THE LATEST TOP TRAVEL KEY OPINION LEADER RANKINGS IN 2024
TRAVEL GUIDES WITH REELS, A NEW WAY TO DISCOVER TOURIST ATTRACTIONS ABROAD
After three years of lockdown, the number of Taiwanese traveling abroad has hit new highs since the end of 2022, with neighboring Japan as their top favorite destination. Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs), with flexible working hours compared to the 9-5, started the “revenge travel” boom after the pandemic. Many travel KOLs spend time discovering the local culture worldwide, and share their joyful experiences with followers. With the exclusive AIE (Asia Influencer Evaluation) database, AsiaKOL dives into the topics surrounding “traveling abroad”, brings about the list of KOLs with excellent interactive performance and content, and reveals the top rankings of travel KOLs in 2024. Our insight allows brands to find suitable marketing solutions from KOL candidates, content formats, hot search keywords, and angles for the combinations of products and content.
1. Top Taiwanese Travel KOL Rankings In 2024: Mega-KOLs Join The Race of Travel Category
After the lockdown reopened, many KOLs have branched out from their original main categories into the travel field. The Top 3 Taiwanese travel KOLs in 2024 include Chialing_maze, Molly Chiang, and HOOK, with over a million followers. In AsiaKOL’s AIE evaluation database, the top 3 KOLs above obtain relatively high scores in influences, interactive participation, and content association, proving their critical investment in content, and their voices in the field.
* For the complete rankings of travel KOLs in 2024, scroll to the end.
2. No Longer "Being Locked" By The Pandemic, The Topic Of Traveling Abroad Is Rising Steadily
Since the ease of the pandemic at the end of 2022, people who haven’t been traveling abroad for many years were tempted to “fly out”. As a result, the number of topic searches for “traveling abroad” has gradually increased. In particular, the tourism promotion of foreign governments to revive the economy and the preferential exchange rate have been the major traveling stimulations for Taiwanese people. At that time, travel KOLs led the trend to fly out of the country. They shared much content on traveling abroad in various media forms. They inspired wanderlust in the followers and consumers through the vacation atmosphere and valuable experiences, stimulating them to search for “traveling abroad” related topics.
3. The Taiwanese Love Japan, Making It Become The Favorite Country Of Travel KOLs
Regarding travel destinations, Japan has become the top choice for the Taiwanese. The exchange rate has been optimal in recent years, and Japan’s scenery, clothing, culture, and food have also been loved. In addition, due to the close distance and relatively low air ticket prices, many Taiwanese put Japan as their first travel choice after the pandemic. This phenomenon can also be found in the content of travel KOLs. The top destination shared by these KOLs was Japan, followed by several countries close to Taiwan, including Korea, Thailand, and Hong Kong.
4. Favorite Travel-related Keywords Shared By KOLs: Internet, Credit Cards, And Luggage
Many people may have forgotten the precautions and strategies after not traveling abroad for a long time. The posts and videos of travel KOLs have gathered a lot of travel information for followers to review before traveling. Among the popular keywords from January to March 2024, traveling abroad during the New Year holiday and cherry blossom season ranked high. To achieve an exciting and memorable journey, netizens often pay attention to information such as cuisine, accommodations, internet, air tickets, credit cards with high rewards for overseas purchases, useful luggage, transportation, equipment, etc. Relevant businesses can launch specialized marketing campaigns to increase the visibility of related products through KOL’s recommendations.
5. It’s All About The Experiences: Followers Love To Watch Short-form Video Content
Many travel KOLs run Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, while the content format and settings of the 3 platforms are different. Facebook features long text and photos, Instagram attracts netizens with its short-form video Reels, while YouTube focuses on the overall viewing experience. It’s necessary for brands to master the platform format and orientation to enhance exposure.
(1) Traveling Abroad Topic Among KOLs: Top 20 Hottest Posts On Facebook
The top 3 posts about traveling abroad on Facebook belong to Steven&Sia and 2uncle987. Their Facebook normally features long text, sharing their actual feeling and cultural experiences while traveling, allowing followers to have the feeling of participating in the small and big things during the journey. Among them, 2uncle987’s posts are particularly popular. Their posts about traveling in Southeast Asia accounted for many of the top 20 topics, and their posts about family traveling also received positive responses from followers.
KOLs often choose to travel independently. Independent travel has a more flexible schedule and makes it easier to encounter unexpected experiences. Followers can find it entertaining to read the humorous posts of the KOLs. Moreover, the travel experiences shared in the community are not only close to the situations in actual life, but also help followers to avoid making the same mistakes when traveling abroad.
(2) Traveling Abroad Topic Among KOLs: Top 20 Hottest Reels On Instagram
Reels have become the hottest format when KOLs share traveling content on Instagram. The modern form of video, with its ability to give people a strong sense of immersion, introduces travel destinations and cuisines with various background music or voiceovers in an atmospheric vibe. Moreover, Reels can encourage followers to tag their friends as a way to increase interaction. Among the traveling abroad topics mentioned by KOLs this year, the top 20 hottest Instagram topics mostly belong to Reels content with obviously high interaction, and many Reels even have more than a million views. In this case, to make a splash on Instagram, especially in the traveling content, brands must first invest in the short-form video market.
The top 3 Reels on Instagram belong to Ygt1016 and Bnbnlovefood, in which Ygt1016 ranks first and third. The opening of Instagram Reels of travel KOLs must be strong enough to catch people’s eyes, adding a clear destination name, or starting the video with cute animals to attract people to watch the whole video. For example, in the top 1 Reel video with the highest interaction rate, Ygt1016 used popular animation materials to recreate comic attractions, increasing followers’ desire to discover the content.
(3) Traveling Abroad Topic Among KOLs: Top 20 Hottest Videos On YouTube
Among the hottest YouTube videos of travel KOLs, Chialing_maze obtains the first 3. Her videos even occupy 6 out of 10 top videos on the list. Chialing_maze with her strong personal style, attracts a large number of views and interactions through special topics, such as the Japanese bubble bath experience and the Shibuya 109 Hot Girl Makeup.
The public is usually curious about unknown things when traveling abroad. The bold and avant-garde Chialing_maze would experience activities that people normally won’t try when traveling, such as Japanese bubble bath with besties or Shibuya 109 Hot Girl Makeup with besties. The hot travel KOL seizes the top 3 traveling theme videos on YouTube, bringing followers with innovative traveling itineraries. She really knows how to make netizens love her videos and expect to watch more upcoming travel experiences!
6. AKTOUR – The Internet Celebrity Tour And KOLs’ In-dept Experience, A New Way To Promote Thematic Traveling Itinerary
In general, people would “do research” before traveling. Besides reading introductions on travel websites, travel abroad strategies shared by KOLs have also become one of the most popular channels for people to prepare for their trip. The personal experiences of the KOLs can help us avoid making mistakes, and popular travel keywords shared by KOLs often reflect followers’ concerns about travel. Relevant brands can pay more attention to these movements and seize marketing opportunities.
The global tourism trend is back. In addition to Taiwanese people rushing to travel abroad, the number of foreign tourists visiting Taiwan has also picked up. Tourists will also refer to the content shared by the country's travel KOLs. To help brands capture tourism opportunities, The Internet Celebrity Tour Services AKTOUR recently launched the “Cross-border Hong Kong Internet Celebrity Travel Tour”. In this campaign, the Hong Kong KOLs can enjoy their journey and promote the brands at the same time. It’s also a chance for them to share the must-eat, must-buy, and must-have when visiting Taiwan with Hong Kong fans. Besides the customized travel itineraries, there are also themed experiences to make the tour more interesting and topical, making brands the first choice for foreign tourists visiting Taiwan.
In addition to specializing in travel experts, theme travel also involves famous KOLs from other fields. The food, attractions, or special experiences they share often ferment to become hot topics on the Internet. Food, clothing, accommodations, and transportation when traveling abroad are all great aspects of brand promotion. Moreover, brands can also strengthen marketing influences and enhance brand awareness not just in Taiwan, but also all around the world, only through our AKTOUR campaign.
