Why You Should Become a Travel Vlogger
After more than two years of traveling in Taiwan and other places, I want to talk about some of my best experiences as a travel vlogger. I know that many people start travel vlogs to get paid and earn money, but that is not my motivation. I shared my thoughts on this in my article “How to Become a Travel Vlogger and Get Paid?”
The Traveling Kunz Travel Vlog focuses more on travel experiences and sharing insights. In this article, I want to highlight my favorite events that would never have happened if I had not started with my travel videos.
Do not get me wrong – aiming to get paid as a content producer is completely legit. I am glad I have a regular salary, which gives me the freedom to create content that does not need to be SEO-optimized or tailored to a specific audience. Instead, I can document my travels the way I want – limited only by my lack of skills, of course.
Celebrating Chinese New Year in a Buddhist Temple in Taiwan
This sounds very spiritual, but it was more of a course in Taiwanese day-to-day culture. I already made a travel video about Daxi a while ago, but last year I went again to Daxi and spent the Chinese New Year in the Guanyin Temple near Taoyuan in Taiwan. And let me tell you my first Chinese New Year in Taiwan was quite an experience.
Carrying the Gods of Kinmen on My Shoulders
A very early video was about the “Gods of Kinmen.” Originally, I wanted to create a video about the famous Wind Lions and Wind Chickens of Kinmen Island. The origin of these stone figures dates back to the Tang Dynasty, and the locals installed these Wind Lion God statues to prevent damage from wind (Surprise!).
However, after telling the locals that I document different aspects in my Kinmen Travel Tales, they asked me to carry the deities from the Ximen Temple in Kinmen through Jincheng. I also discovered the story behind General Li Guangqian. You do not see it in the video, but after the celebrations, there was Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor for all the supporters.
Travel Vlog About Going on a Road Trip in Java, Indonesia
At the end of 2023, I went on a trip through Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia and created the “South-East Asian Sojourn” playlist. My favorite video is my road trip on a scooter through Java. I was glad to experience Indonesia outside of the major cities and get a feel for the size of Java.
Of course, I also checked out several tourist hot spots in Central Java, such as the UNESCO World Heritage sites Borobudur and Prambanan. I had an amazing time in the Yogyakarta region and truly felt the richness of Indonesia’s history.
Crossing the Kinmen Bridge for the First Time
When I first visited Kinmen Island in 2019, the Golden Gate Bridge was still under construction, and I had to take the ferry to reach Xiao Kinmen. But that is now a thing of the past. The ferry ceased operations in 2024, and the Kinmen Bridge has since become a symbol of the Taiwanese island.
The architectural masterpiece stretches 5.4 km and offers great views of Xiamen in China. Even on a scooter, it takes several minutes to cross. It took me until June 2024 when I finally had the time to take a one-shot video of this iconic journey.
The Longest Shot I Ever Took – The River Cruise in Malacca/Malaysia
The final video of this blog is a bit unusual – it is almost 30 minutes long, but it is also just a one-shot video. Originally, I intended to capture just a few minutes of footage of the iconic Malacca River, but turned out to be a bit more.
The Malacca River Cruise is undoubtedly one of the best experiences in Malacca, Malaysia. Once I started filming, I could not stop. The view and the vibe were just too good to be cut short. Keep in mind, this was shot entirely on my phone with a gimbal. I have added some music and stabilized the footage, but there are no cuts in this video.
A Long Road Ahead to be a Travel Vlogger
These are some great memories I just had to share, and I encourage you to start documenting your travels as well. I for sure will do some more traveling in Taiwan and beyond.
These videos are meant to inspire you to become a travel vlogger. As you can see, I am a complete amateur, but I am slowly improving with each video. If you are thinking about starting your travel vlog, you might find my article on “How to Start a Travel Vlog” helpful.
I spent several days at the temple, and I remember it being so cold that I got sick. The temple was extremely busy, with many people coming to worship. It was also interesting to see how the temple staff took care of all the visitors. On the one hand, I felt that many people use the time over holidays to plan the next year and improve, but I also felt people are just happy to have a few days off.
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[…] thumbnails afterwards, but you cannot change the video content itself. If you are thinking about becoming a travel vlogger, my advice is to create a simple style guide early on to maintain consistency. And do not repeat my […]