.

• What are your messages and theme? What do you want to communicate to the audience?
• Who are you serving and how can you assist them?
• What kind of content can you write for your community?
• What is your brand all about? How can you showcase that through your images, content, site design, and communication?
• What are your logo and tagline?

In short, ensure what you are working towards creating through your travel blog and why? So, before diving deep, create your vision and mission. It is an essential part to create a successful travel business. So, consider the above-discussed things before you start your own blog. Choose the right CMS or blogging platform, choose the right domain name, and you are good to go.

#3 Host Your Travel Blog

Whether you want to start a Travel Blog, Lifestyle Blog, Photography Blog, Book Blog, Fashion Blog, Food Blog, Fitness Blog, Makeup Blog, Sports Blog, or a blog on any other niche, we highly recommend you to self host your blog.

There are various blog hosting software applications where you can create an account with a provider and they will host a blog for you.

The best part of it is FREE. But, understand carefully that it means you are giving up control of your site. So, if something goes wrong with the hosting provider, then your travel blog will go down with it.

When you have a self-hosted blog, you have complete control of managing it, how it looks, and how you earn money. The downside of free blog hosting platforms like wordpress.com is that it restricts your income earning abilities. Plus, hosting your blog is more professional.

If you just want to start it as a diary or as your hobby, then the free blog hosting platforms are fine. However, when later on you change your mind and want to earn money from your blog, it will be really complicated to change it over.

#1 Domain Name

First, purchase a domain name for your travel blog. A domain name is the URL of your site. So, make it similar to your blog name if you can. You can purchase a domain name from GoDaddy or NameCheap. But, before you do that make sure if your hosting company is offering you a domain name with their package or not. Nowadays, there are main two hosting providers which are very popular BlueHost and SiteGround.

#2 Hosting

There are many similarities between the features of both hosting services. But, the one area where Bluehost excels is its custom hosting dashboard. Bluehost provides you with a much more beginner-friendly interface to manage important aspects of your blog. Let us understand it through both services pros and cons.

1. SiteGround Hosting

SiteGround Pros

• It offers free auto daily backups.
• This hosting service provides you with 99.9% fast uptime.
• This hosting service is recommended 3^rd by WordPress.
• It provides you with excellent customer support.
• Its pricing is upfront.

SiteGround Cons

• This hosting service provides you with limited disk space.
• This hosting service offers less value for money than competitors.
• With this hosting service, you will not get any free domain.

2. Bluehost Hosting

Bluehost Pros

• This hosting service has affordable plans that provide you with good value for money.
• Bluehost offers fast uptime 99.98%.
• It provides you with a free domain.
• This hosting service is recommended by the top host provider WordPress.
• This hosting service is beginner-friendly. It is very easy to use.

Bluehost Cons

• This hosting service provides you with less customer support than some competitors.
• Bluehost comes with some add-on options at checkout that can increase the initial price of it.

Let us understand the hosting process of both services.

SiteGround Setup Process

The following steps will help you to get an overview of a SiteGround hosting account and help you configure your website and use the tools in the best possible way. So, if you have not signed up for the SiteGround account, let us do it now. To get started simply follow the below steps.

• With SiteGround hosting account, you will get a tool that will help you.
• In the first step, install WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, or Weebly. You can even have SiteGround install WooCommerce for you if you want to create an eCommerce store with WordPress.
• Then, transfer an existing website.
• Recently, SiteGround also released its own migrator plugin. This plugin makes it easy for even non-technical users to migrate unlimited WordPress sites to SiteGround.
• If you have chosen higher-tier plans, then SiteGround will also professionally migrate one website for you.

Bluehost Setup Process

A hosting account is a powerful tool that not only helps you in building and managing your website, but also helps in managing your email, web applications, and much more.  Let us check out the steps of Bluehost set up.

• First, to sign up with Bluehost, simply go to their official website – Bluehost.com. Then, click on the “Get Started Now” button.
• Then, choose a hosting plan as per your budget and requirement. Usually, it offers three plans – basic, plus, and choice plus.
• After choosing a plan, secure a domain name. If you already have a domain name then just enter that name in the “Use a Domain You Own” form and click “next”.
• Fill in your account details.
• Then, check out your package information and finish the registration.
• Bluehost offers a super simple tool to help you in creating a new WordPress website. To begin, all you need to do is log into your Bluehost account and click “My Sites” then click on “Create Site”. Give a website name and a tagline. Then, select a domain name that you want to use for this WordPress site.
• Make sure to disable plugins that you feel you do not need. Also, ensure to take note of your WordPress website URL, Username, and Password.
• After that, simply select a theme. You can pick from your installed themes or any of the free WordPress themes.
• After that, the next step depends on your choice of what you want to do. Whether you want to create a contact page or add some content to your website, add more pages, blogs, or images? Just hover the mouse on each option and then click on Let’s Go option.

#4 Install WordPress for Your Travel Blog

Now, you have chosen your hosting service provider and a domain name. So, it is time to install WordPress on your blog. Here note that we are talking about WordPress.org, not WordPress.com. As discussed earlier, WordPress.com is hosted by WordPress, not you. On the other hand, WordPress.org gives you the ability to host WordPress on your site. So, you get complete control over your travel blog.

We highly recommend you do not use any other blogging platform apart from WordPress because it is what the professionals use and is the standard of the blogging industry. And, installing WordPress on your blog is not as complex as it sounds. Your hosting provider will make it easy for you if you get stuck anywhere. Just contact them.

All you have to do is sign in with your detail and you are ready to start building and setting up your travel blog.

#5 Choose the Perfect and Premium Theme for Your Travel Blog

WordPress offers some free themes that you can use for your travel blog. Even there are a lot of free themes online that you can download to use. A theme is nothing but a design of your website and how people can navigate through its pages. When you use free themes, it comes with many restrictions and you will not be able to customize many of the features. It means your travel blog will look like others. And, in business, you need originality so you can communicate your brand and message. That is the main reason why we recommend selecting a premium theme.

A premium theme can cost around $75 to $100 for lifetime usage. But, when you use it, you have more freedom for customization and they have better features and functionality. Actually, a premium theme is an investment in your business. You can use some cheaper themes until you get very clear on your travel blog business, your traffic, and profitability before you invest in custom designs. You can use Elegant Themes and Themeforest to find premium themes.  

#6 Install WordPress Plugins

Another important step in how to start a travel blog and make money is to install plug-ins. Plug-ins are useful features and functions that you can install on your travel blog to help them to be more efficient. There are hundreds of plug-ins are available to choose from. As you grow and learn, you will understand which ones are best suited to your particular needs. Of course, you do not want so many plug-ins that can slow down your site. You can easily add plug-ins from your WordPress dashboard. We recommend you to use YoastSEO, Akismet, W3 total cache, and the social media sharing button. You should also consider how you manage and update these plug-ins, backup your blog website, and keep it safe and sound.

#7 Start Travel Blogging

When you start travel blogging, the first question that pops into your mind is that what you should write about? Which page should you start? So, here is an answer. We recommend you should start with an About Us page and at least published 3-4 blog posts. So, whenever people visit your blog, they have something to read and they feel you have a presence already. Of course, you do not want them reading one blog post and then having nothing else for them to read. Remember, your About Us page is very important and the most visited page on your website. Your About Us page is where you connect your story with your readers. Therefore, your readers feel inspired and curious to continue reading your travel blogs and follow your journey.

The most important thing that you should keep in mind is to write quality content. Your content should be engaging, SEO-friendly, crisp, and up-to-the-point. You can use some plug-ins like YoastSEO to optimize your posts. You can even make use of the Key research tool and SEMrush. Also, make use of beautiful images. Remember, photos sell the travel story and your brand. So, make them use wisely within your posts. You can make use of Canva to design some images for posts. Show your face. For successful blogging, you have to build a connection and that connection comes from real human interaction.  It is a fact that people cannot connect to an emoji or picture of your dog.

Also, select a publishing schedule that works for you and be consistent with it. We are not saying you publish daily but be realistic about what you can manage. Keep in mind that consistency builds loyalty from your readers. Design a basic plan of what type of content you will include in your blog. It will help you categorize your content and make it easy to find on your site.

#8 Build Your Email List

This one is a vital step when learning about how to start a travel blog. Do not leave this important step until 12-24 months. If you want to establish your travel blogging business, then for you it must be your priority and the most essential part of your business. It will help you to build connections and community.  Of course, it will take a huge investment of time and perhaps money.  But, if the business is without investment, then you will not get any reward. In starting, you can make use of MailChimp for email marketing as it is free until you get 2,000 people on your list.

#9 Get Social Media Savvy

There is no doubt that social media is an unbelievable way to share your journey, connect with like-minded people, and create a community. Of course, each platform has a specific purpose and works in a particular way. So, get to know each platform and make use of it in a way that suits you. There are so many social media platforms. So, use the one that resonates with you the most and what you feel will give you the most benefit. You can make use of Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Social media will help you spread the word about your travel blog. The more your travel posts get shared socially, the more Google loves you.

#10 Enjoy the Travel Blogging Journey

You cannot get success if you do not love what you are doing. There is no point in finding out how to start a travel blog and investing your time, money, and energy into it if you do not love it. Enjoy the rewards, the processes, the hurdles, and the growth. There will be a time when you will feel like quitting. But, if you are making a difference to others and you are passionate about what you do then it is more than enough to make you successful. Try to learn as much as you can about travel blogging and online business. Remember, those who are successful with their travel blogging business spend time, money, and energy investing in themselves. Keep in mind, no business evolves overnight. It takes time. So, never stop learning and working on yourself. And, at the same time enjoy your travel blogging journey.

Winding Up

In a nutshell, starting a blog is easy but creating one that will be successful and make money requires hard work, commitment, and grit. But, the rewards that you will get far outweigh the risks. In truth, creating blogs are more affordable and more accessible today than they have been before.

Of course, like anything else in life, there will be barriers that try to throw you. But, we encourage you to go forward with your passion and share it through your own blog. Everything that you need to get started is covered up in this blog.

The one thing that you should keep in mind while starting your blogging journey is that keep in mind, you are speaking to humans.  So, be you, be courageous, be honest, and be transparent.

If you will create great content constantly then definitely your tribe will flock to you, listen to you, and respond.

We hope that this article helped you learn how to start a travel blog and make money from it. Will you take the leap and start a blog today? We would love to know about your blogging journey and travel blog success story so share your views, suggestions, experiences, and recommendations with us in a comment box below.

Happy Blogging!