Brought to you by Travelpayouts

2019 was the first year where blogging finally “clicked” for me.

Traffic was climbing fast, my income replaced my English-teaching salary, and I remember thinking, “Okay… I can actually do this.”

July was incredible. August was solid. September dipped a little, but nothing alarming.

Then Q4 hit. And my traffic absolutely tanked.

Logically, I should have known that people travel less in October, November, and December.

But logic disappears quickly when your traffic graph starts dropping, and your income goes with it.

My motivation dropped, and I remember wondering if I had just made the biggest mistake jumping into blogging full-time.

What I didn’t understand at the time was this:

Q4 is often slow for travel bloggers (unless you have strong seasonal content), but it’s also one of the best times of the entire year to work on the foundations that will set you up for growth in the new year.

So today, I want to share the same December framework I use every year; the work that sets me up for a very strong Q1 and beyond.

🛑 Quick Pause: Before we dive in, I want to highlight something that can make December feel a lot lighter and give you some built-in motivation.

Travelpayouts put together a really fun Christmas Advent Calendar for travel bloggers, and it’s filled with eight days of surprises that give you quick wins, fresh ideas, and little bursts of inspiration heading into 2026.

Inside you’ll find things like:

• Festive perks and gift giveaways
• Special earning boosts to help you earn more from affiliates
• Mini “wisdom drops"
• Raffles for 1:1 consultations with blogging experts
• And a few surprise gifts designed to help you grow your blog in the new year!

Speaking from experience, it’s exactly the kind of momentum most bloggers need in December.

>> Click here to get Travelpayouts’ Advent Calendar!​

Review What Actually Worked in 2025

Most bloggers forget this part, but your blog is a business. Period.

Even if you don’t regularly invest money into your blogging business, you have invested time, and your time has value.

If you’re not regularly reviewing what’s working and what’s not, you’re essentially guessing.

And when you’re guessing, that’s when people get stuck, plateau, or burn out.

December is the perfect time to look at your numbers, and this doesn’t need to be complicated.

Open your analytics and look at:

• Your top traffic posts (use Google Analytics or Microsoft Clarity)​
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• Which posts made you the most money (you can easily do this through Travelpayouts’ dashboard)​
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• Your best-performing affiliate programs (also a Travelpayouts thing)​
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• Your strongest referral sources (Google, Bing, Flipboard, Pinterest, email, etc)

This data tells you exactly where your time should go in 2026.

Do what’s already working. Do it again and again and again.

If you’re doing this kind of work in December to prepare for 2026, it really helps to have something that keeps you engaged during a month where motivation usually dips.

That’s why I’m loving that Travelpayouts created their Advent Calendar. It’s not filled with chocolate, but it does add a spark to a slower season.

>> Grab Travelpayouts’ free Advent Calendar here!​

Expand What’s Already Working

Once you identify your top performers, expand outward from those posts instead of jumping into new random topics.

I look at this two ways: vertical and horizontal expansion.

Vertical expansion: Stay on the same topic, but cover it from different angles.

If “Rome 3-day itinerary” did well, write things like:

• “Rome bucket list”
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• “Rome things to do”
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• “Where to stay in Rome”

A lot of your content can be repurposed, just rewrite it so it doesn’t show up as duplicate content.

Horizontal expansion: Stay with the same type of post, but shift locations.

If “Rome 3-day itinerary” did well, create:

• “Florence itinerary”
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• “1 day in Milan”
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• “2 days in Venice”

When something works, double down on it. No need to reinvent the wheel.

Refresh Your Content

I know I just told you to analyze your top content so you can create more of what’s working, BUT don’t rush into writing new posts just yet.

Updating and optimizing what you already have can give you a surprisingly big boost heading into early 2026.

For all of your current posts, I’d do the following:

• Update years in the title to 2026
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• Test all affiliate links (Travelpayouts’ LinkSwitcher tool is great for this)​
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• Update outdated info or pricing
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• Add/test stronger CTAs for affiliate links or freebies

For posts that aren’t doing well (and are older than nine months), try this:

• Look in Google Search Console at what keywords you’re actually ranking for
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• Choose a slightly different target keyword
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• Update the post for that new keyword (without changing the URL)​
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• Add better affiliate placements
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• Test new freebies or lead magnets

These small adjustments compound quickly, especially when new-year travel planning kicks in.

Want Help Growing Your Blog in 2026?

If you enjoy the strategies I share in this newsletter, you’ll love what I teach inside my program, Scale Your Travel Blog.

I started SYTB in January 2021, and since then it has become the leading program for travel bloggers who want up-to-date strategies, support, and a path to full-time (or part-time) blogging income.

Enrollment is currently closed, but we’re reopening the doors in January 2026.

If you want to be the first to know:

>> Click here to join the SYTB waitlist​

Don’t forget to grab the Travelpayouts Advent Calendar; it starts TODAY!

It’s free and fun, and a simple way to add momentum to your December.

>> Click here to get the Advent Calendar here​

See you next week,

Laura

P.S. If someone sent you this newsletter, and you want to receive more from me, click here to join 30,000+ bloggers already subscribed!​

P.P.S. Scale Your Travel Blog is currently CLOSED for enrollment until January 2026. To join our waitlist, please click here!​

P.P.P.S. Sorry again for the email that was sent out on accident last week. It wasn't my intention. I despise Black Friday, and I never want to appear in anyone's inbox during Black Friday. So it's unfortunate that I did twice. Yuck.