Does the Hodophile within you want to make money while traveling? Then here are 25 travel business ideas to get you started
For some, travel is the end-all. Exploring new roads, visiting offbeat locations, trying new recipes – travel, sooner or later, becomes part of the soul. If you like traversing through new paths, however crooked they may be, you may want to start another journey. That one which makes travel a more integrated part of your life. With some of the most profitable travel business ideas listed below, you will be spoilt for choice!
Starting a good travel business is never easy. It requires excitement, passion, strong will, and reliability. When you’re in it for the long haul, you want your customers or your audience to trust you and your services. It’s about creating an experience that resonates with people travelling from both close and far. And it’s also about having fun doing the thing you love!
So, if you’re unsure of where to begin or the amount of capital to invest – fear not! In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at two different types of travel and tourism-related business structures: Offline and Online. Within each, you will be able to find up to 25 travel business ideas that might make you want to go down this path. Keep an open mind, you never know when an opportunity might strike.
Offline Travel Business Ideas
If you’re a traveller who believes in putting down roots, you should look out for offline travel business options. This way, you’ll be able to create the same travel experiences you’ve had the world over, but in a place that you call home. Here are a few ideas to think about:
Share Some Culinary Tales
Do you like to cook? If you can whip up any recipe and marvel your guests, there’s no better option than entering the travel business with food in hand. These days culinary tourism is on the rise. People travel to expose themselves to the local culture – they want to sample flavours authentic to the region. If you have a space where you can host a few people and teach them to prepare local dishes, this is a travel business idea for you!
Several online companies like Booking.com, Viator, and Airbnb let people list experiences that they can offer. If you’re dwelling on entering the travel and tourism business, you may want to consider this option. As long as you’re hosting from home, the business remains low investment. All you need is time and a few secret ingredients.
Open a Bike or Car Rental Service
A bike or car rental service is a simple, yet profitable travel business idea. If you have a spare motorbike or car, you can think about opening a rental service. Travellers often look for private transport that they can rent for a few hours or days. If you get your neighbours, friends, or relatives on board, you can even establish a full-fledged business.
However, before you get started, you should do some market research. Look for offline and online places where you can list your vehicle for rent. You may also want to screen people to avoid violations and get a good insurance policy.
Rent Out a Canoe or Kayak
If you live by the water, you can start a kayak and canoe rental space. Many travellers like getting into the water and kayaking is a great way to do just that! Opening a rental space for these items will bring you in contact with people who like to indulge in these sports by themselves – all they need is a rental shop. On the other hand, with a shop like this that requires a good investment, renting canoes to tour groups will fetch you a nice profit.
Rent Out Your House
If you’re looking for a low investment, low involvement travel business idea, you can think about renting out your house. Travellers often look for unique places to stay when they’re travelling. So if you have a house with a soul and you want to share it with other like-minded people, renting out is a good way to go.
Airbnb business lets travellers book places that give a home-like appeal. You can list your property on their website and set your price. If you have a spare room in a tourist location, you can rent it out as well. Going away to travel for a month, rent out your entire home and make money for your next vacation.
Open a Coffee House
Starting a business in the travel and tourism business can be a bit tricky. However, if you have the investment and the will to run a cafe, you should open one! Travellers often look for offbeat places to have a bite and unwind. Offering free WiFi with delicious coffee can take you a long way!
Do keep in mind that this is a travel business idea that will require some heavy investment – you will have to rent or buy a place in a location that draws tourists. You will also have to spend money on interiors and setting up a food counter. Once that’s done, you’ll have a travel space to meet other travellers, indulge in long conversations and call the hangout your own.
Invest in a Campground
Have you spent a few (or more) nights looking out at the stars, just outside your camp? Imagine selling the experience to travellers and indulging yourself too! If you’re a fan of the outdoors, starting a campground business should be a no-brainer. All you need is a good camping location and the money and willingness to convert it into a good shelter by providing basic electricity, plumbing, food, and other supplies.
Start a Budget-Friendly Homestay
Embrace Ecotourism
Ecotourism, sustainable travel, green tourism and mindful exploration are just a few terms you may have heard until now. However, this is a travel business idea that is waiting to explode. Travellers are now more conscious about the environment than ever. They wish to explore the area in a low-impact way and learn more about the wildlife and local culture.
If you wish to make a positive change in the travel and tourism industry, one way to do it is to make ecotourism a reality. Generally, when you start such a business, your aim should be to provide travellers with the means to explore in a low-impact way. You should also provide them with the tools needed to help bring about a positive change. A walk with tree planting experience, nature cleaning drives, and teaching sustainable crafts are a few experiences you can offer as part of ecotourism.
Establish a Beach Hotel
Have the money, the means, and the location – start a beach hotel business! It’s considered one of the most popular and profitable travel business ideas and rightly so! Resorts on the beach are some of the most fun places to call home, even if for a few days. Travellers are often willing to shell out extra money for the experience alone.
However, before you think about starting a beach hotel, you should take into account the capital that you intend to invest. Generally, resorts offer rooms, conference halls, restaurants, and additional services like concierge, room service, laundry, etc. While it’s a cash-heavy investment, the long-term return is quite lucrative.
Open Up a Boutique Hotel
If you don’t live by the beach but want to offer a similar experience to travellers, opening up a boutique hotel is the way to go. They’re often small in size but offer various unique experiences. You can provide a luxurious room with additional indulgences like yoga, spa, cooking classes, nature walks, or more. You can even get creative and open up a small space for a niche travel audience.
Become a Translator
Start a Travel Agency
Opening up a home-based travel agency is difficult, but not impossible. Many franchises help people start up their travel agencies. In case you want to go that route, you will be able to invest in a well-known brand and get a chance to help travellers plan their holidays and vacations around the world. In case you wish to go your way, you will have to learn more about starting your travel agency and all the nuances that come with it.
Online Travel Business Ideas
While most offline travel business ideas require some thought and investment, starting an online business is simpler. If you wish to enter the travel and tourism industry without the risk of heavy investments and administrative workload, you can check out the following options. They’re easy to execute, a lot less expensive, and give you more freedom to travel.
Create a Hotel Booking Site
When you decide to enter the travel business, there are several options. Creating a hotel booking site lets you get into the space with minimal investment. Many companies provide services to set up an online hotel booking platform. The only catch is that you will have to do a lot of industry research and understand terms like hotel acquisition and channel management, but all in all, it’s a great idea to explore more.
Take Travellers on a Pilgrimage
Pilgrimage travel is a niche that often goes unnoticed. However, if you’re interested in starting a travel business, this could be a profitable opportunity. Catering to a niche audience, this option allows you to create group and private tours to different spiritual locations. It also lets you help other travellers experience local culture like never before.
Offer Ayurvedic Indulgence
Similar to pilgrimage travel, Ayurveda tourism is quite popular. In fact, travellers from around the world look for a way to learn more about Vedic literature and Ayurveda. Before you get started, you should know that you will be catering to an audience looking for a holistic experience. Therefore, you require a space where therapy is possible. You will also have to learn more about the medicinal value of herbs and oils and get a licence.
Start an Adventure Travel Company
If you’re an adventure enthusiast, it’s time to share the love! One of the best travel business ideas for 2022 is to start an adventure sports company. It’s a type of niche that caters to youngsters looking to explore the depths of nature like never before. Since this is a huge industry, you can simply find an adventure sport that you love and monetize it. You can sell tours on websites like Viator and Tripadvisor or set up a shop offline.
Take People on Hikes
While this is an option that also falls under the adventure sports category, it’s often on the low-impact scale. If you like going on nature walks and exploring the region on your own, you can think about taking others along. Going on hikes requires almost zero investment – all you need to do is market yourself well on online websites or local hotels and you’ll be able to connect with travellers waiting to go on offbeat hikes.
Become a Travel Event Planner
Event planners have a fun job! They plan professional events, meetings, and conferences. Doing this means booking everything – from location to accommodation to catering. If you have the skills needed to network, you can travel around the world as a travel event planner.
Get a Tour Guide Licence
Love to travel, explore, talk, and dine? Then this option is made for you! A tour guide has the chance to meet people from all over the world every single day. Tours, however, are available easily and in abundance. The way to stand out is to offer something that sets you apart from the competition. While this is an age-old travel business idea, it can be profitable if you’re creative. Know a hangout spot? Start an offbeat tour. Like indulging in local treats? Organise a food-lovers tour.
Start Giving Bicycle Tours
In case you prefer riding a bicycle much more than walking around, giving out bike tours is the way to go. Bicycle tours are quite popular as they allow you to cover more distance while allowing you to explore in a small group. If you have some capital, you can invest it in buying cycles and then market yourself online.
Launch a Travel Magazine
Starting a travel magazine is a very complicated business. However, it offers prestige and a long-term return on investment. To get started, you will need to plan through and through, create a niche, understand the demand and supply chain and ready your investment. Once that’s done, it’s about finding the right stories, experiences, writers, and editors to create a travel magazine that offers information that you wish to provide to travellers around the globe.
Become a Travel Influencer
Although this is easier said than done, it’s still one of the most profitable travel business ideas out there. To get started on this journey, you will need to work hard on creating online content that entices users. If you choose ‘travel’ as your niche, you will be able to post pictures of your explorations. As your followers increase, you will be able to connect with hotel chains and restaurants to create sponsored posts for them. Doing this will give you a chance to travel and make money, all in one go!
Try Photography
Photographers who can capture the essence of a destination, often make a lot of money! Not only this, photography is an exciting experience that can take you places and make you meet people from all professions. However, to get started, you need the skills to capture the best shots. You should also know how to enter the marketplace and learn more about combining travelling with photography.
Write as a Travel Blogger
If you know how to play with words and are good with words, becoming a travel blogger will be just right up your alley. A travel blog provides other travellers with information about different cities, guides, and recommendations. It can be tough and time-consuming.
However, once your blog takes off, you will be able to connect with companies looking to get reviewed! You’ll be able to travel far and wide and get a chance to pen down authentic experiences. A bonus is that a travel blogger can work from anywhere!
Try Vlogging Instead
If writing is not your cup of tea, try vlogging instead. As a popular travel business idea, vlogging allows you to record your experience as only you can! Websites like YouTube and Instagram offer users a simple space to broadcast videos. All you have to do is create quality content, edit videos to perfection, and share it with the world. The more audience you amass, the better your chances of making it big!
Now that you know more about the 25 most profitable travel business ideas, it’s time to start hustling! Do you want to explore an option that is a low investment or one that offers high ROI in a matter of years? It’s all about where you are and where you want to go! Regardless of the route you take, you may want to get started with a travel website and see the response you get. Pathfndr offers an AI-optimised platform that caters to different travel businesses. Care to have a look?
Frequently Asked Questions
- How to start a travel business?
Starting a travel business requires some capital, permits, and licences. Most of the time, it depends on the type of business you wish to operate. In case you opt for an online business, you will be able to start without any initial investment.
- What is the best business for tourism?
Some of the best travel business ideas include car/bike rental, house rental, holiday photography, cooking classes, and more.
- How do I get paid to travel?
Travel influencers often get paid to travel. If you wish to enter the space, you will need to create a strong online presence with thousands of followers. You will also have to connect with hotels and restaurants to get sponsorships.