Chasing Views or Chasing Culture?
In my previous post I lamented a little bit on the homogeneity of travel content. I see content creators flocking to the same destinations for the sake of high engagement rates. I wanted to talk about it again because I was inspired by a recent conversation with my friend and former roommate, Austin. He has a YouTube channel called Three Guaguas Travel where he documents his travels across the world. He’s travelled for as long as I’ve known him but for the past year, he’s been travelling long-term across Asia. He said his Thailand content gets a lot of views though he thinks the video itself isn’t that interesting. The reason is so simple: Thailand is one of the most visited countries in Asia. He’s currently exploring Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, countries less traveled by Americans and where his view counts have dropped.
Central Asia (aka the “stan” countries) is not a popular region for tourism. When one thinks of Central Asia, they think of Afghanistan or Pakistan. I don’t know anybody who thinks of oil and agriculture-rich Kazakhstan or the diverse landscapes of Kyrgyzstan. Or on the other end, people will be surprised to learn there is a Central Asia.
The conversation also made me think of this Reddit post a while ago titled “Youtubers in Thailand” where a local observed that a majority of travelers go to Thailand to make content for their social media page. They don’t engage in the culture or show any curiosity about the country they are travelling to. To them, Thailand is an immersive movie set feeding into their main character syndrome.
The responses to the post are pretty funny:
Some Reddit responses to “Youtubers in Thailand.”
I visited Thailand many years ago. It’s a lovely place. I love the food and the nightlife. I think I’ve always been a night owl. I only play the part of a morning person because I need to. Here’s an old album on my SmugMug page of my few days in Bangkok. I have friends from college who live in Bangkok and they showed me around. Unsurprisingly majority of that album is pictures of food.
I firmly believe that creators should prioritize sharing their passions and exploring destinations that resonate with them, rather than chasing views and engagement metrics. If “less popular” places speak to your soul, then share its beauty with the world, regardless of the view count.
Of course, I'm not suggesting we disregard popular destinations altogether. After all, Paris has grown to be one of my favorite cities to visit, but not for the reasons typically associated with it. For me, I like how Paris is walkable. I especially enjoy the numerous parks through the city and how lively it is — you see children playing, people picnicking, people watching, lounging, etc. One can’t really find that type of park culture in a lot of America because majority of the parks lean on the sterile side.
Ultimately, travel is a deeply personal journey. Don’t create for consumption, create because it speaks to your soul.
Street food in Bangkok, Thailand. April 2012.
