Per recent data collected by Adobe, over 2 in 5 Americans are using TikTok as a search engine, currently deeming it as the fourth-most popular search engine by digital natives. As a frequent traveler, I love to use TikTok as a tool that helps me do travel research in a way I can’t replicate from a standard Google search.
In recent TikTok algorithm updates, the company has placed a heavy emphasis on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and keyword usage, making it clear they want to compete with the big players as a search engine. Today’s travelers — myself included — are increasingly reliant on TikTok as a primary tool for travel research. Here’s how travelers are using TikTok to plan trips and build travel inspiration through short clips.
How I use TikTok when traveling
As a ‘visual learner,’ I find that the most enticing part about using TikToks to plan travel is the faster visualization I get from watching a short clip. Unlike research on Google, which can take more time and reading, watching a travel TikTok brings a restaurant, a place, or a destination to life to better help me visualize if I can see myself traveling there. From a short video, you can get a feel for the atmosphere, surroundings, and so much more than you can looking a still image.
For example, I have an upcoming trip to Barcelona this fall. If I’m looking for places to go eat Spanish tapas, I’ll perform a TikTok search to see clips of restaurants, bars, and food as opposed to a Google search for “best tapas in Barcelona.” Either way is effective — and there’s no right or wrong way to do this type of travel research. Yet, for me, I find visualizing TikTok recommendations much easier. Some of my favorite trips have been planned with the support of TikTok videos, from discovering a legendary Greek restaurant in Athens to finding where to grab lemon sorbet in Italy.
What makes TikTok a great travel search engine
“Travel is no longer just a form of entertainment. People are using it for trip planning, too,” says Baruch Labunski, CEO at Rank Secure.
“For today’s travelers, lengthy blogs and curated photo galleries no longer hold as much value. A thirty-second TikTok of a person discovering a café or walking a beach is far more effective at inspiring a trip than any travel advertisement, no matter how polished and perfect it is,” says Labunski.
Authenticity & visual appeal
Much like my own preferences, Labunski says others enjoy the visual, immediate nature of TikTok.
“Users prefer TikTok because of the immediacy and the realness of the information. TikTok allows one to watch real people as they explore a destination and a location in real time, and you are not just watching a clip and can be static in your seat. You see people, hear their feelings, their joys, their effects. You, just for a couple of moments, imagine yourself in the location as you are watching it in real time,” Labunski says.
“TikTok’s uniqueness stems from its feeling of authenticity. The most popular creators are not marketing something — they are emphasizing the moment and the experience. They enhance the experience using popular sounds and quick transitions and evoke a feeling of being present. The audience connects just from the sheer experience. TikTok is changing how someone not only receives travel inspiration, but it also completely transforms how someone books and plans each element of their travel.”
