Traverse 2014: it’s all about travel bloggers

Pic: Macca Sherifi

By Steve Keenan

More than 165 travel bloggers gathered in Newcastle/Gateshead at the weekend in the year’s first UK gathering, allowing observers (including me) to test the waters of the blogging world.

I was among 12 speakers, in my case there to talk on ‘Keeping it Legal,’ covering the new Defamation Act and photo copyright, among other related subjects. That’s me on the right, with Kash Bhattacharya (see notes on my presentation on Slideshare).

But I was also able to talk to bloggers in a Pro-Bar, 10-minute chats with individuals, while having 36 hours in the north’s party capital to socialise and chat. It was, as all conferences are, a useful exercise to catch up on what’s what.

My main impression was how many new travel bloggers are still coming into the market. While organisers Traverse Events could not provide details, it appeared one-third were newbies.

They included snowboard coach Ocean Belcher, a Kiwi trying to break into the European ski market; Teresa, who has set up Independent Travel Help for woman travellers aged 35+ and student Amy Woodyatt, who is still working out her niche.

The next third were the emerging bloggers, like Backpacker Becki, who is - as she moves on - trying to find a new name for her blog, and Ed Rex, who is balancing blogging and his deaf traveller ambassadorial role with a new job at lowcostholidays.com.

And there were the professionals, like Kash, who is launching a festival blogging project in 2014 and - this week - Twitter chats with Lonely Planet. And Keith Jenkins, one half of iAmbassadors, who is running the first Social Travel Summit in 2014 (in Germany) as well as a myriad of blog trip projects.

Travel blogging is evolving and thriving and Traverse reflects that ethos, “of doing events that are beneficial to, and don’t take advantage of, bloggers.” There are a number of collaborative blogging projects under way (it was pleasing to see 15 Dutch travel bloggers, part of a new consortium which represents 160+ bloggers in The Netherlands). And the industry - there were nine main sponsors of Traverse - is very much onboard.

Traverse will be staging a second, festival-type conference - Blogstock - in Hertfordshire on August 8-9, which will include other blogger disciplines such as fashion and lifestyle. Travel blogging is also reaching out to other subjects.

Good for them. The early days of travel blogging, just five years ago, now look cutely naive. Onwards and upwards - there’s a long way to go with this game.

More coverage from the event:
> You can read the Twitter feed for #traverse14 here
> The Traverse 14 story on Storify from Newcastle/Gateshead
> Blog from Jen Lowthrop, She Gets Around - Tips and Teachings from Traverse 14

Steve Keenan is co-founder of the social media and digital consultancy Travel Perspective, which helps travel and tourism clients devise winning marketing strategies for the future.