17 Travel Hashtags to Use & Follow on Instagram



I love Instagram and I'm not afraid to admit it. I'm not the least bit ashamed of my slight addiction because I'm willing to bet that most of you are similarly obsessed. Well, why would you have clicked on this post if you don't love Instagram? And just in case you're not a fan of the fast, easy, double-tapping social media platform, you may not want to stick around. We probably wouldn't get along anyway.

For travelers and anyone who would like to travel (that's basically everyone, right?), Instagram allows us to share our current adventures or virtually cure the travel bug by scrolling through other people's adventures.

Recently, I've grown pretty tired of the typical #hashtags that I, along with most other travel bloggers, am using. Many blogs instruct us to add #travel, tag the country you're in, then the city, and maybe add in an #instatravel or #wanderlust, then post for the world and pray for the likes. While this may be effective, it can get pretty boring. Especially when I'm looking through the #travel feed and the photos are a blend with such a broad theme.

So in order to spark a little creative inspiration with your travel photos, I've put together a list of my favorite creative travel hashtags:


1. #FromWhereIStand


This is the perfect selfie for people who aren't too photogenic, but do wear great kicks and stand in cool places. These pictures are also a reminder for all of us travelers as to where our feet have taken us. Why not take a picture like this in every country/city/continent and start your own collection!

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @emilyblincoe - emilyblincoe.com ;  2. @matteovetran0 ;


2. #JustBackFrom


If they're better than cheap magnets and plastic keychains, share your souvenir collection after returning home from a great trip. Condé Naste Traveler's account @CNTraveler features the best of these photos.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @CNTraveler ;  2. @FranziSimone ;  3. @lomo31;


3. #WeEatWorld


This hashtag stems from @GirlEatWorld a.k.a. Melissa, a Singapore-based photographer whose collection of "hold up food in front of interesting scenery" pictures went viral. Her main mission is to stuff her face around the world. Melissa tags her own pics with #GirlEatWorld and encourages others to tag similar posts with the #WeEatWorld hashtag. WARNING: Do not scroll through this feed if hungry or dieting.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @girleatworld ;  2. @KelseyOhleger - Route Words ;
3. @theromanfoodie - The Roman Foodie ;  4. @girleatworld)


4. #FollowMeTo


In 2011, Russian photographer Murad Osmann's girlfriend got annoyed of his contact picture taking and started dragging him through the streets of Barcelona. But this didn't stop Murad and actually inspired him even more. Since then, Osmann has posted a collection of these photos taken around the world onto his popular Instagram account and the images have gone viral. Many others have also been inspired by the pose and now the #FollowMeTo feed is filled with similar photos.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @muradosman ;  2. @gabriellaeeyore ; 
3. @hashnae ; 4. @muradosman)


5. #Whatsinmybag


Step 1: Take everything out of your bag. Step 2: Arrange it all in an eye-catching, creative layout. Step 3: Add in something else that is not normally in your bag, but will make others find you interesting. Step 4: Stand above the neatly organized materials and snap a picture. Step 5: Post on instagram with the hashtag #whatsinmybag. 

Okay, so that's generally how it goes, but this hashtag is also great to learn about new gadgets, products and snacks that you may also want to toss into your bag before your next trip.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @passport_liz -  Passport Packed ;  2. @veetravels - Vee Travels ;
3. @j2martinez - JMRTNZ.com ;  4. @kluwi)



6. #IPulledOverForThis


While road tripping, certain things are going to catch your eye and make you want to pull over. Whether it's a gorilla holding a VW bugthe world's largest ball of twine, or just a pit stop to stretch your legs, you can always find something worth photographing.
(Clockwise from top left: 1. @hmosterhout;  2. @wvmomofsix;  3. @cayenneiam;  4. @reeb77 )



7. #AirportCarpet


If you can take a second to stop in between the TSA screening, grabbing your Starbucks latte and sprinting to catch your connecting flight, you may want to look down. There is usually something underneath your quick moving feet that most airport travelers ignore: the carpet. If you scroll through the feed of this hashtag, you'll see swirls of bright colors and unusual patterns that would only otherwise be used on the rug of a Las Vegas casino or upholstery of the seat on a charter bus.
(Clockwise from top left: 1. @jennifernellen - Let's Go;  2. @bryanschiele - Bryan Schiele;
3. @petermeiyu;  4. @lindstromrugs)




8. #OnTheRoofs


Two young guys started climbing onto roofs and and a new hashtag was born. Vitaliy Raskalov from Ukrain and Vadim Makhorov from Russia are photography partners, travelers and working together on this social project dedicated to urban exploration. Scroll through their shots and if you're not afraid of heights, start contributing to the collection.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @makhorov - On the Roofs; 2. @makhorov - On the Roofs;
3. @crazytravelist - Crazy Travelista; 4. @curiositytrav - Curiosity Travels)



9. #FlyingTraveler


Junanto Herdiawan is an economist in Indonesia Central Bank who spends his time off levitating around the world. Okay, well he's actually just fooling us all with some play on perspectives. But how neat are these pictures? Definitely a step up from the basic #jumpstagram. Junanto's signature pose has become popular with other travelers as well, which inspired the #FlyingTraveler tag.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @junantoheridiawan - Life is a Journey; 2. @heriadi_alhifni;
3. @junantoheridiawan - Life is a Journey; 4. @junantoheridiawan - Life is a Journey)



10. #DailyCortado


No Instagram account is complete without a coffee picture. Or many coffee pictures. Possibly daily coffee pictures. I won't judge, nor will I complain. Just as long as the latte art is on point. Lipstick stains and well-placed props are also appreciated. Scrolling through this feed is like virtual espresso without the bad breath or mid-morning crash.
(Clockwise from top left: 1. @livingminnaly - Living Minnaly; 2. @kevmasse;
3. @laurenonlocation - Lauren on Location; 4. @leatherandlattes - Leather and Lattes)



11. #FriendsAndWalls


Grab a friend and find a wall. If you have no friends, grab a selfie stick and find a wall. It can be the Berlin Wall, the Great Wall of China, or just a plain ol' wall… whatever you decide! These types of pictures are so simple, yet so striking.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @tmkampa ;  2. @fi_bird - Poppet's Window
3. @taylorcgibson - Capture Joy;  4. @cestchristine - C'est Christine)



12. #WYMTM


#WYMTM, short for “What You Missed This Morning”, is for beautiful sunrises and foggy mountains to be rubbed in the face of your oversleeping friend with a FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). The hashtag was established by CyclingTips founder Wade Wallace back in 2008 in order to make people jealous when they skip a morning bike ride. It has recently grown to be used more widely by early risers - cyclist or not. The hashtag has also inspired a photo competition on CyclingTips each December.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @yeahteam ; 2. @revoluti0n9 ;
3. @fdpallero ;  4. @thats_my_line - Gloria Liu)



13. #KicksOnAPlane


This hashtag is exactly what it says it is. A picture of your kicks on a plane. The only guidelines are that the photo must contain at least one shoe (A.K.A. kick) and that shoe is on a plane.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @justineiaboni - Jet Set Justine ;  2. @djneilarmstrong ;
3. @soleinvadors ;  4. @jellyfishkid2.0)



14. #cnTravelerEats


Ohh.. food porn. We all know it well. But if you can capture it in a mouth-watering, travel-inspiring way, you may get featured by this other Conde Nast Traveler tag at @cnTraveler.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @cnTraveler ;  2. @martinecooks - Martine Cooks ; 
3. @tanveerbadal  - Tanveer Badal ;  4. @CourtneyLikkel - Adelante)



15. #AirplaneFood


#Airplanefood is far from #foodporn or #nomnom or #delicious, but it's an interesting meal to document and a great hashtag feed to explore typical meals across different cultures. You may even book your next flight based on an airline's peanuts or bottomless wine.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @catsandfood ;  2. @rebelgrain - Rebel Grain;
3.  @sgfoodhero ;  4. @travip)



16. #PuddleGram


Rainy days while traveling can be frustrating. While you may feel like hiding under the covers in your hotel room watching repeats of Cupcake Wars dubbed in Spanish, you have a new reason to venture out and see the sights through a different perspective: the #puddlegram.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @everson4 ;  2. @romdilon ;  3. @matt.anderson;  4. @esposito13)



17. #EmptyChairsProject


Who doesn't like taking pictures of empty chairs? In airports.. outside coffee shops… in the park. Raphaël Liais (@raphaelliais) noticed empty chairs in Casablanca, Morocco and began a personal project of uploading these photos onto Instagram with the tag. Since then, this hashtag has developed a following and more people are becoming inspired to 'gram these chairs instead of plopping down on them.

(Clockwise from top left: 1. @raphaellias ;  2. @la_solea ;  3. @inesnimu ;  4. @roundthewayk)


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36 comments

  1. Hey great post!!! I had no idea some about some of these hashtags but will be sure to start using them!! What a well put together list - i love it!! Thanks!

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  2. Thanks for featuring my picture!!! :D Love these and honestly didn't know about most of them. You will see these popping up very soon! Great idea!

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  3. Wow!! I love these!! I have been wanting to get into Instagram more and I think finding fun hashtags is a perfect way to start! These are so creative :)

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  4. This is such a fun post, Kelsey! So many amazing hashtags I hadn't heard about yet -- looks like my Instagram addiction is about to get worse ;)

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  5. Ah I loved this Kelsey! I need to memorize all of these for inspiration :) Thanks for the photo feature too!

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  6. Thanks Jess! And of course I featured you. It was hard to choose just one picture!

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  7. Haha I'm glad you also have an Instagram addiction. And I love the photos on your account!

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  8. I'm glad you enjoyed this list, Gina! Thanks for the comment!

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  9. Thanks Lauren! And I'm excited to see you use some of these hashtags for inspiration! I always love your photos :)

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  10. Glad I was able to share some new ones with you, Liz! Thanks for the comment!

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  11. Funnn! I never know creative hashtags to use, this gives me so much inspiration!! Love it!

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  12. Glad you're inspired! Creating this list really made me want to amp up my instagram photos! So much creativity!

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  13. This is great! I am quite terrible with the whole hashtag thing, now I have some inspiration. Thanks!

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  14. Great list of hashtags. I can really use them, thank you!

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  15. Glad you found this list useful. Thanks for reading!

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  16. Ha ha very cool. Some of these hashtags are awesome, can't wait to start using them!

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  17. I love this list! Time to go follow. I think I have a few to add to #PuddleGram from our day today in Hue Vietnam. Thanks

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  18. Love the idea of the hashtags; especially the one for airplane food. Will be great to have comparisons :)

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  19. That's a great list. I am going to use few :)

    P.S. Following you on Insta - @2TravelEngineers

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  20. Found you from TBN. I enjoyed this post! The things only other travelers get! I'm still mastering how to work all the sm and write posts!

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  21. Yes, I agree. I was so excited when I discovered that hashtag! The pictures from Asian airline meals are the most interesting to me!

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  22. Definitely add your puddlegrams! It's such a creative feed to scroll through

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  23. Absolutely. I always love flying to Asia and around Asia on an Asian airline as opposed to an American one. But I have to give props to Air New Zealand...also amazing food.

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  24. Ana Carolina MejiaJune 7, 2015 at 1:26 AM

    #shotsofwanderlust

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  25. Great suggestions! Going to use these on Insta for my Japan travels - @lookunderhere

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  26. Loved this post! I've just fallen in love with the hashtag #DailyCortado! Thank you! :D

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  27. I'll have to check out this hashtag! Thanks for the tip Ana!

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  28. Isn't that a great feed? I could use a #DailyCortado right now... :)

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  29. am in love too with this #DailyCortado

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