Travel Marketing: How To Use TikTok for Creating Viral and Dreamy Campaigns

If there’s one platform rewriting the rules of travel marketing, it’s TikTok.

Travel marketing has evolved rapidly, and businesses are now leveraging TikTok to reach new audiences. Travel marketing on TikTok isn’t just about posting a pretty video—it’s about creating compelling experiences that drive action.

Successful travel marketing strategies on TikTok help businesses attract visitors, increase engagement, and boost bookings. From hotels to restaurants and tourist attractions, travel marketing through TikTok offers a unique opportunity to showcase destinations in a fresh and engaging way.

For businesses like hotels, restaurants, and tourist attractions, TikTok offers a unique opportunity to engage potential customers by creating immersive and shareable content. Travel marketing on TikTok isn’t just about posting a pretty video—it’s about crafting compelling experiences that inspire action.

So, how can businesses in the travel industry strategically use TikTok to attract visitors?

Here’s how to create viral destination campaigns that drive real results.

Hotels: Behind-the-Scenes Tours & Unique Amenities

Hotels can leverage TikTok by offering behind-the-scenes tours of their rooms, lobby, and on-site amenities.

A quick, engaging room walkthrough can give potential guests a taste of what to expect, increasing direct bookings. Showcasing luxury suites, spa experiences, or even breakfast buffets can entice travelers looking for unique stays.

The Ritz-Carlton, for example, has successfully used TikTok to highlight its opulent amenities, creating FOMO (fear of missing out) among potential guests. By featuring guest testimonials, poolside views, or time-lapse videos of sunrise from a suite, hotels can encourage direct bookings.

Restaurants: Food Challenges & Exclusive Menu Reveals

Restaurants can use TikTok to highlight their best dishes, host food challenges, or reveal limited-time menu items. Viral food trends drive engagement, and showing how a signature dish is made can attract diners.

For instance, Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer in New York gained traction on TikTok by showcasing their over-the-top milkshakes, enticing viewers to visit in person. Similarly, featuring a chef preparing a unique dish or hosting a "duet challenge" where customers recreate meals can increase foot traffic.

Tourist Attractions: Interactive Experiences & UGC Campaigns

Museums, theme parks, and landmarks can create engaging TikTok campaigns by encouraging visitors to capture their experiences. Interactive scavenger hunts, first-person POV rides, or "What to Expect" videos help potential tourists envision their visit.

Disney Parks has mastered this by featuring behind-the-scenes clips, character meet-and-greets, and visitor reactions to new rides. Smaller attractions can replicate this strategy by encouraging user-generated content (UGC) through branded hashtags and incentives like free tickets for the best video.

Collaborating with TikTok Creators for Wider Reach

Travel businesses can expand their audience by partnering with influencers who align with their brand. A boutique hotel, for instance, can invite a travel influencer to stay for free in exchange for a video documenting their experience.

Marriott Bonvoy’s TikTok campaign featuring travel influencers exploring their properties helped boost their visibility among millennial travelers. By choosing creators who genuinely enjoy their offerings, brands can foster authenticity and trust.

Creating FOMO with Limited-Time Offers

Travel marketing thrives on exclusivity. Businesses can use TikTok to promote flash sales, early-bird discounts, or limited-time experiences. A simple video announcing a 48-hour hotel discount with a compelling call-to-action can drive immediate bookings.

Airbnb hosts, for example, have successfully used TikTok to showcase unique stays—treehouses, tiny homes, and themed accommodations—boosting direct inquiries. Travel brands can capitalize on this by emphasizing scarcity and exclusivity in their campaigns.

Using TikTok’s Features to Enhance Engagement

TikTok offers tools like duets, stitches, and polls that businesses can use to engage their audience. Hotels can invite users to duet a video showcasing their "dream vacation." Restaurants can stitch videos of food critics trying their meals.

Attractions can post "This or That" polls, asking users to choose between different activities.

The key is to make followers feel involved, turning passive viewers into engaged customers.

Hashtag Strategies for Travel Marketing

Using the right hashtags can amplify reach. A mix of trending and niche hashtags like #TravelMarketing, #BucketListTrips, or #LuxuryHotels can make content more discoverable. Additionally, businesses can create branded hashtags to encourage user participation, such as #StayAt[HotelName] or #Taste[RestaurantName].

For example, Visit Dubai launched the #DubaiDestinations campaign, encouraging travelers to share their experiences, which led to millions of views and increased tourism inquiries.

Tracking Performance and Optimizing Content

TikTok analytics offer insights into what content resonates most. Businesses should monitor video performance, noting which formats drive the most engagement and conversions. If a restaurant’s "chef’s special" videos perform better than "menu walkthroughs," they should double down on what works.

Final Thoughts

TikTok has transformed travel marketing, allowing businesses to create visually engaging content that drives real-world results. Whether you’re a hotel, restaurant, or tourist attraction, leveraging TikTok’s trends, collaborations, and storytelling features can help boost bookings and foot traffic.

The key is consistency, creativity, and a focus on content that genuinely excites potential visitors. Ready to take your travel marketing strategy to the next level? Start experimenting with TikTok today and watch your destination become the next viral sensation!

✍️ Written by Kendra Brown