✈️ Sep 2025 Round-Up: Everything You Need To Know


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Your Monthly Round-Up From the Travel Creator Network

πŸ‘‹ Welcome to the Travel Creator Network's September Round-Up, and a special welcome to the 31 new creators who joined since last time.

In this edition, I share some new monetisation opportunities for creators, social media features you might find useful, and a 5-figure blogging success story. We're approaching events season, so don't miss the calendar section to see what's coming up.

Happy reading, Kieren (more about me at the end).

⭐️ = original content
πŸ”— = links to third-party content


LATEST NEWS

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TIKTOK GO OFFERS NEW MONETISATION OPPORTUNITIES - A new Booking.com integration allows users to book hotels through TikTok. Alongside this, they launched TikTok Go, a monetisation program where creators can earn commissions or vouchers from hotels and restaurants they feature.

πŸ”— Find out more here​

πŸ—ΊοΈ

GETYOURGUIDE OFFER FREE EXPERIENCES FOR CREATORS - GetYourGuide are offering creators the chance to try 2,000+ new activities on GetYourGuide across 900 destinations. There's no content requirements - all they want is a review on their platform. Apply for experiences by 25/9 and use the free voucher within 7 days.

πŸ”— See the experiences included​

🌍

TOUR RADAR LAUNCHED THEIR 'RISE' PROGRAM - Tour Radar announced a $1million fund for partners called RISE. As a RISE ambassador, you'll earn affiliate commission on tours (average $180 per booking) and be considered for their first-ever partner trip with immersive experiences and workshops.

πŸ”— Find out more and join RISE​

news continues below sponsor

TOP RESOURCES FOR TRAVEL BLOGGERS IN 2025

Let's be honest, you already get the best newsletter for travel creators πŸ˜‰, but if you're still hungry to learn more, Travelpayouts have the perfect free resource for you.

They surveyed 1,000+ travel bloggers to compile a list of the most popular blogs, newsletters, and creators sharing blogging growth tips and tricks.

I follow several of these personally and they are legit helpful - highly recommend you get their guide and check them out.

πŸ‘‰ Click here to get the free guide

βš™οΈ

GOOGLE ANNOUNCED AN ONGOING SPAM UPDATE - Google announced a spam update on 26th Aug which will take a few weeks to roll out. Some sites noted an immediate impact. But in good news for creators, Google will test showing more links in AI Mode, starting on desktop.

πŸ”— Read the full story​

⚑

MEDIAVINE LAUNCHED A NEW AD EXPERIENCE - Recognising the importance of user experience, Mediavine launched a new 'optimised ad experience'. It focuses on quality ad placements, rather than quantity, aiming to maintain RPMs while reducing ads per page. Opt in via your Mediavine dashboard.

πŸ”— Read their full announcement​

⚠️

SCAM PRESS TRIP OPPORTUNITIES ON THE RISE - Dan from Nott's Nomad draws attention to the growing number of scam press trip opportunities being targeted at travel creators. On Threads, he shared the latest attempt, supposedly inviting him to visit Universal Studios' Halloween event.

πŸ”— See Dan's post here​

⛓️

INSTAGRAM LAUNCHES LINKED REELS - Instagram has added the ability to link reels together, effectively creating a playlist. It's perfect if you post reels on a similar topic or split your videos into part 1, part 2, etc. It's the equivalent of series on TikTok or related shorts on YouTube.

πŸ”— Read the full story and see how to use it​


TIPS & TRICKS

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HOW ADVENTURES BY LANA BECAME A $10K/MONTH BLOG - Lana Sitler joined the Niche Pursuits podcast to share her travel blogging journey and how she consistently hits 5-figure months, just 1 year after starting to take her site more seriously.

πŸ”— Listen/watch the episode here​

πŸ“ˆ

STEPHANIE'S FLIPBOARD STRATEGY BEHIND 65,000 MONTHLY VISITS - Janette Speyer shares an interview with Stephanie Rytting, who drives 65K+ monthly visits to her travel blogs through Flipboard. She shares how a mix of curiosity-driven headlines, smart content repurposing, and persistence has helped her escape Google's shackles.

πŸ”— Read the article here​


INTERESTING FINDS

πŸ‘¨β€πŸ‘©β€πŸ‘§β€πŸ‘¦

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE FAMILY VLOGGERS? - Manychat deep dives into why once-booming YouTube families are packing up their channels as kids push back, lawmakers crack down, and audiences question whether filming childhood crosses the line.

πŸ”— Read the full story​

πŸ“Έ

THE BRAND TRIP THAT WENT WRONG... OR DID IT?- Waterboy's brand trip to Tulum went viral back in June, for all the wrong reasons. It was mocked for being chaotic and branded β€œthe worst social media management ever.” But their CEO says he doesn't regret it at all and claims it was their best sales month yet.

πŸ”— Read Marketing Brew's coverage of the drama​

😎

EXPEDIA REPORT SHOWS HOW GEN Z TRAVEL - Expedia's new report breaks down the habits of Gen Z travellers. It explains where they find travel inspiration (hint: mostly on social media) and how they're using AI for personal itineraries.

πŸ”— Get the full report here​


UPCOMING EVENTS

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2nd-4th September - ITB India, Mumbai​

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9-12th September - TBEX Europe, Ireland​

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17-18th September - World Travel Expo, Miami​

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27-30th September - FIT, Buenos Aires​

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πŸ“…

13-14th October - Travmedia IMM Asia, Singapore​

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15-17th October - ITB Asia, Singapore​​

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22nd-23rd October - Manychat Instagram Summit (virtual) - πŸ“’ still early-bird tickets

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5-7th November - Mediavine's MV Con, Boston​


AD REVENUE FORECAST

Below are Mediavine's predictions for ad revenue performance this month. Regardless of your ad partner, these trends are worth noting.


MONTHLY POLL

It's great to see so many of you joining the Facebook group and voting on the monthly poll!

πŸ“Š Last month’s poll result: Despite all the Capcut drama earlier this year, the app is still preferred among creators for making short-form video!

πŸ“Š This month’s poll: WHAT DEVICE DO YOU USE FOR SHOOTING VIDEO CONTENT? (tap the poll to vote)


WHO'S BEHIND THE TRAVEL CREATOR NETWORK?

Hi, I'm Kieren, I've been travel blogging for 6+ years (full-time since 2021). I love nerding out about all things blogging, SEO, social media, and AI. I started this newsletter to connect with fellow content creators - whether you're just starting out or a seasoned pro. Hit reply to chat or find out more about me here!


This newsletter may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I'll earn a little commission at no cost to you which helps support the free newsletter.

Travel Creator Newsletter

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