SEO for Travel Bloggers [2024] SEO for Travel Website 

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Woo! The thrill of being the top result for a question people ask Google is like being atop Machu Picchu.

Ugh! The devastation of your rankings and traffic dropping like jumping off a cliff in Capri.

Let’s talk about SEO for travel bloggers and how to win. I’ve been optimizing content for search engines for over a decade. 

I was in charge of content for a major travel website, and we had multiple ways to get people to the site, with SEO playing a big part.

I’ll give you the inside scoop on where to focus your energy – and what to skip. SEO for travel bloggers is changing fast with algorithm updates and AI answers. I’ll help you keep up!

Don’t miss my new marketing and monetization tips for travel content creators. Get my free email newsletter:

How To Do SEO for Travel Bloggers/ How To Do SEO for Travel Websites

Google processes over 40,000 searches every second.1 With all those people searching, you need your travel blog or website to be as visible as possible. 

Here are my top SEO for travel website tips.

Understand Why You Need SEO for Your Travel Blog

SEO for travel websites is a top way to introduce your content to new people who are seeking answers to their travel questions.

SEO is the process of making your website appear as prominently as possible on Google. This is important because so many people use Google.

Imagine you’re writing a blog on traveling with a dog in South America, and you’ve just written a detailed post about playing with your Basset Hound in Buenos Aires. When someone googles “best dog parks in Buenos Aires,” you want your site to appear in the first few results. If it doesn’t, people won’t find your article, and all your hard work will be for nothing, causing you to lapse into a deep depression which will make your Basset Hound sad as well. And nothing is more devastating than a melancholy canine companion with big floppy ears.

Whether you’re selling products, monetizing content through ads, or working as an affiliate marketer, your travel blog will only be profitable if it attracts an audience. SEO for travel websites is one of the best ways to bring people to your site. 

The other best way is with YouTube. And the other best way is posting on Reddit and Instagram and TikTok and X (check out: How to make money on X) and Pinterst and speaking at travel conferences. But you get the idea, SEO should be in your marketing mix.

When you build a loyal audience, you can make money with your travel content by creating educational travel courses, providing itineraries, hosting tours and meetups, and linking to the Highest paying travel affiliate programs. You might even learn how to make money as a travel photographer.

Build a Fast Travel Website

Page load speed isn’t just important for your site’s user experience. It’s also a critical element of SEO for travel bloggers. 

You want your site to load in 1.5 seconds or less. That’s the same amount of time it takes a gloomy Basset Hound to melt your heart.

The best web hosting services will load your site fast.

Think about it: Google’s main objective is to please its users. And Google’s users don’t want to visit websites that take forever to load! That’s why Google considers page speed when it ranks search results.

So, how can you make your website run faster? The most important step is to use a top-of-the-line hosting service that optimizes your site for speed. 

Here are my favorite speed-focused hosting services:

  • Cloudways – With a simple plan that costs just $9.80 per month, this is the budget-friendly way to maximize page load speed and prioritize SEO for travel bloggers. 
  • WP Engine – This service provides WordPress hosting for as little as $20 a month.
WP Engine is an excellent web hosting service for travel bloggers with a WordPress site.
WP Engine is a high-end hosting service for page load speed, which is a key ‘SEO for travel website’ factor.

Find The Right Keywords for Your Travel Blog

When people hear “SEO,” they often think of keywords. And while there’s a lot more than that to SEO for travel bloggers, keywords are definitely a major part of the equation.

SEO keywords are words or phrases that you include on web pages to make them more visible in search engines. 

You know how people search for information online by typing words or phrases into Google? Well, your goal is to include some of those phrases in your content.

But you need to think strategically. You can’t just choose the most obvious keywords. Imagine using, for example, “South America” as a keyword. There are already so many established websites that will show up when someone googles that phrase! I hate to break it to you, but you won’t compete with Wikipedia.

That’s why you’re better off finding keywords that people often search for, but that aren’t so common that you have no chance of ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs). 

This is where your niche comes in. If you think carefully, you could probably find keywords that are popular enough to be searched frequently, but specific enough that your page has a chance of ranking.

No: best hotels in Paris

Yes: best hotels in Paris Latin Quarter for couples

It’s also important to consider short vs long-tail keywords:

  • Short keywords are 1-3 words (example: “fancy restaurants”). They usually have lots of people searching for these phrases, which is great, except it also means you’ll have big sites gunning for these, leaving you bleeding and hurt. (Basset Hound whimper sound) 
  • Long-tail keywords include 4 or more words (example: “fancy ramen restaurants in Brickell Miami”). They don’t usually get as much search volume, which makes it easier for your page to rank. Plus, it gives you a chance to show off your specific travel knowledge.

The good news is deciding which keywords are best isn’t a guessing game. 

You can do keyword research to find keywords that are popular with searchers but not already covered by major sites. There are SEO tools specifically designed to help bloggers conduct keyword research.

Here are keyword tools I’d recommend for travel SEO:

  • Semrush – This comprehensive SEO toolkit includes an incredible keyword finder. Just enter your topic, and it will suggest the best keywords to use.
  • Surfer – Not only does this tool help you find keywords, but it will also monitor your content to make sure the keywords you’ve used are still effective.
  • KWFinder by Mangools – This tool is refreshingly simple. Just enter a potential keyword, and it will show you all the related statistics. 

RankIQ is another tool that not only helps you find keywords, but also write well-crafted SEO blog posts. Read my RankIQ review.

Semrush makes it easy to optimize your travel blog to rank highly on search engines.
Keywords are an essential part of SEO for travel websites – and Semrush can help you find them.

Create Valuable Travel Content 

Sometimes, SEO for travel bloggers can seem like a bunch of gimmicks. A keyword here, a backlink there. 

But guess what: Ultimately, your travel blog will only rank on Google if it actually provides valuable information!

Remember, Google’s job is to present users with content they’ll appreciate (and find useful). So, their algorithms and strategies aren’t random. They’re designed to find the best content on the web. 

One of Google’s main ways to measure the quality of your writing is how many minutes people spend on your website. If people find your travel site through Google search but click back to Google after a few seconds, that’s a bad sign.

But if readers click to read another one of your articles, or click on one of your offers, that’s a great SEO signal. Google wants its search results to be useful. Be useful to readers, and you’ll be rewarded.

That’s why you shouldn’t prioritize keywords and backlinks over quality. Yes, those things are important – but creating valuable posts and articles will always be at the center of my SEO for travel website strategy. 

Besides, having good articles (articles you can be proud of) is what keeps readers coming back and keeps you feeling good about your job. Travel blogging is a lot more fun when you know you’re actually helping people!

So, how can you create valuable travel content? 

The first step is to think of what readers will actually be interested in. Your philosophical musings might be fun to write, and a certain subset of readers might like it, but most people want practical information about travel destinations or entertaining travel stories.

Think of what people will want to know about the place you’re writing about – where to stay, what to do, what to eat, stuff like that. Then, create content that answers those questions. 

You also want the writing itself to be clear and engaging. Here are tips to consider:

  • Write like a human being – not a robot or a kid trying to sound smart in a high school essay.
  • Make it clear you’re an expert, referencing your personal experience as much as possible. People love reading about first-hand encounters!
  • Read your pieces out loud so you can weed out clunky, unnatural phrases. 

Your writing voice should sound like your speaking voice, just with a little more clarity and polish. That’s how you build a lasting connection with readers. 

extra point Extra Point: Don’t rely solely on Google for people to find your site! Encourage people to join your email list. That way, you have a direct line of communication, and they won’t forget about you. Use the best email marketing software. See my reviews to learn more:

Build Backlinks and Internal Links

There’s a reason the internet is also called “the web.” It’s a massive network of interconnected pages. One way the pages are connected is through links.

When other websites link to your articles, it shows Google that your content is trustworthy, and that helps your rankings. 

There are two types of links to consider with SEO for travel websites:

  • Backlinks – These are links to your pages from other websites. They show Google that other internet users trust your site as an authority. 
  • Internal links – These are links between pages on your website. They help Google find and index your pages, which should improve your ranking.

Creating internal links is easy. Just go into your website’s pages and link to other pages on your site. But make sure the links make sense, or you’ll jeopardize the quality of your content.

Getting backlinks is a lot tougher because they’re external to your site, meaning you need other people to add links to your site.

Here are some travel SEO tips for building backlinks:

  • Offer to write guest posts for other blogs – and include links to your own pages.
  • Supply expert travel answers to reporters and media outlets using HARO and X.
  • Use an SEO tool like Semrush to see where your competitors are getting backlinks – and then reach out to the linking sites yourself.
  • Survey your audience and provide interesting data and analysis to news sites.

Optimize Your Travel Website for SEO 

SEO for travel bloggers is a sort of complicated game. There are obvious strategies, like including keywords and creating valuable content, but there are other SEO techniques that can help your travel blog stand out. 

Additional steps to improve SEO for travel websites:

  • Include author bios with every post. This shows search engines you’re really an expert. 
  • Write meta descriptions for all your pages. These little blurbs appear under the title in Google. They’re basically advertisements for every page. 
  • Add ALT text for all your images. If you put your keywords in the alt text, it will make your pages more searchable.
  • Add videos to your content. Google loves videos – and so do internet users! They’ll boost your ranking by keeping people on the page longer while also helping you build a connection with your audience. 
  • Put the site menu on every page. This makes it easier for visitors to navigate the site. And it adds links to every page.
  • Track your progress. Free tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console will show how much traffic your site is attracting.

Once you rank on Google, you’ll have more visitors who will be interested in your travel affiliate partners. See my guides on the highest paying travel affiliate programs, my VRBO affiliate program review, and my Viator affiliate program review to learn more.

Commonly Asked Questions About SEO for Travel Bloggers 

SEO for Travel Industry 

SEO is super important for travel bloggers because travel is such a competitive niche. You can make your site stand out and rank on Google, but you’ll have to take keyword research, backlinks, and page speed seriously. Also, make sure you’re creating content that’s valuable to readers.  

Keywords for Travel Blogger / Travel Keywords?

Here are popular keywords for travel SEO:

  • Luggage 
  • Trip planner
  • Bus booking
  • Hopper flights
  • TSA precheck

But remember, it’s hard to rank on Google when you use only common, short keywords. Try to use long-tail keywords, too. 

How To Find Keywords for Travel Blog?

There are lots of SEO tools that help with keyword research – which is a major part of SEO for travel websites. Semrush, Surfer, and KWFinder by Mangools are trusted SEO software.

If you’re able to master SEO for travel bloggers for high-paying keywords, you’ll know 

Free SEO for Travel Bloggers?

Here are free tools that can help with SEO for travel bloggers:

Whether you want to start a travel blog or start a pet care blog, these free SEO software tools will be useful.

Best SEO for Travel Bloggers?

To excel at SEO for travel bloggers, follow these best practices:

  • Build a fast website that loads in under 1.5 seconds
  • Find the right travel keywords
  • Create valuable content your audience will love
  • Get backlinks from other sites to your site
  • Include internal links that link your articles to each other
  • Write meta descriptions for your pages
  • Include ALT text for your images

Check out my reviews to find the best blogging platform and best managed WordPress hosting.

Travel Blog Examples?

Here are examples of successful travel blogs:

  • Nomadic Matt
  • The Blonde Abroad
  • One Step 4Ward
  • Lili’s Travel Plans
  • My Life’s a Movie

Related:

Sources:

1 – https://websitebuilder.org/blog/google-stats/