Travel Keywords: Ultimate List Of Ideas For Tour Operators

November 26, 2021
Zaky Prabowo (he/him)
4 min read

Every time your ideal customer goes online to research their next trip, they type travel keywords into the search engine. If you don’t know what these keywords are, it’s very difficult to know how to optimize your content for SEO. 

SEO is the biggest driver of organic traffic to your website. When you use the right keywords in your content, you can potentially get greater visibility online. 

Although the travel industry is a competitive space to be in, with basic SEO knowledge and keyword research, you can set your website up to attract more visitors.  

Here, we’ll quickly walk you through how to identify your ideal keywords. Plus, we’ve included a list of general keyword ideas to point you in the direction of getting started. 

Digital Presence For Travel Companies

How To Pinpoint Your Ideal Travel Keywords

When identifying travel keywords for your web content, there are three points to think about:

  • Search Volume: The number of times users search a keyword in a month. The higher the search volume, the more web traffic you can potentially get from the keyword.
  • Difficulty: Generally speaking, keywords with a higher search volume and commercial intent are more difficult to rank for. And if you’re competing against loads of high-authority websites for a specific keyword, this will also make it more challenging to rank for.
  • Search intent: When people enter keywords into the search bar, does the content in the results give them the information they are looking for? Offer the information that the person wants, and the keywords will bring you relevant traffic, not just a lot of traffic. 

Our guides on how to do keyword research and local keyword research have more tips and insights on the subject.  

Tools For Finding Travel Keywords

There are plenty of awesome SEO tools to help you find relevant and up-to-date keywords for your tour operator business. These tools are easy to use and offer some fantastic insights to improve your online visibility. 

For a free tool, you can try Wordstream. You can check what keywords your competitors are ranking for, get ideas for the travel industry, and narrow down the results to be relevant for your state or country. 

Keywords For Travel Businesses

Another free option is Keywordtool.io. This generates hundreds of long-tail keywords, questions, and related prepositions based on the search term you enter. Long-tails can be useful as they often have a more focused search intent and lower difficulty. 

There is also Ubersuggest, which provides a certain amount of daily free insights. Enter a domain or keyword, and the tool will bring all sorts of data, including keyword and content ideas.

For a paid keyword that gives greater insight, Ahrefs is a winner. Get a deeper look into keywords, backlinks, competitor analysis, content gaps, and more.

Travel Keyword Ideas For Your Business

To rank on the search engines, you need to start with a keyword.

We did a bit of research using the tools mentioned above to give you general ideas on what travelers are typing into search engines right now. 

Keywords can be written into your website content so that you begin to rank for them in the SERPS. Include the terms naturally and optimally in your landing pages, blog posts, tour descriptions, website copy, product write-ups, social copy, adverts, and more. 

Also, keep in mind that keywords are in a constant state of flux based on current market trends and conditions. For example, search volumes on travel insurance and travel restrictions are likely to currently be higher than they have ever been because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

High-Volume Travel Keywords

Here is a list of high-volume keywords related to travel in general. This is what people are searching for right now on the topic of travel and tourism.

Keyword Search Volume
Travel insurance 339K
Hawaii travel restrictions 186K
Hawaii travel 121K
Travel state gov 84K
New York travel restrictions 81K
Travel agents near me 74K
Travel agent 74K
Travel restrictions 60.5K
Travel safe 49.5K
Travel bags 40.5K
Travelocity 1.830M
Travelzoo 110K
Travel to Canada 30K
Travel advisory 27K
Travel accessories 6.2K
Kayak flights 550K
Trip planner 49.5K
TSA precheck 301K
Global entry 201K
Vacation packages 74K

Keywords That Travelers Might Use To Find Your Business

This list of general keywords includes a few terms that travelers might use to find you online. 

Keyword Search Volume
OTA 18K
Travel agents 10K
Travel companies 6.8K
Online travel agency 2.2K
Tour operator 1.9K
Best tour companies 600
Tour operators near me 90
Luxury travel company 150
Disney travel agents 33.1K
Travel consultant 2.9K
Best travel agency 2.4K
Independent travel agent 590
Tour agency 3.6K
Escorted tour companies 250

Keywords To Describe Tours & Types Of Travel

These keywords are some of the popular tour and trip types that travelers are currently searching on the internet. 

Keyword Search Volume
Trip packages 2.4K
Travel company tours 480
Escorted tour 320
Honeymoon trip 720
Overseas adventure travel 11K
Adventure travel 3.2K
World tour package 170
International tour packages 50
Family tour 260
Golden triangle tour 110
European tour packages 2.9K
Budget tour packages 30
Solo tour packages 390
Best tour packages 40
European tour packages with airfare 590
Luxury tours 260
Multi country European vacation packages 480
Italian tour packages 800
Alaska tour packages 700
Grand canyon tour packages 700
Costa Rica tour packages 400
Local tours 150
Local winery tours 100
Best ghost tours in savannah 600
Best bourbon trail tours 600
Best Maui snorkeling tours 300
Best NY city tours 400
Virtual tour ideas 30
Thailand tour ideas 30
Expedia travel packages 1.5K
Las vegas travel packages 1.3K

Final Thoughts

While these are pretty general keywords, they do at least provide a base from which you can brainstorm ideas for your travel business. 

Because travel is a hot topic online, the competition on the SERPs is pretty high. Taking a data-informed approach to optimizing your content will better position your website for ranking. 

Remember, ranking content on search engines is not a quick fix and doesn’t happen overnight. So, it’s a good idea to include other types of marketing in your overall strategy to grow your travel business. 

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