21 Travel Social Networks for Avid Travelers

Travelers have the ability to connect with other travelers through a wide variety of social media and social networking websites. While major social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter get most of the attention from the media, the travel industry includes sites that can be incredibly helpful and fun for those who want to connect with like-minded people.

Whether you want to share your photos and stories, meet up with someone while you’re traveling, connect with your friends, make new friends, or find reviews from other travelers, the travel social networks and tourism apps mentioned here will prove to be highly useful.

Tripadvisor

TripAdvisor exists to help travelers book the perfect trip or vacation by providing reviews from other travelers. You can search for hotel reviews, restaurant reviews, and you can compare and find deals on all kinds of travel.

It’s one of the best and most reliable resources for researching businesses and locations. You can read honest and unbiased reviews from other travels, view their photos, get suggestions, and more. And of course, you can also participate by leaving reviews and helping others with their trip research and travel planning.

Matador

Matador is an online community of travelers, photographers, and adventurers. At Matador you can share your own experiences, get tips and meet other travelers with similar interests. There is a wealth of information on this social media site, including guides to destinations, a podcast, and more.

Trippy

Trippy is an incredibly useful road trip planner that allows you to tap into the knowledge and insight of others in the community. Ask questions, get answers, and find the best places to stop on your own road trip vacation.

To use Trippy, you’ll simply enter your starting point and your travel destination, and it will quickly provide you with a suggested itinerary. It will provide you with all the suggested stops along the way, with suggestions from other users. Thanks to Trippy, you’ll never miss interesting places without knowing about them. It’s easily one of the best social media resources for planning a road trip.

Off Exploring

Off Exploring allows you to create your own free travel blog to share photos and content from your journey or vacation. Of course, you can share your blog with friends and family so they stay updated with your travel, or simply connect with others using the social platform.

Showaround

If you like to experience travel destinations like a local rather than a tourist, you’ll love Showaround. It’s a travel social network that allows you to connect with tours by locals. You can get a more genuine and authentic experience anywhere in the world, thanks to the help of someone who lives there. No need for a travel agent!

Some tours are free and others come with a cost. You can read reviews from other travelers and learn all the details before deciding on a tour.

Of course, you can also offer tours to people who are visiting your hometown on vacation.

GAFFL

GAFFL (Get a Friend for Life) is a travel brand and one of the best social media networks for connecting with people in cities around the world. You can select a destination you’re traveling to, find other users who are planning trips to that location and connect. You can meet up at the destination or plan your trip and travel together to save on costs.

Backpackr

Backpackr is a mobile social network for connecting with others who are part of this backpacking community. Add your trip details, meet up with other users who are in the same area, and find details about the places you’re visiting. As a traveler, you can also find special deals and discounts at pubs, hostels, and more. They also list free events so you can have fun without spending money.

Steller

Steller is a social media mobile app for telling your travel stories. It includes some features that are similar to Instagram, but it’s specifically designed for travelers. You can find cool places and things to do, curate your own adventures, and connect with other travelers. Overall, Steller is one of the most popular travel apps and definitely worth checking out.

CouchSurfing

CouchSurfing is a worldwide network for making connections between travelers and the local communities they visit. You can create an account and find hosts in other locations where you will be traveling, or you can host other travelers.

Travellerspoint

Travellerspoint is an online community that provides blogs, photos, forums, and tourism and travel guides. You can create an account and share your own experiences with others, or browse through the information provided by other travelers.

FlyerTalk

FlyerTalk is a community for frequent flyers. There is a forum for communicating with other frequent flyers, and information on travel-related loyalty reward programs. You can also find news headlines, information on airports, and more.

BeWelcome

BeWelcome is a culture-crossing network that lets you share a place to sleep, meet up, and help others on their way. As a social network, BeWelcome focuses specifically on accommodations so you can find a place to stay or provide lodging for other users.

Withlocals

Withlocals is a great resource if you appreciate small, intimate tours rather than large group excursions or activities with a travel company. You can find tours and events led by individuals in their hometowns. Just enter the location you’ll be visiting and browse the tours and activities that are available.

If you’re interested in hosting tours in your local area, Withlocals can be a great way to make some extra money while showing visitors a great time.

Overall, Withlocals is an excellent resource within the travel industry.

TraveLibro

TravelLibro specializes in visual travel journeys. Enter your destination and see visual journeys from others. It’s great for finding travel inspiration and things to do. Of course, you can also create your own visual journeys to share with others.

Travello

Travello (Android, iOS) is a popular and highly-rated social media mobile app for connecting with fellow travelers. It features a Facebook-style feed so you can see what others are up to and find inspiration. You can also learn about places to visit and get exclusive discounts on things to do.

MeetUp

MeetUp is a platform for connecting with people. It’s not exclusively about travel, but it certainly offers plenty of potential for travelers. You can view planned meetups in any location to find things to do wherever you’re going. If you enjoy connecting with new people and trying new things, you’ll love MeetUp.

Foursquare

Foursquare (Android, iOS) is a popular location-based social media network. It serves as a city guide you can use to research any location you’ll be visiting. You can see what other people are doing, find places to eat and things to do, make travel plans, and keep track of where you’ve been.

Spotted By Locals

Spotted By Locals (Android, iOS) provides city guides with expert insight from locals. The platform currently offers guides for 80 cities with more to be added in the future. You can find the best things to do with detailed guides, all provided by locals who want to share their insight.

Travel Buddy

Travel Buddy (Android, iOS) is a social media network exclusively for travelers. You can connect with people wherever you’re going, connect with people in your local area and plan a trip, research destinations, and more. It also includes a Facebook-like feed your stories and photos, or to see what other users are sharing.

Instagram

Of course, Instagram is an incredibly popular mainstream social media network. While it’s not exclusively for travelers, it is a great resource for sharing photos, videos, and stories from your journeys. Since so many people are already on Instagram, it’s a great choice if you want to connect. You don’t need to be an influencer with millions of followers and lots of engagement to get a lot out of Instagram.

Pinterest

Pinterest is another mainstream social media platform that is ideal for travel. You can create your own boards for planning your trips, use Pinterest’s search engine to find things you might want to do, and pin the interesting ones from your board. Many people share photos and links to blog posts or articles from their journeys, so you can easily tap in to that collective wisdom by using Pinterest for planning your own trips.

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re planning a trip or vacation or looking to connect with other travelers, social media content can be incredibly helpful. The platforms and apps covered in this article are the best available options for connecting with like-minded people. Using the information you find from locals and travelers, you can avoid travel industry and tourism details like a travel agency and large group tours.