While logging into my Instagram, an old post popped up on my IG page from back in the big days of travel blogging. It took me on an unexpected trip down memory lane to the many bloggers who were influential in the travel sector.
You probably remember when travel blogging was at its peak around 2016 to 2020. It seemed like everyone was doing it, and blogging itself was the core content of the travel and hospitality industry. But now, maybe not so much.
Many have pivoted into lifestyle content creators or creators for a different niche. Some have completely walked away and never turned back. For me, 2020 feels like it was the downfall of travel blogging.
Even after the world reopened, people still didn’t travel much for the first couple of years, and by then, video content became the prime source for travel tips and storytelling – and that’s okay too.
Based on my experience, videos do a better job for me at storytelling and offer a wide range of opportunities to be creative. Which is why I’ve been posting more content on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram this year than blog posts. But I want to create a healthier balance of the two worlds.
Unfortunately, the videos are mainly seen on social media platforms and YouTube – not on a blog site.
So, as a Content Creator, you are now dependent on investing your time into a platform that you do not own, unlike a personal website. And that is not the only issue! There are a ton of bloggers in general whose posts are being funneled into AI tools like ChatGPT.
Instead of doing a simple Google search that populates blog posts to answer your question, you’re hit with AI overview pulling bits and pieces of information from websites, giving you no reason to visit the websites themselves if AI has already given you the answers you seek.
Now, I’m not trying to drag AI through the mud; I use it a lot to generate graphics for some of my video projects.
It is also a useful tool for my small business, House of Ramnath. A large complaint within the blogging community, particularly travel bloggers, that cannot be ignored: the loss of readers due to ChatGPT.
A simple prompt like “Plan an itinerary for 1 day in Paris” will give you all the information you need within seconds – only that information has been pulled off of the websites of real people who have experienced that destination and wrote about it on their blog sites. This is also bringing a loss of income and travel industry opportunities to those who rely on blogging as a career.
It’s understandably a reduction in cost for the travel and hospitality industry to utilize AI tools to create blog posts and other forms of content in-house instead of outsourcing, but it’s still kind of sad. We’re reading more AI-generated articles than from real people.
So as 2025 comes to an end, (and yes, this is only my second and the last blog post for the year) I ask the question: Is travel blogging dead?
(Is anyone even going to read this post?)
I like having my website because it’s great having a little corner on the internet of travel memories with my family. Plus, I share my travel posts to help people plan trips when I am asked in a Facebook group on occasion.
I have a few unfinished blog posts sitting in my drafts that I just didn’t have the time to bother with; maybe they will make an appearance in 2026.
And if you’ve read this far – Happy New Year!
P.S. This post was not created with the help of AI – it’s all me!
