Our greatest advantage to a PR company’s clients is that we’re travel writers with our own, ready-made niche outlets. Unless the place or experience in question is unspeakably dull, as bloggers we can always find an angle that allows us to share it with our readers in a personal, informative way.

We shouldn’t be afraid to ask for time to ourselves on a press trip, and use that time to go exploring on our own. In my experience, as long as you’re willing to form your own agenda, press trip itineraries can be set aside for a few hours or even days, hotel stays can be extended, and flights can be postponed. I fully agree that the more hands-on information we can gather about a place, the more useful the context for a travel-based business.

The post-press trip questionnaire is quite possibly our most useful tool of change. You can be an advocate for travel bloggers in general by respectfully reviewing your press trip the same way you would a trip booked on your own dime. For instance, if access to a unique experience or simply more free time would be an ideal addition to the next trip, speak up.

PR reps are, potentially, our greatest champions in the commercial tourist industry — let’s let them know what we need to do our best work.

Excellent post! I’m writing a similar post right this minute detailing the exposure generated by my recent sponsored trip to Birmingham. Tourism offices, airlines and tour operators are starting to see the value of inviting travel bloggers but their numbers are still very small. I see it as my mission to educate them via Velvet Connect and Velvet Escape! I sometimes think that the problem lies with the PR agencies that represent them. Most of them still lean heavily on traditional media such as magazines and newspapers. You quite rightly point out that readership numbers for these ‘old world’ media channels are dwindling but somehow, many companies find it hard to make the switch and embrace the endless opportunities provided by ‘new world’ media.

Very interesting discussion and I’m really happy you wrote about it. I see many possibilities for these tourism offices/companies to collaborate with travel bloggers. Let’s hope they see the ‘light’ soon!

@Lauren It’s encouraging to read your comments about the increased appetite for deeper content. Anything that compels writers to actually go to the places they write about has to be a good thing. Just like business owners are constantly trying to find the balance between content and SEO on their website, bloggers need to ensure that the race for rankings doesn’t get in the way of writing about the things they want to cover. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

We’re seeing more people – and advertisers – interested in deeper content development. Posts about places are a lot harder to write than “The world’s 10 best shipwreck dives.” I can write top 10 posts and product reviews without leaving home, but writing a compelling, useful post about a place requires that you have been there.

Lucky for me that leaving home is the whole point.

Part of the reason that I started my new Algarve Experiences blog site is that I was tired of reading all the hyper glitzy marketing materials that don’t really tell you the full scoop. I figured if it felt like a hole in my experiences of the Algarve, a place I adore and spend much time in, there must be others who have a similar need. As lovely as all the major tourist spots are, I am one of those people who likes to find my own stuff, to get off-the-beaten-track and see what 90% of the rest of the world misses. I also adore getting to know local folks and finding out how they interact with their world.

Keep up the good work. And thanks for getting me thinking!