Laura Peters is the owner and author of Mike & Laura Travel, a blog that helps travelers find unique destinations and travel experiences on a budget. She is also the CEO of Scale Your Travel Blog, a coaching program that helps travel bloggers start, grow, and scale their travel blog income. When she isn't writing blog posts about her favorite travel destinations, she is serving her audience through Scale Your Travel Blog and her live/virtual events, Travel Blogging Summit.
I ran out of things to blog about
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After graduating from college in 2013, I landed my first “real job” in an office with no windows. (By the way... what is it with windowless offices being the unofficial initiation into "adult life"? 😂) Anyway, it didn’t take long for me to realize that spending 9 hours a day under fluorescent lights wasn’t the dream. About eight months in, I cashed in all 12 of my vacation days and booked a trip to Europe with a friend. I’d never traveled internationally before. In college, most of my friends studied abroad... but I missed that boat completely. So I made up for it by stretching my trip to 3 weeks and taking a full week unpaid. When I got home, I did what any slightly travel-obsessed 20-something would do: I started writing about my travels in a makeshift blog. (And I'm using the word blog very loosely here haha) I wrote about five posts (one for each place we visited) and then... ...I ran out of things to say. Because in my head, travel blogging only worked if you were traveling all the time. Turns out, that’s not true at all. ➡️ In fact, some of the most successful travel bloggers I know barely travel at all. Here’s the truth: if you think you need to be on a plane every month to make money from your blog, you’ve been sold a myth. Because the real secret to successful travel blogging isn’t constant travel, it’s strategy. Today, I’m breaking down what it actually takes to build a profitable travel blog (even if you only travel once a year… or not at all) 1) Each trip should fuel dozens of posts, not just one When Mike and I went to Kauai for our honeymoon in 2018, we spent one week exploring the island. Now, many bloggers (especially when they’re just starting out) would turn that into one blog post: “Our Kauai Honeymoon Recap.” But that same week-long trip could easily fuel 10+ blog posts, like:
…you get the idea. Yes, you’ll likely need to do extra research to round things out and include things you didn't do yourself. But that’s part of our job as travel bloggers. Most readers aren’t taking your exact trip, they’re looking for the best info, and your personal experience just adds value on top. Don’t waste a great destination on a single post. Maximize the stories, guides, and helpful content you can create from every trip you take. 2) Write about where you live Yep, I’m talking about your own city, state, or region. Some of the most successful travel bloggers I know aren’t hopping on international flights every month, they’re exploring their own backyard and turning it into a profitable niche. Here’s why this works: People are constantly searching for things to do near home whether they’re planning a quick weekend getaway, a birthday trip, or just trying to find something new for their Saturday. Think about the types of blog posts someone might search for in your area:
But here’s something to keep in mind... not all destinations are created equal. If you're thinking of focusing your blog on a city or town, here’s the rule of thumb I recommend:
Think places like Breckenridge, Colorado. It doesn’t have a huge population, but it draws visitors year-round thanks to skiing, hiking, and mountain-town charm. If your town doesn't meet the threshold of my above recommendations, consider zooming out to cover your entire state or region. It gives you more flexibility and opens up a lot more traffic potential. And don’t forget: you already have the insider advantage. You know the seasons, the best times to visit, where to park, what the locals actually do; that’s the kind of value travelers can’t get from big media sites. Don’t underestimate your own backyard. It might be the most underrated asset in your entire blogging strategy. 3) Don’t forget about past trips Just because your trip didn’t happen last month doesn’t mean it’s off-limits. Some of my best-performing posts are based on trips I took years ago. I’ve written full destination guides, packing lists, itineraries, and "what I wish I knew before..." posts about places I haven’t been to in 5+ years. Why does this still work? Because you already have the experience. You know what was worth it, what to skip, and what you’d do differently next time. That kind of insight is so helpful for readers, and something you can’t get from Googling alone. That said, it’s always smart to cross-check your info. Double-check hours, closures, and links to make sure your tips are still accurate and helpful today. Pro-tip: Use Google Maps, official tourism websites, or recent reviews on TripAdvisor to update old memory-based content. Bottom line: Past trips are an asset, not a limitation. Don’t let them go to waste. 4) Blog about your travel research You don’t need to wait until after your trip to write about it. Most people assume you have to go somewhere before you can create content about it, but that’s just not true. Some of the biggest travel sites out there are hiring writers to research and write about places they’ve never stepped foot in. And here’s the truth: if you’re someone who actually knows how to plan a trip, you’re already more qualified than most. For example, my uncle recently asked me for advice on renting a car in a place I hadn’t even been to. But I still knew how to help him because I know how to plan trips. I know what to look for, how to compare options, and how to spot the stuff that’s just fluff. He doesn’t travel often, so to him, having someone point him in the right direction was a big deal. So even if you haven’t been somewhere yet, your skills are valuable. Use them. Turn your research into a post. These types of posts can rank before your trip even starts, and then you can always update them later with firsthand experience. If you’re doing the work anyway, don’t let it go to waste. Hit publish. Inside my community, Scale Your Travel Blog, we’re launching the Monetize Momentum Challenge; a 4-month sprint (May–August) focused on growing income from:
There’s $400 in prize money on the line ($100 per category), plus surprise giveaways, tracking templates, and weekly prompts to keep you focused and moving forward. If you’re already in Scale Your Travel Blog, you’re in! If you're not in Scale Your Travel Blog yet, choose your path below: → Scale Your Travel Blog Course + Community → Scale Your Travel Blog Course + Coaching + Community This just might be the clarity and momentum you’ve been waiting for! Each week, this newsletter goes out to 30,000+ travel bloggers, creators, and digital entrepreneurs - with a 53% open rate and 2% click-through rate. I occasionally partner with brands that truly align with what my readers care about whether that’s tools to grow their blog, ways to earn more income, or resources that make the creator journey easier. Transparency is key: I always disclose sponsored content. I also turn down offers that don’t fit. If you're a company that supports travel bloggers and you'd like to collaborate, reply to this email to learn more. 🚨 How To Turn Your Blogging Skills Into Income, No Matter What the Economy Looks Like 🚨 Learn how to design a blog you’ll LOVE, without sacrificing user experience or site speed (without Elementor, Beaver Builder, or Divi) 🚨 From 0 to Thousands: How Samantha Grew Her Email List Using Her Travel Blog Talk to you soon, Laura P.S. Here are my top recommended blogging resources. ✔️ #1 Travel Blogging Course + Coaching + Community: Scale Your Travel Blog |
Laura Peters || Travel Blogging, Affiliate Marketing, Email Marketing
Laura Peters is the owner and author of Mike & Laura Travel, a blog that helps travelers find unique destinations and travel experiences on a budget. She is also the CEO of Scale Your Travel Blog, a coaching program that helps travel bloggers start, grow, and scale their travel blog income. When she isn't writing blog posts about her favorite travel destinations, she is serving her audience through Scale Your Travel Blog and her live/virtual events, Travel Blogging Summit.
In 2018, Mike and I decided to start traveling full-time. At that point, I had already spent a few years bouncing around: teaching English in Thailand, backpacking through Europe on a budget, and living out of a campervan in New Zealand. So going full-time wasn’t a huge stretch. What made it possible was teaching English online with VIPKID (they’re hiring again, by the way). I was pulling in around $2,500–$3,000/month, which was enough to fund our life in places like Southeast Asia and...
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💡 Travel Blogging Success Story 💡 How Tanya Grew Her Blog to $800/Month with Just 4,900 Sessions(After Less Than 1 Year Blogging) One of my favorite things lately has been sharing success stories and behind-the-scenes tips from real bloggers inside Scale Your Travel Blog. And if you’ve been wondering whether it’s still worth starting a blog, or whether you should keep going, use this success story as proof that it absolutely is. Today, I want you to meet Tanya from The T Word on Travel. When...