Travel Hashtags for Instagram. The Ultimate Guide

Using the right travel hashtags on Instagram is essential for any travel blogger. It’s a balance between:

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• Capturing trends
• Staying unique & creative
• Getting your content seen

This Travel Hashtags Guide explores how hashtags can be used to your advantage. It also covers tips to avoid making Instagram mistakes.

What are hashtags?

Hashtags are a quick-hand form of digital categorising.

They started in 2007 on Twitter with #SanDiegoFire. It was used as a way to track updates related specifically to the fire in San Diego, at the time.

By using the pound sign (#) with a word or phrase, the platform that you are on immediately recognises this as a category. It can then combine your entry with other content of the same category.

Using multiple hashtags on the same piece of content, spreads your content across a variety of search-term categories.

So why categorise content?

It all comes down to usability.

We often think of social media platforms as places to offload our content. But in reality they are search engines. Like google. With a vast network of categorised data. People use social media to search for ideas, specific places, clothes, music, food, etc.

Why social media hashtags work

Social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter give users power. The power to both add or take something useful.

The “social” element creates a sense of trust through a network of peers. If someone your own age is using or recommending something, you’re more likely to appreciate its value than if the same item was used by someone complete out of your social context.

Why do so many people use hashtags on Instagram?

Instagram is a sharing platform. By dividing your photo/content across a wider range of categories, you’re more likely going to have someone else see it.

While there are various ways to use social media. Travel bloggers use travel hashtags to get seen. The more people that see your content, the more people will likely engage. More engagement means more traffic, which leads to interest from potential collaborative partners.

Instagram Travel Hashtags

In the world of online travel content, Instagram is a focal point for users and brands. Even Lonely Planet suggests using travel hashtags for better reach.

The power to share inspiring locations makes it a perfect platform for global reach.

Whether you are actually traveling around the world or portraying the idea that you are always on the move, there are some key travel hashtag do’s and don’ts.

Travel Hashtags Do’s & Don’ts

Here are the key things to do & avoid when using instagram:

Do’s

• Use a variety of travel related hashtags and mix them up daily
• Limit your hashtags to 20 per post
• Check the hashtag volumes before you use them (explained later)
• Use hashtags across a variety of ranking volumes
• Keep the hashtags relevant (Instagram’s algorithm is smart. It can tell if you are trying to use hashtags that are not related to you image)
• Add in some hashtags into your actual post (6 to 8)
• Put the rest as a comment, once you have posted

Don’ts

• Use the same hashtag on consecutive days
• Have all of the same hashtags copied from another account‘s post
• Make changes to your hashtags once you have posted

How to use Travel Hashtags

Because instagram is a search engine (like Google), there is a category ranking algorithm built in.

For example, if 100 people all do an instagram post at the same time and each person uses the same hashtag, how will they show up in the category? Who goes to the top and what order will they rank in?

The idea is to rank for travel hashtags

By ranking for popular hashtags, you will be towards the top of the “list” or order.

If you are using the platform to search. For example, you want to check a beach destination in The Caribbean to see what it looks like, or get travel inspiration. You search the hashtags “CaribbeanBeaches”.

The results will show you a lot of content related to The Caribbean beaches. There you can either view by “Recent” or “Top”.

• Recent – The posts in recent come up in chronological order
• Top – Posts that instagram have selected using their algorithm to show you.
  • Not everyone’s “Top” feed will look the same
  • It is therefore based on a few things
    • Popularity of posts
    • Relevance of post
    • Content of the user and users engagement
    • Your own preferences (based on your search history/likes, ect)

When you post your content you want to be shown towards the top of the “Top”, to get more views.

Some hashtags are more popular than others

When you search for tags you’ll notice the most popular travel tags by the number of posts they have. Or the number of times people have tagged that specific #. The more popular the tag, the harder it is to rank.

For example (At the time this guide was written):

• #Caribbeanbeach has 37.3K Posts (it has been tagged 37,300 times)
• #travel has 428 M Posts (used 428 Million times on posts)
• #underthepalmtree has 5K+ Posts (tagged 5,000+ times)

What does this mean?

If you want to be seen by more accounts, you want to use the hashtags that you will be able to rank for.

How many hashtags should you use

Instagram allows you to use up to 30 hashtags. But does that mean you should use all 30?

There are many differing opinions on this. Some people believe that it looks spammy for your account to use all 30 hashtags, and others believe that you should take every chance you can. Ultimately, do what is right for you, but make sure you have a targeted approach and a relevant selection of tags.

We use approximately 20 hashtags for readability.

@thedharmatrails

How do you rank for travel hashtags?

The best way to rank for travel hashtags is to consider:

• Hashtag Relevance
• Engagement Rate

Hashtag relevance

Instagram has now provided the feature to “follow” hashtags. So if you want to see beautiful photos of beaches, you can follow the hashtag #caribbeanbeach, and the photos associated with this tag will display in your feed.

However, Instagram has also provided a “Don’t show for this hashtag” option, which means if you see a photo of a skyscrapers in a city, you can flag to instagram that this photo is not relevant for the tag, and they will remove it from your feed.

So if you use hashtags that aren’t relevant to the associated photo, and numerous people hide it from their feeds, instagram may flag your account and reduce your reach for hashtags.

Engagement Rate

Do you have a similar engagement rate to the photos in the “top posts” of the hashtags you want to rank for? If you do, then you have a good chance of ranking for it.

If you are a relatively small instagram account (less the 15K followers), it’s good to focus on the smaller volume hashtags to get you going (that have less than 50,000 tags).

Find some hashtags that you think are appropriate for your photo (see below for ideas), go to the top posts for each of those hashtags, and look at the amount of likes/comments it receives, and whether you get a similar amount on your posts.

What Travel Hashtags to use?

The best way is to play the odds. You’ve got 20 hashtags to use. So, spread them across a range of hashtag volumes.

The better your post does on the smaller hashtags, the more likely it is to be shown on the larger ones.

It’s better to rank well on smaller volume tags than not show up at all on huge volume tags.

Based on the size of your account (how may followers and what kind of engagement you get), you should adapt the hashtags accordingly. If you are a smaller account it’s best to focus on ranking for the smaller hashtags first.

If you can rank for these, get seen and then create engagement to your post from accounts that do not follow you (have found you through the search tag) you will start doing well (as far as the algorithm is concerned).

The idea is to create real interest & engagement.

If you start fairly niche it is easier to get seen, by similar accounts.

Start Small & Work Upwards

Let’s go back to the #underthepalmtree example. It’s a low volume tag (5k). But if you really do have a good post about being at the beach with beautiful palm trees, use it. People looking for this inspiration will really engage with your post.

If you get good engagement with your post on these smaller tags, it will help you to rank for the bigger tags.

How to distribute your tags across search volume

The best way to get noticed on the big ranking travel hashtags is to do well on the smaller, then medium sized tags first (on the same post).

Therefore, you should distribute your 20 allowable tags across a variety of ranking hashtags.

It depends on the size of your account. If you have 20K followers or below. Your travel hashtag ranking distribution should look something like this:

• 10K Posts (or under) – Use 2 Hashtags
• 10K – 50K Posts (or under) – Use 6 Hashtags
• 50K – 250K Posts (or under) – Use 5 Hashtags
• 250K – 1M Posts (or under) – Use 4 Hashtags
• 1M – 5M (or under) – Use 1 Hashtag
• 5M – 10M – Use 1 Hashtag
• Above 10M – Use 1 Hashtag
• TOTAL = 20 Hashtags

If you have above 20K followers, have more in the higher tier. Ie, start from the 50K and up. Use the extra 7 tags spread towards the top.

Location vs Niche Travel Hashtags

Within every category there are multiple sub categories. These make it easier to search for niches.

Within travel there are several different categories. You account might span across a few. When you use your travel hashtags you will therefore want to target these different travel niches.

Within travel there are several popular subcategories, including:

• Eco Travel
• Travel Couples
• Travel Bloggers
• Solo Travel
• Adventure Travel
• Luxury Travel
• Female Travel
• LGBT Travel
• Budget Travel
• Family Travel

You could keep going with more and more sub categories and then blend these to create sub-sub categories.

The point is that you should be targeting your niche as much as possible.

Why target your niche?

• An Instagram user is trying to search for travel inspiration and they are interested in adventure travel, they will look for adventure related hashtags. If you get real engaging interaction from people that are actually interested in your niche it will help your post
• A brand is trying to target a specific type of audience they will search in their niche. For example an adventure gear company wants to find someone who has influence in the adventure travel space. They will search for adventure related tags.

What should the ratio be between location and travel related tags?

A good ratio is 50/50.

• 50% of your travel hashtags should be related to the location
  • The country
  • The specific region
  • A specific attraction or natural element in your post
  • Trending travel tag related to that destination for example “visitguatemala” or “therealguateamala” (if you are in Guatemala)
• 50% should be related to your travel niche (or if you spread across a few)
  • For example, you might be a solo travelling girl that likes adventure and the post is related to an outdoor activity.
    • Your tags should be related to:
      • Solo travel
      • Girls Travel
      • Adventure Travel
      • Outdoor/exploration

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A post shared by Eco Travel & Conscious Living (@thedharmatrails) on Jul 10, 2019 at 5:29am PDT

Should I Copy & Paste Instagram Hashtags?

You can have a series of travel hashtags that you use. But remember, do not use them on consecutive posts.

It’s best to have at least 5 different series of travel hashtags that you can use through the week. Use an app like Notes to save your general travel niches series and rotate them every 5 or more posts.

Then on each post use your location related posts (different ones for consecutive days).

Don’t plagiarise another account (copy their exact hashtags and use them on your own).

Instagram is still a form of art and self expression. By copying someone’s work (even the hashtags) you are making yourself susceptible to plagiarism.

Apart from the legal perspective. It’s just not cool. Be inspired, but use your own imagination.

If someone you follow does a post and uses some hashtags that get them good engagement, see if you can incorporate a few of these into your own series, however don’t straight up copy the whole 20.

Cheat Tags

Using trending locations on your post (when you are not there) has become a popular way to gain more engagement. There are certain locations that are trending more than others. Bali is one.

There seems to be more and more people trying to take advantage of these trending locations and use the popular Bali hashtags on their photo, even though their photo is in another part of the world.

Trying to get your post seen by more people is one thing. But getting better engagement is another.

It is pretty easy to tell if you are using false location tags on your post (you can see the hashtags). Remember that your posts and your instagram account is a reflection of who you are and what story you are trying to tell.

Creative Travel Hashtags

Get creative in your hashtag use. Follow trends and see what is working and what is not.

There is a lot of trial and error when using travel hashtags.

If your post is about a travel experience on a trekking tour and you come across a village who only eat vegan food. There are a couple of elements in there that you could combine.

• Outdoors
• Trekking
• Vegan
• Village

Try combining some key phrases to create

• #veganvillage
• #vegantrekking
• #adventurevegan

The options are limitless. Write down a few, search them in Instagram and check the volumes. Then use the above mentioned distribution patterns to add them into you post.

Travel Blogger Hashtags

Travel blogging is generally considered as, writing blog posts through a website.

If you are running a website in conjunction with your Instagram posts you can use Instagram as a tool to direct people to your blog.

If you have just travelled through the south of France and are posting Instagram photos about it (include some of your travel tips, and . Incorporate some of the blog information into you post. Encourage users to check out more on your blog and use the #travelblog #travelblogger tags.

The best way to drive Instagram traffic to your blog is:

• If your following is under 10K – add a URL link to your instagram profile. Ask people in your post to check out the “link in bio”
• Over 10K – add a weblink to your story, add a “swipe up” button

Best Travel Hashtags

What are the best travel hashtags?

The best travel hashtags to use will vary depending on your account, what niche you are in and what you are trying to achieve.

As mentioned above, it’s best to:

• Spread your instagram hashtags over a variety of different sized tags
• Split the locality tags with your travel niche at about 50/50
• Have a series of general hashtags that your rotate (don’t use the same tags on consecutive days)

When your engagement with smaller, niche tags do well, you are more likely to rank for the higher volume tags in their “Top” category. This will get you seen by a higher volume of accounts.

Popular Travel Hashtags

The following travel hashtags are considered popular hashtags which can be used (in your rotation of tags).

General Travel Hashtags

Solo Travel Hashtags

#solotravel #travelphotography #instatravel #solo #explore #vacation #instagood #solotraveler #traveler #traveller #tourist #solotraveller

Girls Travel Hashtags

#wearetravelgirls #journeyofgirls #travelinladies #travelgirlsclub #ladieslovetravel #girlsaborad #dametraveler #wetravelgirls #darlinescapes

Travel Couples

#travelcouple #happytogether #couplesthatravel #coupletravels #globecouples #travelwithus #youandmeforever #coupletravelgoals #coupletrip

There are so many subcategories that it makes it difficult to summarise all of the best travel hashtags for each.

A good way to start is to search for popular accounts in your travel niche, see what they are using, check the volumes and add a couple into your routine (if they are valid).

Hashtag Finder

There are several hashtag tools you can use to help put your travel hashtags together.

These tools can help you search and find hashtags for your niche and your can see your chances of ranking for them.

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A post shared by Eco Travel & Conscious Living (@thedharmatrails) on May 3, 2019 at 5:26am PDT

Best Instagram Hashtags

Whats the Best Instagram hashtag 2019?

Best is a relative term. These are the most popular hashtags. These have the highest volume of people using them.

But does that mean they are the best?

If you are trying to rank for Instagram hashtags, it’s best to distribute your hashtags, focusing on mid to low volume and then use a few high volume ones.

How do you know the most popular hashtags on instagram?

The most popular are the highest volume. But these are not necessarily the best to use. Because they are so high volume, they might get used multiple times per second.

That means that your post might show up on the tag feed for a second and then be pushed down. You don’t want all of your tags to be super high volume as the likelihood is they won’t get seen.

What is the best photography hashtag for Instagram?

Instagram is mostly about the photographs. It’s whole premise is based on quick, visual reference.

However, know what hashtags to use on your photos will really come down to the niche and steps mentioned above about disruption over tag volume.

Why don’t my Instagram posts show up in hashtags?

Throughout the post there has been mention of circulating your hashtags. Do not use the same hashtags on consecutive days.

Why?

You can be penalised. Copying the same tags, posting the same content day after day is likely the sign of a robot (or computer program).

As Instagram’s algorithms get smarter and smarter, more and more robot programs are being shut down. Accounts that use these programs or appear to be using these programs may be penalised.

If you are not showing up in the hashtags, it is likely you have been penalised.

What to do next?

It’s best to simply stay off the platform for a few days.

How do I find Instagram Influencers?

If you are looking for Instagram influencers or inspiration, the best way is to search using the category tags.

Want to find someone with an adventure travel page, simple search #adventuretravel in the search tags.

If accounts use their hashtags properly, finding the right account becomes easy.

Sustainable Travel

Want to join the sustainable travel movement? There’s so many amazing ways you can implement sustainability into your travels.

• Learn to shop zero waste
• Say no to plastic
• Or stay greener

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