Insider Tips: How to Get Paid to Travel the World in 2025!

There seems to be a strange upheaval in the travel narrative industry. in the one hand, there are a lot of videos in Instagram’s explore page that are aspiring viral and show how producers are compensated to travel. On the other hand, I frequently encounter or engage with travel “influencers” who have hundreds or even millions of followers and who continue to operate on barter partnerships, where they are housed but not compensated for their travels.

A buddy of mine who blogs about travel and I just talked about this, and we both felt bad that talented people with strong narrative skills are being taken advantage of. I thus made the decision to create this piece, revealing once more how I earn a living from traveling and how you might do the same in 2025.

How I fund my travel adventures

You are aware that I have never used a “daddy-fund” to pay for my travels if you read my blog or follow me on Instagram. I came from a middle-class family, took out a large loan to pay for my schooling, got a corporate position with the Singapore Tourism Board, and left two years later to pursue my ambition of seeing the globe. I had no clue how I was going to make it work, save for some savings.

I took on social media management responsibilities, worked part-time for a social organization, and worked as a freelance travel writer. I saved all of my earnings for my trip.

You are aware that I have never used a “daddy-fund” to pay for my travels if you read my blog or follow me on Instagram.My present revenue streams (also known as how I earn money while traveling) Brand partnerships: I collaborate with companies who are interested in travel and sustainability to promote their locations or projects on Instagram and this blog. Many companies are trapped on the Instagram bandwagon alone, while some still see the importance of long-tail blogging content. Their defeat!
Classes: I started teaching people how to earn money while traveling the world with a purpose in 2023 at The Shooting Star Academy. It is intended for influencers, bloggers, and content producers who want to use their wanderlust as a springboard for a fulfilling profession. My second-largest source of revenue these days is the course.

• Consulting: In 2022, I formalized my sustainable tourism consulting work, over at Climate Conscious Travel. While it felt quite fulfilling to influence sustainable practices within the industry, it was also a lot to manage with my writing work. Even with little marketing effort, it became my third largest source of income.
• Freelance travel writing, book royalties and speaking: After a long break from freelance travel writing, I began to enjoy the pitching-writing-editing-publishing process again, this time well aware that the effort is never commensurate with the pay, but the feeling of putting my work out there is worth it nonetheless! Same with speaking and book publishing. These contributed only a tiny bit to my total income though.

How long it took me to receive compensation for my travels
Every few years, the travel narrative landscape shifts. It was difficult to believe that anyone could make money from their social media accounts or travel blogs when I initially started in 2011. However, things swiftly changed as travel agencies and tourist boards realized the importance of organic content.

Almost two years after I began my site, I received my first paid travel blogging job in 2012 or 2013. That implies that in addition to having my trip costs (flights, lodging, and meals) paid for, I also received payment and had the audacity to hope for a career telling travel stories!

4. How you can stand out as a travel creator in 2025

I understand your thoughts. Ten years ago, the world was quite different. Thousands of people are attempting to become travel influencers or content creators—or pretend to be. In 2025, how can you make an impression? After observing, developing, and “cracking” this field for more than a decade, this is my best advice:

4.1 Create a compelling plan to differentiate yourself from the competition.
The majority of wannabe storytellers and trip makers make a basic error. They begin sharing content on social media without a clear plan. Doing that just makes you one of the herd, no different from the next person posting pretty photos and videos. Unless by a stroke of sheer luck, it’s impossible to distinguish yourself this way.