Over the past year, the global travel industry has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, with widespread travel restrictions and a decrease in consumer demand leading to a significant drop in tourism. This has also had a major impact on the world of travel blogging, with many bloggers finding it difficult to continue their travels and document their experiences for their followers.
Before the pandemic, travel blogging was a popular and lucrative activity for many people. Bloggers would travel to different destinations, document their experiences through writing, photography, and video, and share their content on social media and their own websites. Some bloggers even turned their passion for travel into a full-time career, working with travel brands and creating sponsored content.
However, with the onset of the pandemic and the resulting travel restrictions, many bloggers found themselves unable to continue their travels as they had before. Many were forced to cancel their plans...
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The Taylor Swift effect has demonstrated how powerful music can be for the travel industry, but can music also influence travelers without physical concerts? Before diving into this discussion, I’d also like to highlight the growing impact of social media in defining trending travel destinations. These two factors combined—music and social media—made me wonder if Bad Bunny’s new album will drive travelers to Latin American countries.
I’ve decided to learn more about TikTok, as it’s the most used social platform by Gen Z and the perfect place to understand their preferences. I’ve noticed an increasing number of travel inspiration videos featuring Puerto Rico, with music from Bad Bunny’s latest album, captioned with sentiments like, “So glad I was able to embrace the essence of this album at X place.” I also observed something else: the album was launched in January, during winter in the Northern Hemisphere, yet those based in there still joined and it sparked trends like “I wish I was in this place right now.”
Curious, I checked the term “travel Puerto Rico” on Google Trends (trends.google.com/trends/explore?q=travel%20Puerto%20Rico&hl=en) and noticed a significant increase in searches following the album’s launch.
This strong connection to a culture can be fostered by music artists. We’ve seen this happen with South Korea, as K-pop conquered the world and attracted travelers to experience its culture. Could we see something similar with Latin America, driven by Bad Bunny’s influence?