When it comes to travel blogging, people often only see the positive side of it. I mean the chance to be a traveller, seeing the world first hand, capturing it with your very own camera and sharing it with the world is extraordinary. Not forgetting the memorable stays at some of the finest luxury hotels too. It is a good life to lead, but along with all the magical perks comes the down sides that are truly undeniable. Some of course are definitely first world problems, but are still a major struggle in the world of travel blogging. 😉
1. The struggle of hand luggage only trips
I can assure you this is my number one travel blogger problem. The amount of times i’ve attempted to fit my whole life into one hand luggage bag is unreal. I think many PR’s, bloggers and journalists know me as the boy who must have at least three pairs of shoes and a whole plastic bag airport bag (ugh, you know the dreaded plastic bag!) of products on a trip, even if it means my carry on is trying to burst open. I mean, this boy has needs.
2. The desire to want to travel constantly
I can never keep up with the ever ending list of where I want to go or revisit, like Tuscany. When i’m reading about other people’s trips or experience, if it appeals to me it goes on my list. Otherwise, I often find myself scrolling through Pinterest all day adding lots of new destination guides and photos of gorgeous hotels to my ‘Travel Inspo’ and ‘Bucket List Hotels’ boards. One day i’ll be fully content that I have travelled the world, one journey at a time.
3. The never ending backlog of emails
Emails were a method of communication that I actually hated growing up. I was always proffered getting instant responses using text messages or even calling. When I was at school, we had our own emails and often enough during our IT classes I had a million of messages from friends that I never wanted to respond to. So, naturally i’ve had to put a lot of focus on getting to grips with being an lover of email communication and staying on top of it too. Although, backlogs happen a little too often…
4. Making internet friends your real friends
Until this day, after the four years of blogging I was still afraid to admit that my internet friends had become my realest, closest and truest friends. Back in the day, I was given the talk by my parents that you should stay away from people who try to talk to you on the internet, and now I can say I met most of my closest friends there. Luckily, my parents are somewhat understanding of the whole blogging ‘thing’ now. I feel very lucky to have met a group of friends that share the same passions and values as me through our love of writing and travelling, it’s quite surreal.
5. The dire need for perfection
I didn’t realise the extent of my inner perfectionist until I became a blogger. Normally my perfectionist ways lies within photos and editing. I normally take at least 8 photos of the same subject, view or dish just because I notice the minute details that alter between each of them. It is just easy to satisfy myself with multiple shots than getting to edit photos and realising I don’t like the single shot I took.
6. The admittance of never being skinny
When you’re are travelling the need to try all the traditional and delicious food, which is normally quite indulgent. Like the lunch we had at ALMA in Lisbon. When i’m at home or preparing for an upcoming trip I always try and eat healthy as possible to allow myself to splurge on the calories a bit. However, another first world problem of being invited to review divine restaurants when i’m at home is real. I have come to terms with the fact that however much exercise I do or healthy eating I try to fit in, i’ll never have abs.
7. Asking the ‘budget’ question
The struggle of being a travel blogger is that most PR’s still feel the need to ask you to work for free, because a trip is being funded for you. I mean, it’s all well and good that we get a trip in return for the work we do, but we rarely get a chance to actually fully immerse ourselves in the moment and truly enjoy it. I’m normally taking photos, uploading things to social media or thinking of how i’m going to put each experience into words, just in my head. After all the content creating we do when we get back too, the need is to have some payment for doing it too. Sadly not all the travel PR’s and clients have caught on to this like the other blogging niches and sometimes it does prove to be a struggle. After all, ‘free’ trips are great but bills still need to be paid sadly.
8. The desire to be on social media always
I always enjoyed being in the company of my phone, replying to text messages and talking with friends on the phone for hours. However, I now find myself consumed in social media for hours on end. If i’m not scheduling my own content, i’m scrolling through, engaging in all the wanderlust and communicating with other bloggers over Twitter. Even when it comes to bed time, I literally have to pry my phone out of my hand and put it to one side, demanding I get some rest. It’s important to have good internet connection and Wi-Fi when travelling to do this.
9. Sober for October is a thing of the past
I can’t think of any blogger event, press day, review dinner or trip where alcohol isn’t forced into your hand. I mean, I could say no but I always find the hosts get offended if you don’t have a glass of bubbly in your hand. Also, I struggle to say no when i’m offered a glass of my favourite drink. I guess that just means I can’t do sober for October anymore, even if I tried.
10. It’s not always rainbows and sunshine
I think the real truth here is that blogging is hard and it isn’t necessarily always fun either. There are some weekends where you just want to go out with your friends or enjoy your evenings after work but often enough there is always something to do. I sometimes feel like the list never ends. It’s a good job I love what I do or I don’t think I would have lasted this long doing it. In a sense I act as a social media manager, brand manager, event organiser, socialite, copywriter, traveller, accountant, photographer and marketer all in one.
The reality behind it is that most of these undeniable truths are funny first world problems, but there are also some points here that are a true struggle that I face day to day as a travel blogger.
Until next time…
**PIN FOR LATER**