Top 10 Travel Video Ideas for TikTok and Instagram Reels
It's not difficult to see why travel video content is so popular on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. With their short, easily digestible snippets, they make for convenient viewing when you're on the go. Plus, who doesn't love getting a sneak peek into incredible destinations all over the world?
The way we share travel experiences with friends and family has evolved alongside social media platforms. TikTok and Instagram's short video clips are now among the most popular ways to document and share a trip. Use them to highlight some of the most picturesque, unique or unexpected parts of your travels to inspire wanderlust in your followers.
Top 10 Fantastic Travel Video Ideas
If you're looking for creative ways to spruce up your Instagram and TikTok feeds, consider creating a travel video. Shooting and editing a travel video can be a fun way to show off your adventures and share your favorite destinations with your followers.
Use these 10 travel video ideas on your next TikTok videos and Instagram Reels to help get you started, whether you're planning your next vacation or just dreaming about far-away places. Let the creative juices flow and start filming!
Document a Day in Your Life While on Vacation
As you're spending your days lounging on the beach or exploring new cities, documenting those moments can be a fun way to capture your vacation.
If you're traveling with friends or family, include them in your video as much as possible. This will help viewers feel like they're right there with you, experiencing the sights and sounds of your destination. Try to film everything – from waking up in the morning to getting to bed at night. If there's something interesting happening that day, be sure to capture it on camera.
By filming everything from the moment you wake up to when you go to bed, you'll have an amazing compilation of footage. Plus, it's a great way to reflect on your trip once you're back home.
Share Interesting Facts About the Place You're Visiting
Traveling to new places is always an adventure. Every destination has its own unique culture, history, and landscape. There's something strangely intriguing about learning a little bit more about a destination beyond what meets the eye.
For example, making a video of Rome and highlighting the history of how it’s built on seven hills. Or Venice, Italy which is made up of 100 islands. A travel video that talks about cool facts will make it an engaging and enriching experience for the viewer.
Capture Unique and Exciting Activities you Participate in While Traveling
When most people think of traveling, they imagine sightseeing and visiting historical landmarks. But there's so much more to explore. Don't just focus on the sights and sounds of your destination; get creative and make your travel video stand out from the rest by considering incorporating unique and exciting activities you can participate.
Whether it's rafting down a treacherous river or scaling a cliff face, these clips will add an element of excitement and intrigue that will keep viewers engaged.
Film People Enjoying the Local Food and Culture
To spice up your travel videos, consider incorporating some shots of the local food and culture. Anyone who's been to a foreign country can tell you that one of the most enjoyable ways to experience the native culture is by eating the local cuisine. A very easy way to share this cultural experience with others is by creating a TikTok video or Instagram reel featuring local restaurants who serve native dishes.
To all my Anthony Bourdain fans out there, it can also be a lot of fun to explore different culinary traditions. Who knows, you might even find yourself enjoying some unusual dishes. Foodie travel has a loyal following because so many of us like to eat well on vacation. Bon appétit!
Take Drone Footage of Stunning Landscapes or Cityscapes
While there are many different ways to explore new places, nothing quite beats the view from high up in the sky. And thanks to drones, we now have a way to get amazing aerial footage of landscapes and cityscapes like never before.
Drones offer a unique perspective that can turn a mundane travel video into an inspiring work of art. Whether you're looking at snow-capped mountains or the hustle and bustle of a city skyline, drone videos offer a unique perspective on familiar landmarks. From up high, everything looks different — more beautiful, more impressive. It's no wonder that drone videography has become so popular over the last few years.
My best friend is a YouTube content creator and when we travel she packs her travel drone which is very lightweight and compact. I love incorporating her short drone clips into my own videos to make them pop!
Share Your Most Helpful Tips for Traveling on a Budget
Seeing various places and experiencing different cultures is a fascinating way to broaden your horizons. But traveling can also be expensive, so it's critical to make the most of your money while you're on the road.
If you've discovered a clever way to save money on travel, try creating content about it and sharing it with your followers. There’s an entire culture around budget traveling and money saving hacks for frugal and savvy travelers. Make sure to include relevant hashtags such as #budgettravel and #travelhacks.
Viewers Really Love Fall & Holiday Travel
When the summer is over and the fall season begins, there’s a kind of magic in the air. In the autumn months we love everything pumpkin-related, comfy and cozy vibes, sweater weather and of course Halloween. Fall lovers enjoy watching videos with pumpkin patches, fall fashion OOTDs for travel, fall foliage, Halloween destinations and more. See my guide to fall content ideas on the blog. I’ve also created a fall-themed hashtag guide to help your content get discovered by new viewers. Use my recommended tactics to grow your audience.
After Halloween is done, we start with preparations for Thanksgiving which is the beginning of the holiday season. Because so many people have a break from school and work, the holiday season can be a popular travel time. Not to mention that there’s so many sought after holiday places to travel. The Christmas decor, twinkling lights, jolly music and general merriment of the holidays makes it a memorable time to plan a getaway. Bonus points if you go visit the snow for a white Christmas! See my guide to holiday-themed content on the blog.
Document the Process of Packing for a Trip
People have a fascination with watching videos on how to pack for a trip. They can see what works for others and get ideas for their own packing lists. This is a simple way to avoid packing mistakes and maximize space in your luggage.
Start by making a list of everything you will need and then sorting the items into categories. Remember to pack light — you don't want to be overloaded with bags when you're trying to enjoy your vacation.
This is also a great way to incorporate fashion outfit ideas for specific destinations. Think dresses and swimsuits for a tropical island like Hawaii or sweaters and boots for New York City in the fall.
Travel to Hidden, Under the Radar & Off the Beaten Path Destinations
The problem with popular tourist destinations is that you’ll be dealing with crowds of people and over-priced hotels. There’s a growing trend in travel where adventurers are looking to discover rarely seen places such as abandoned ghost towns, hidden hiking trails and swimming water holes. Because these are usually hard to find or difficult to access places, making videos about your visit can garner the attention of many new curious followers.
Eco-Friendly & Sustainable Tourism
With sustainability on the top of everyone’s minds, it’s no surprise that eco-friendly tourism is on the rise. Popular hotel booking sites such as Booking.com features hotels that have been awarded the status of “Travel Sustainable Properties”. On the left hand side of their website you can see the sustainable hotels filter option.
A fun video idea could be to feature a hotel’s sustainable products and practices, showcasing how they are doing their part to be friendlier to the environment.
repurposing evergreen content
There's something about travel videos that makes people want to hit the road. Whether it's watching someone else explore a new place or getting a sneak peek at its highlights, the video seems to inspire wanderlust in all of us. Maybe we can chalk it up to that old FOMO feeling, but travel videos are a great way to reach new audiences.
On a final note, creating social media videos are a great way to repurpose evergreen content and get the most bang for your buck with the videos and photos that you’ve already taken the time to shoot. If you’ve shot photos and videos from vacations in the past, use creative techniques to make them look fresh and new in a TikTok or Instagram Reel video. I wouldn’t be surprised if you had some hidden gem content buried in your old phones or SD cards. So get started filming today!
Shop Video Filming and Editing Essentials:
Presets are a super helpful editing tool to help you create a consistent look and feel to your photos and videos. Select a preset that matches your brands aesthetics and easily use the same one over and over again in post production. Of all the online marketplaces for editing tools, Etsy has the best and cutest presets available for purchase.
I am a loyal Canon photographer and I use my Canon EOS 6D body with a Canon EF 35mm Wide Angle Lens to shoot all my still photos and some videos too. A high quality camera is the best investment I ever made in my content creator career journey.
Having a ring light and cell phone tripod can really increase the quality of your videos by brightening them up and providing better hands-free angles for filming. For travel you want to find tripods that fold-up and are compact to fit easily into your suitcase.
