Want to know how to turn your passion for travel into a six-figure business? Travel blogging is an exciting and flexible way to make money while exploring the world. You can share your experience, inspire others and start a business that suits your lifestyle. But how do you proceed from just writing…
Want to know how to turn your passion for travel into a six-figure business?
Travel blogging is an exciting and flexible way to make money while exploring the world. You can share your experience, inspire others and start a business that suits your lifestyle. But how do you actually make more than $100,000 a year just by writing about travel?
Today, I’m excited to share the story of Jesse Festa, a travel blogger who started his own successful blog. jesse’s journeywhich aims to assist travelers. Jesse went from having no income to building a six-figure travel blogging business.
In this interview, we ask Jesse the following questions about how to start a travel blogging business:
- How much money can a travel blogger realistically make? What are the main sources of income?
- Is there still room for new travel bloggers to succeed in such a competitive niche?
- Do you need to travel often to have a successful travel blog, or can you blog about travel without being on the go all the time?
- What tools and equipment are important for a successful travel blog? Does a beginner need a large investment to get started?
Even more!
If you’ve ever wondered how much travel bloggers actually make, how they get paid for their travels, or how to start your own travel blog, this interview with Jesse It’s for you. She details her journey and shares tips on everything from affiliate marketing to working with brands and tourism boards.
And if you’re ready to turn your love of travel into a successful business, Travel Blog Prosperity is the perfect resource. Created by Jessie, this membership offers over 100 courses, workshops, and a supportive community to help you grow your blog into a profitable venture. Whether you’re a beginner or want to scale, Travel Blog Thrive provides the tools and strategies to make it happen.
Technically the door is closed, but you can join now by using my affiliate link. You can also use the coupon code “”making sense 9”, your first month costs just $9. After that, it costs $49 per month to remain a member and you can cancel at any time, even before the end of your trial month.
Click here to learn more about travel blog Prosperity.
Learn more about how Jesse makes over $100,000 each year as a travel blogger and how you can get started too.
How to make money with travel blogging business
Recommended reading: How to start a travel blog and make money
1) Please tell us your story. Who are you? How did you start a travel blog?
Hello, my name is Jesse Festa. I’m a travel blogger, photographer, and blogging coach from New York.
I started my first travel blog “Jessie on a Journey” in 2011. At the time, there weren’t many resources online for solo travelers, and after going through the difficult process of planning a 3-month solo backpacking trip around Europe, I wanted to make it easier for others to plan solo trips. That’s what I was thinking.
Additionally, I wanted to create a business that would allow me to continue traveling.
When I graduated with my bachelor’s/master’s degree in communications, it was during the recession, so jobs were scarce. Although it was a scary and uncertain time, it also gave me the space to pursue travel blogging and see where it took me.
Within about a year, I started making steady income from it and now it’s my full-time job. Along with Jessie on a Journey, I own the websites Epicure & Culture (a sustainable tourism and culture blog) and NYC Photo Journeys (my photo journey site where most of my bookings come through the blog).
2. How much do you earn as a travel blogger?
I am proud to say that I was able to build a six figure business for myself through blogging. I believe this is mainly due to treating your blog as a business. This is explained in more detail in question #5 below.
We also strive to diversify our traffic and revenue sources as much as possible to protect our business.
Plus, you’re monitoring what’s working and what’s not, so you can adjust your strategy accordingly.
Finally, automate and streamline as much as possible, including creating sales funnels to sell your digital products.
3. Why did you decide to become a travel blogger?
After all, it was my love of travel. I was determined to find or create a job that would allow me to make a living from anywhere in order to continue exploring the world.
The funny thing is, I had no idea what a blog was until I started it. Again, this was 2011, and blogging as a career wasn’t common yet. I always thought blogs were just online journals.
But I’ve seen other travelers (regular people, not celebrities) do it and actually make money writing about their travels on their websites. I told myself that if they could do it, so could I. So I did!
4. What do you enjoy most about running a travel blog?
The ability to be your own boss, get paid to be creative, and travel the world.
Running a travel blog means creating my schedule based on goals I’m passionate about and projects I’m excited about. Plus, I’m the one approving your vacation, so you can work from anywhere in the world or choose to take vacation. 😉
Especially when it comes to travel, you can choose how to monetize your travels, such as writing blog posts with ads or affiliate links, or working with sponsors.
Don’t get me wrong. Running any kind of business, including a blog, is hard work. But there are also many perks.
5. What is your favorite place you have traveled to because of your travel blog?
My favorite place is always the one I’ve just been to. 🙂 I recently visited Kyrgyzstan and Tanzania and both were absolutely amazing.
Next week I’m heading to Nova Scotia for a partnership and I’m really looking forward to it.
6. How much money can a travel blogger realistically make? What are the main sources of income?
I know travel bloggers don’t make anything, and I know travel bloggers make six figures or more.
In my opinion, one of the biggest mistakes bloggers make is thinking that writing itself will eventually lead to income.
Yes, your content can and should be monetized. But to really make a living from blogging, you need a profit plan. It’s essential to implement revenue streams, set goals, track success, and adjust your strategy as needed.
Based on this, the main sources of income for travel bloggers include:
- affiliate marketing
- Advertise (e.g. I’m a Mediavine Publisher)
- Launch of products and services
- Work with brands and tourism boards on paid campaigns and press trips
- Writing and creating content for brands on a freelance basis, whether through UGC collaborations or as a ghostwriter/creator for a brand’s channel, we find the latter to be more rewarding )
7. What tools and equipment are essential for a successful travel blog? Does a beginner need a large investment to get started?
Start by investing in good hosting with security features and stable uptime, a lightweight theme with support, and premium keyword research tools so you can optimize your website for search engine optimization (SEO). is recommended.
As we grow, we may invest in other tools as well. It depends on your strategy.
For example, I personally pay Later to schedule my Instagram posts and plan my feed. However, I also know many bloggers who use Instagram’s native scheduler or publish in real time for free.
And many important tools are free to get started. For example, you’ll definitely need an email marketing platform like Mailerlite or ConvertKit. These usually offer a free plan to get started.
8. What is your typical work schedule like as a travel blogger? How many hours a week do you spend maintaining your blog?
I like to divide the month into four weekly “sprints.” These include:
- Preparing content and event schedule for Travel Blog Prosperity Membership (one of my main products) for next month
- Create content and conduct outreach to win collaborations and sponsorships
- Create and schedule the content you need for your next growth project
- I choose one “growth project” each month to increase my traffic and/or income. For example, launching a new digital product, co-hosting a webinar with an affiliate, participating in a bundle or summit, or implementing one. new transportation strategy
- overflow week
Additionally, one of my products is New York photography tours and shoots. We launched this site in response to requests from many readers to guide them around New York. That means there are days when I meet with these clients in person.
When I’m working on the above, my day looks like a pretty typical work day, but I’m able to take time off, travel, and work from anywhere if I need to.
As a travel blogger, I travel a lot, so I sometimes go on business trips depending on the week. For example, I just returned from a two-week trip to Tanzania.
When I travel, I don’t really use my laptop. However, I am taking notes, photos, and video clips to use in future travel content that I create upon my return.
9. Is there still room for new travel bloggers to succeed in such a competitive niche?
Of course, I have other interests besides just “travel.” We really aim to build a business that helps specific audiences in specific ways.
Once you know who you want to help and how, it becomes much easier to choose which topics to cover, which affiliates and brands to collaborate with, and which products and services to create. All of this is an extension of your mission.
10. How has your approach to SEO evolved as Google’s algorithms have changed over the years?
We’re lucky that we’re always focused on growing and nurturing your email list because we think it’s more important than ever. This way, you can turn one-time readers into loyal community members and drive that traffic to your own lists.
Additionally, it’s a good idea to diversify your traffic sources and think of your blog as a business (instead of writing over-optimized posts for rankings).
11. How do you pitch paid partnerships and press trips to brands and tourism boards? Do you have any tips for beginners?
Don’t overthink pitching. Approach it as if you’re having a conversation and sharing ideas for a mutually beneficial partnership (instead of asking the brand for something).
Before you do this, make sure you know exactly what you’re bringing to the table. Maybe it’s influence, a specific audience, creative content creation style, or something else.
For a pitch template in action, check out the YouTube video I recently shared. We will explain it step by step below.
12. Can you outline the steps to take to start a travel blog and turn it into a profitable business?
We encourage new bloggers to first identify exactly their mission (i.e., who and how they will help).
Once you define this, divide your mission into 2-3 main topics (often referred to as “content pillars”) and create content based on them. This helps keep your content consistent and builds topical authority. You can also work hard on one content pillar to start growing faster.
From there, create content that fits your content pillars. Ideally, you would first create a foundational post (the one your readers would expect to see on your blog), then do some keyword research to find low-competition keywords for which you can create and rank your content (i.e. search query). . Below is a helpful video I created.
While it’s important to optimize your website and content for SEO, there are several other traffic strategies in place such as Pinterest, Facebook, and Flipboard to help you get traffic and turn one-time visitors into repeat readers. I recommend building an email list to change things up.
Email lists can help you grow both traffic and income because you can share free content (like blog posts and YouTube videos) with your subscribers, as well as paid products and affiliate links (with disclosure).
Now let’s think about monetization, which is an important part of your strategy.
As mentioned above, it is important to implement and expand your revenue streams. You can then use your content to drive traffic and increase your income.
For example, you can monetize your content directly through affiliate links or ads. Or, if you have your own product, you can create content that will attract your ideal buyers to buy your product.
13. Do you need to travel often to have a successful travel blog? Or can you blog about travel without being on the go all the time?
It depends on your specific niche. For example, if you run a blog about traveling to Paris and you live in Paris, you don’t need to travel at all.
However, if you want to cover many destinations, you will need to travel regularly or contract or hire writers to help you create content.
14. What are some common mistakes new travel bloggers make and how can they be avoided?
The most common mistake new bloggers make is not thinking of their blog as a business.
Many bloggers simply want to optimize their content for keywords, increase traffic, and earn money through ads and affiliate links.
To build something truly sustainable and long-lasting, we recommend thinking of your blog as an actual business (including having your own products/services) and your content as a tool to grow your business .
15. What are the challenges of running a travel blog? How do you overcome them?
One of the biggest challenges for travel bloggers is keeping up with algorithm changes.
For example, last year saw a number of major updates to Google’s algorithms that completely changed what you see in Google search results.
Some blogs have grown through this, while others have lost some or all of their traffic. Also, some people who lost traffic on the first update saw their traffic return on the third update.
And it’s not just Google. Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and other social media platforms regularly change the way their algorithms work.
For this reason, it is important to:
- Respond to change and remain adaptable
- Diversify your traffic and revenue sources
- Have an email list that you own (you don’t own your social media followers).
16. Tell us about the prosperity of your travel blog. How many members do you have? How does it help travel bloggers? Is this for new bloggers?
Travel Blog Prosperity is an online membership dedicated to helping travel and lifestyle bloggers increase traffic and income through a combination of education, collaboration, and community support.
Log in and get instant access to over 100 courses and workshops. It includes a core curriculum that takes you from setup to paycheck and teaches you how to set up for successful traffic and income.
From there, you can use the included blogging strategy roadmap to put everything together and create your own business plan.
To build on this, additional work will teach you strategies for branding your blog, increasing traffic, increasing email subscribers, launching and marketing products and services, increasing affiliate income, working with brands and tourism boards, etc. Shop and training available. Freelance writing, social media success, scaling with advertising, creating a workflow, improving your productivity and mindset, and more.
Additionally, there will be at least one new live workshop each month with replays.
Other benefits include a 15-minute onboarding call to help you create an action plan, monthly live coaching calls and bonus events with guest experts, weekly paid opportunities sent to your inbox, and bonuses of $2,000+ It is.
There are currently over 200 members. It’s a truly supportive and nurturing community, and we welcome you!
BONUS: As a Making Sense of Cents reader, we have a special coupon code for you to try Travel Blog Prosperity for just $9 for your first month.
➡️ Click here and use code “MAKINGSENSE9” at checkout to get your deal.
Please note that coupons are only valid for new members. After your trial month ends, you can remain a member for $49 per month and cancel at any time, even before the discounted price month ends.
Click here to learn more about Travel Blog Prosperity.
Interested in starting a travel blog?
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