Travel brands on TikTok area dream. They have great visuals – stunning views, interesting cultural activities, photographable food – so naturally, many of them are using TikTok to get creative and reach new audiences.
Search hashtags like #tiktoktravel #wanderlust #traveldiaries, and you’ll see thriving communities of people who love to travel and who love to engage with their favourite travel brands.
Here’s some inspiration for getting involved as a travel brand on TikTok.
Showcase must-see attractions
Travel brands and destinations use TikTok to give people a glimpse of what they can expect when they visit.
Visit London shares videos of iconic buildings and events (like the West End Christmas lights). One of its most popular posts (viewed over 343,000 times) is a short video of the outside of Buckingham Palace.
Visit Singapore had more than one million views on its TikTok showing the Lego dinosaurs at the Mandai wildlife reserve.
It’s a great way to make people think: “I’d love to go there.”
Give people insight into the area and its traditions
Being a travel brand on TikTok is a great way to share snippets of information about a destination’s traditions, culture and stories.
Tourism New Zealand posts some of its stunning environments that have featured in major movies. It also spotlights ancient Maori traditions. It recently created a series of videos featuring Maori stories, such as this one about the god of wind and weather, Tāwhirimātea.
Switzerland Tourism posts TikToks on the food it’s famous for and its unique position in Europe. One TikTok, celebrating its German and French language speakers, got 343,000 views.
Show travellers how to live like a local
If you want to live like a local on holiday, TikTok can give you ideas to discover new places off the beaten path.
Visit Singapore does this brilliantly, showing local celebrations, videos of local cuisine, and even taking us on a short tour of neighbourhood murals.
Other accounts, like UK Hidden Gems, show followers locations that aren’t typically on travellers’ itineraries (with this video of bucket list places in the UK getting 1.4 million views.
Showcase the brand behind the scenes
Virgin Atlantic uses TikTok to celebrate its culture. A recent video of cabin crew dancing racked up almost four million views in five days.
The brand has also used TikTok to announce dress code changes, such as allowing cabin crew to have their tattoos on display (a video which got 5.8 million views and 956,000 likes).
Another TikTok post by the airline celebrates ways for employees to be who they are. In 2019, it stopped requiring female-presenting cabin crew to wear makeup, for example. In 2022 it announced that male-presenting employees could wear makeup if they wanted to.
These sorts of behind-the-scenes looks at travel brands help to show the humans behind the brand.
Answer questions and provide travel tips
Expedia uses TikTok to give holidaymakers travel tips, like how to get perks when travelling.
TUI’s TikToks show potential customers what a TUI holiday actually looks like, while On The Beach produced a series of videos called “ask the CEO”, which answered questions about the recent flight cancellation issues.
From visual inspiration to practical help for holidaymakers, TikTok really is the perfect platform for travel brands to connect with travellers.