Top Creators: Guest Interview with Tamlyn Ryan from South Africa

Hands-on mum by day, travel blogger and freelance writer by night, Tamlyn Ryan is a Cape Town travel blogger and hopeless wanderer, equipped with an endless passion for road trips, carefully planned holiday itineraries and, above all else, an innate love for the great outdoors and supporting local tourism.

This article is part of an interview series with Top Travel Massive Creators and is made possible with the support of Stay22. Thanks Tamlyn for taking the time to share your story!

How did you get started as a travel creator?

Growing up in South Africa, a country famed for its wilderness and natural beauty, means that a love of and respect for nature is almost in my blood.

Even as a teen, I would spend hours outdoors in nature, surrounded by birds, wild hares, tortoises and even snakes; it was my sanctuary.

My travel blog, Tamlyn Amber Wanderlust and Photography, started in uni as a class assignment. At the time, I was studying Journalism - but I always knew I wanted to become a travel writer. So, once I got going with my Wordpress blog, it seemed quite a natural concept to just take that easy writing platform and run with it.

My travel-loving lecturer encouraged me greatly and I decided I had nothing to lose by pursuing this passion, especially as I was merely documenting my travels around Cape Town as a student.

How would you describe your content and your audience?

I am fiercely passionate about supporting local businesses and tourism in South Africa. I focus primarily on restaurants, accommodation, travel experiences and wine farms.

My blog has always organically changed and matured with me. As a student, it was focused on budget-friendly or free experiences, most of which I trialled myself as a solo female traveller.

Then, once I entered into romantic relationships, my content shifted to more couple-focused content. Finally, as my friends started having children around me, I felt compelled to also include family-friendly travel. (Now that I am a new mum myself, it’s definitely easier to write about!)

I love to create a mix of solo, couple and family travel ideas and, at its core, my blog is about Cape Town, South Africa and beyond.

What platforms do you create on, and which has been most important to your growth?

Aside from my blog (tamlynamberwanderlust.com), I am active on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest and even LinkedIn. My best platform is TikTok but I most enjoy the community I have created over the years on Instagram.

In time, I might expand beyond these but I try focus on doing a few platforms well rather than putting myself on everything.

What has been the biggest challenge you have faced as a travel creator?

I feel being recognised as a travel creator is quite hard in South Africa. I look at places like the States or even the UK and it just seems like there are more opportunities for creators and bloggers to be seen. It’s improving though so I live in hope.

I started out with so many of my industry peers but I was young. So I had to focus on my studies and then work for a few vital years. It was hard to dedicate the time and resources to my blog.

Now, nearly a decade later, my blog is doing phenomenally well and I am so proud of all I have achieved with it.

But, although it gives me the most incredible opportunities to travel and meet amazing people, it still doesn’t pull in a salary per se. I hope in time that changes because I am throwing everything I have left at the end of a long day’s mothering into it.

What does your content creation process look like?

If it’s hosted/sponsored content, I usually correspond with the client or their media representative to confirm dates, content expectations and the like. Then, on the trip or outing itself, I focus heavily on talking to the right people, taking lots of photos and videos and gathering as much info as I can.

Once I begin my blogging process, I decipher my quick notes and do further online research - and everything just kind of flows. I write the copy, edit the photos and send the content for factual review before publishing. Once the client is happy, it gets shared to my blog and socials. (As for socials, well, it’s a love-hate relationship but I do my best.)

For my own content ideas, I generally just explore places that feel right or interest me. I have so many topic ideas and such little time but I focus on a few each year and that works well for me. I try be authentic and share my take on the places I visit. I want to inspire people to travel, even if it’s just out their door to their nearest cafe or restaurant.

How do you work with travel brands, tourism boards, and destinations?

I try hard to work with local tourism boards and destinations but they don’t always reach out to me as there are far bigger creators out there. So now I just focus on what lands in my lap.

That said, I have always been so lucky to have the most amazing support from our local wine brands and certain marketing teams.

A successful partnership is one where the destination or business shines through my content. The focus isn’t on my blog, how many likes or follows it gets or even how I grow my reach because of a project… For me, it really is about giving back and hopefully, the brand is happy with my work.

As for what brands get from working with me, I would say they get authentic, heartfelt copy, pretty photos and videos (they are far from perfect) and most of all, passion. Passion for what I’ve seen, done or experienced.

What are your top tips for being successful with affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing can be tricky and it’s something I am not always comfortable with.

For example, I might do hosted or gifted things but I don’t really like people paying me for their posts or ads on my site. If I do guest posts, usually it’s people I invite to feature on my blog and I’ve found that works best for me and, for now, I have chosen to remain ad-free.

One thing I can say about affiliate marketing, though, is always be respectful and professional about it. You are representing yourself, your brand and generally, someone else’s brand too… remember that.

Also, know your worth because not everyone will offer fair arrangements or kind deals. And, when starting out, please don’t expect handouts from every brand you like. You have to grind and work for the opportunities that come your way.

What advice would you give to someone starting out as a travel creator today?

The best advice I can give to anyone starting out as a travel creator is find your niche and stay true to it, regardless of the latest trends or what everyone around you is doing. If you can’t be the fanciest blogger with the best, most expensive equipment around, that’s fine. Because, if you can move people through your writing or content, then that is more than enough. Your readers and the people you work with will assure you of that!

Stay in your lane and know that your unique skills and approach is what people will admire most in time. If you try be like everyone else, you will either blend in with a thousand other creators or you will completely drown under the pressure of trying to be like a creator or influencer that isn’t you.

Who inspires you — in travel, in content creation, or beyond?

I have always been inspired by Getaway Magazine in South Africa. As a child, I would pore over the pages and my mind would take me on the most incredible journeys, right alongside their talented writers and photographers. During university, I actually qualified to intern with Getaway but it was a case of right place, wrong time and I couldn’t make it work alongside my second-year studies.

Through my blog’s Guest’s Corner posts, I have been fortunate to meet and interview so many inspiring international travel bloggers. They have taught me so much about travelling and gave me a chance to work with them at a time when I needed the content and kindness the most.

Locally, I am so inspired by my peers. We cheer each other on and predominantly ‘compete’ in a healthy way and I love that. So many of them have achieved the most incredible things and visited such beautiful places. It inspires me to keep pushing and also it feels like a win for one of us, is a win for all of us.

What does the Travel Massive community mean to you?

Being part of the Travel Massive community has shown me the importance of having a travel community, of advocating for what you believe in (like responsible travel or equal respect for all travellers and people) and continually growing and connecting with yourself and others.

I am so grateful to be part of Travel Massive and being included as a Top Creator for 2026, well, that is a definite highlight of my blogging career!

What’s next

This year, my blog has focused heavily on accommodation stays. I have a few more planned for the end of the year too.

Beyond that, I am continuing to explore my city and province, the Western Cape, even more intimately and writing about the small places or lesser known attractions. I want to shine a light on the smaller towns and communities that need the tourism or visits the most.

As for long-term goals, I definitely want to turn my blog into a sound source of income and keep growing it to the best of my ability, without ever compromising on quality or passion. I also hope to travel overseas - I have a few destinations I am still so yearning to visit! Hopefully in time, that will happen, then I can write about more international destinations too.