Can You Start a Travel Blog Before You Start Travelling? (Yes, Here’s How I Did It)
Think you have to be on the road to start a travel blog? You don’t. I launched mine months before our departure, with zero flights booked and plenty of doubts. This post walks through exactly how (and why) I started building a blog before our family’s long-term travel even began, and how you can do the same.
Why This Question Deserves a Real Answer
Most travel blogs start mid-adventure. Mine started in a spreadsheet, surrounded by laundry, screaming toddlers, and a half-eaten sandwich.
If you’ve ever asked yourself,
“Can I even start a travel blog if I haven’t left yet?”
you’re in the right place because I asked that too.
And the answer?
Yes — absolutely you can start a travel blog.
In fact, starting your blog before you travel might be the smartest move you make.
Before our family even booked our one-way tickets for a long-term adventure through South America, I built the foundation of TravelventureFour. Blog posts. SEO clusters. A digital product. Pinterest pins. Not from a mountaintop or beach cabana, but from our very ordinary, very landlocked living room.
In this post, I’ll break down:
Why you should start your blog before you travel
What kinds of content you can write right now
How to grow without destination photos
And how I’m building audience + income from the ground up
Spoiler: it’s not glamorous. But it is working.
This blog is fuelled by caffeine and chaos, if it helps, support our journey.
Yes, You Can But Here’s What You Should Focus On
It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking you need exotic photos, full-time nomad status, or a big Instagram following to launch a travel blog.
Not true.
In fact, not being on the road yet can be a massive strategic advantage. Why? Because:
You have time to learn the tools (SEO, Pinterest, email)
You’re going through what your future readers are going through
You can create the exact content you wish existed right now
Think about it:
“How are other families budgeting for a year abroad?”
“What gear is actually worth packing for toddlers?”
“How do you even get started worldschooling?”
If you’re asking those questions, so are thousands of others. And if you document the answers as you go? You don’t need to arrive anywhere to be useful. You’re valuable from day one.
Your prep is your content. Your research is someone else’s roadmap.
What to Blog About Before You Travel
Here’s the good news: the “we haven’t left yet” phase is full of blog-worthy content. You’re planning, stressing, Googling. That’s gold.
Here are 3 high-value content buckets you can tap into right now:
1. Planning & Prep Posts
These are posts that show how you’re getting from idea to departure.
Our 6-Month Travel Prep Timeline
How We’re Budgeting for a Year of Travel With Kids
What We’re Doing About School (Worldschooling, Unschooling, etc.)
Choosing Between RV, Backpack, or Base-Hopping
These posts build trust, are SEO-rich, and offer great internal linking potential later.
2. Gear & Tools
Affiliate-friendly and genuinely helpful especially if you test gear pre-departure.
The Travel Stroller We Picked (And Why)
Comparing Travel Backpacks: What Actually Fits Kid Gear
Our Notion Setup for Travel Planning
TalkBox.Mom Review (Why We’re Learning Spanish Together)
This is where product-based SEO shines and yes, you can rank for gear posts without leaving your driveway.
Here is my go to all-in-one travel affiliate platform I use.
3. Mindset & Lifestyle Shifts
Prep isn’t just logistics, it’s emotional. That’s where the storytelling comes in.
How We’re Downsizing With Kids (Without Losing Our Minds)
Preparing Our Kids for a Big Life Change
How We’re Talking About Screen Time and Travel
These posts build relatability, which builds loyalty.
And if you’re feeling self-doubt or chaos? Write it. It’s real, and it connects.
Product-Based SEO That Doesn’t Require a Destination
Here’s the myth: “I need travel photos to get traffic.”
Nope.
Some of the highest-earning travel blog content is gear-based and problem-solving focused not place-based. And it ranks on Google because it’s helpful, not glamorous.
What that means for you:
You can start monetising with affiliate links before you ever leave
You can write SEO-friendly posts around prep-phase gear
Product content that works great pre-departure:
Packing Cubes for Kids: What Works and What Doesn’t
Comparing International SIM Cards for Families
Best Travel Bags for Digital Nomad Families
Toddler Headphones for Long Flights (We Tested 3)
Write the post as you’re making the choice. Embed affiliate links. Optimise it once. Let it rank over time.
Create lead magnets and helpful products like our Family Travel Kickstart Kit
How to Grow With Pinterest & SEO, Without Location Photos
Another myth to bust: “I need amazing travel photos to grow on Pinterest.”
You don’t.
Pinterest loves checklists, tips, templates, and timelines, especially from planners, not just travelers.
Here’s what worked for me:
Using stock images + Canva templates for pin graphics
Focusing on prep-phase keywords like:
“How to start a travel blog before traveling”
“Long-term travel checklist family”
“Packing for slow travel with kids”
You can create 3–5 pins per post and schedule them with Tailwind, or loop them monthly. All without ever posting from a beach.
I used Tailwind non stop for 3 months and scheduled over 900 pins.
Pinterest = low-pressure platform with long content lifespan. Perfect for this phase.
Also click the above Tailwind link and you’ll get 50 free credits to use..
What I Did And Why It Worked
Here’s what I’ve built before our family even takes off:
✅ SEO blog posts focused on travel prep, gear, and budgeting
✅ Affiliate content clusters (KeywordsPeopleUse guide)
✅ A paid Family Travel Kickstart Kit with templates + packing planners
✅ Pinterest growth (without a single location photo)
✅ Outreach for backlinks and niche edits (landed one with Goats on the Road)
✅ Real traffic + subscriber growth — before the first passport stamp
And maybe most importantly: I’ve already got a system in place. So once we’re travelling, the content keeps flowing, the monetisation keeps growing, and I’m not starting from scratch on the road.
That’s a massive advantage.
Read: How We’re Monetising Our Family Travel Blog
Final Thoughts: Start Now, Not “Someday”
Can you start a travel blog before you start travelling?
Yes. And honestly, you should.
Because by the time you’re on the move, you’re juggling logistics, emotions, Wi-Fi, and snack emergencies. Building content while prepping gives you:
A head start on traffic
A foundation for income
A place to share your real journey from Day 1
You don’t need exotic photos to be valuable. You just need intentional content that helps people who are exactly where you are now.
👉 Want the exact tools, templates, and gear lists we used to build our travel life before takeoff?
Grab the Family Travel Kickstart Kit
It’s everything I wish I had earlier.
