Photo: Temple Tunnel by Benjamin Plouffe

Content marketing in the travel industry is entering a new era of amazing possibilities. Hotels and resorts are able to entertain, inspire, and connect with customers long before their travel planning even begins.

Savvy marketers are using compelling visuals and video to sell not just rooms, but experiences. Some of the most compelling examples highlight local dining, excursions, and cultural activities—both with and without people. They take viewers on a visual journey that feels open, honest, fun, and adventurous. Destinations are brought to life in ways you can almost feel.


Click & drag your cursor to get the full experience. 360 Photo of Arizona by Richard Sisk.

Images That Work

The best way for content marketers to connect to consumers is to remember the core values driving consumer culture and speak to those needs directly. Determine a consistent style and a voice that’s human and relatable, and use both UGC and high quality photography and video to create a meaningful relationship with viewers.

Celebrate culture, togetherness, and community as well as adventure, experience, and emotion. Embrace humor and irreverence when possible to entertain and communicate a sense of fun.

When selecting photos of interiors, consider adding in some kind of human element – personal belongings or evidence that a person has actually been there. Most importantly, give consumers a reason to stay engaged and keep coming back. Keep the conversation going and change visuals seasonally to spark continued interest and curiosity.

  • Authentic, street-level photos get a 22% engagement lift (500px, 2016)
  • 360-degree photography increases time on site by 34%. (500px, 2016)
  • Facebook posts from brands that included images earned 87% of all engagements (eMarketer, 2014)
  • Tweets with images earned up to 18% more clicks, 89% more favorites, and 150% more re-tweets (Buffer, 2013)


    • Click & drag your cursor to get the full experience. 360 Photo of Iceland by Sigurdur William Brynjarsson.

    Child sit on the boat and hold the fruit basket by Pawinee Suwannaphoom on 500px.com

    Temple Tunnel by Benjamin Plouffe on 500px.com

    Images That Don’t Work

    Content marketing can miss the mark when images are outdated or don’t resonate with consumers. Staged shots featuring all-too-perfect models or entire families dressed in white enjoying a walk on the beach feel disingenuous. Even generic shots of pristine beaches and palm trees can begin to seem far too ubiquitous.

    Traditional hotel photography, meanwhile, can often appear stagnant and sterile, as if no one ever stays there. Finally, sometimes there’s just a lack of quality or style that’s unappealing – a hard sell when there are so many other visually beautiful and exciting alternatives these days.

  • The average person gets distracted in 8 seconds (Microsoft, 2015)
  • 81% of people only skim the content they read online (The Shallows by Nicholas Carr)
  • Low quality images don’t convert; higher quality photos have a 20% engagement lift (500px, 2016)

    • Put this knowledge to work for your brand

    At 500px, we’re committed to giving brands the images they need in a variety of ways: high quality stock images, user-generated content, and now, with 500px for Business, custom photography from around the globe—paired with analytics to give you insight into what works.