Back in 2009, Apple coined the phrase ‘there’s an app for that’ when introducing the world to its app store.
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Fifteen years later, I like to use the phrase ‘there’s a Reddit thread for that’.
Home to thousands upon thousands of subreddits and spin-off forums, Reddit is a haven for users to share their personal and professional opinions.
From tips on how to rewire electrical units to understanding how to crossbreed orchids to asking for advice about your first semester of college, just about every topic known to man is Reddit fodder.
Travel, too.
For many millennials like me, Reddit is one of the first places we go to see what people think about a destination, landmark, restaurant, museum, and more. As a no-holds-barred forum, Redditors don’t pull their punches, meaning you get to read unfiltered takes on travel topics of all stripes.
You’ll find conflicting opinions, passionate recommendations, nightmare experiences, and plenty more.
The big question is this—how can you use Reddit to put together a great trip?
If AI programs are a little out of your comfort zone and the usual tricks just aren’t cutting it, turn to Reddit to help you plan your next vacation. Here’s how.
New to Reddit? Here’s your intro
Reddit is a community forum that is divided into topics and subtopics, which are called subreddits. To participate, you must sign up and register your account. (Or if you just want to read, that’s allowed, as well.)
Subreddits come in all shapes and sizes, as I outlined above. Each subreddit has its own unique community guidelines and rules, along with moderators. In other words, though it’s a free-to-join public forum, it’s regulated. None of the riff-raff.
Subreddits have a ‘r/’ before them; in this article, I’m going to talk about content on the r/travel subreddit—which is just the Reddit forum that focuses on travel.
Currently, it has 13 million members from around the world. Community guidelines for the r/travel subreddit have banned AI tools, meaning you won’t get any general advice from Chat GPT and other programs.
Remember: the r/travel subreddit is only the start. You’ll find forums that cover just about every travel-related topic, from shoestring-budget travel to deep dives on layovers to finding great shoes for walking-heavy trips.
Now onto the good stuff.
3 ways to use Reddit to plan travel
Get specific on subreddits—very specific
If you’ve been reading closely, you might have already identified what makes Reddit such a great travel tool: users get hyper-specific about their experiences, insights, and recommendations.
Because of this, you also need to be hyper-specific about how you seek out advice.
Here’s a great example of what you might find: an in-depth breakdown of a man’s experience driving through Oman with his wife and child on a 12-day trip. You can see photos of the places he visited, along with a long discussion about his experience and detailed itinerary in the forum.
To find specific travel-related topics, head to r/travel and then search in the search bar at the top of the page. You’ll see the ‘r/travel’ tag there, which lets you search within that subreddit specifically.
Save money with tips, insights, and suggestions
The r/shoestring subreddit should be your best friend if you’re a hyper-budget traveler.
It’s great in a few ways. First, you can search for specific destinations in the top bar—and you’ll learn a few handy tricks about how to save on long-term vacations, trips to more luxurious destinations, and even flights.
You can even join other travelers. Because Reddit is a free forum, it’s used by members around the world. Sometimes, members post their trips with the hopes of learning about recommendations—and even picking up fellow travelers.
Learn about new types of travel before going whole-hog
Maybe you’ve been hearing about solo travel trips, women-only travel, or group travel. Regardless of what stripe of travel you’re looking to learn about, Reddit is where you’ll find honest opinions.
Even as a travel writer, I gravitate toward personal stories about solo travel on Reddit, as they help me gauge what the experience will be like in specific cities, regions, and within certain cultural contexts.
This is incredibly helpful for any Americans who might be feeling nervous about leaving their familiar routine at home.
Before you pay for that solo trip to sign up for that group tour, look for a subreddit that touches on previous experience. As always, stick to reviews that are similar to yours in terms of age, demographic, gender, and interests. They’ll be the most relevant.
