How to Start a Travel Blog
Part 2: Web Hosting For Your Travel Blog
Travelociraptor.com’s web series on “How to Start a Travel Blog” details how to start a travel blog using the popular WordPress content management system. In this Part Two I will show you how to find a web hosting company for your travel blog.
The WordPress content management system allows you to run a real website without having knowledge of computer code (html, CSS, etc.). Once the WordPress files are installed in your web hosting account (on a server at a web hosting company) you will be able to log in and post an article with about the same ease as posting a Facebook post. And with WordPress, you will have many more options on how to format the post and how to include and present photos, videos and other content.
The installation of your WordPress system at your web hosting provider can usually be done with the click of a button. When you click that button to install, a number of WordPress files are loaded onto your web hosting account. Those files include an index.php file for the home page. Virtually every website on the Internet has an index file for the home page. Below is a screenshot of some of the WordPress files for this website www.travelociraptor.com:
Luckily you may never even see the files as presented above. Once the files are installed you will be directed to a login page and then to a “dashboard” where you can manage your travel blog.
There are thousands of web hosting providers. To start a travel blog you will most likely need only a basic web hosting account with a web hosting provider. These basic accounts are usually about $100 to $200 per year. When you think about it, that’s an incredible price, as aside from any travel expenses, this will likely be most of your overhead.
Searching for web hosting providers at Google.com will return an overwhelming amount of results. With all the listings it’s difficult to find a reliable web hosting provider with good customer service.
Over the years I have used many different hosting providers and learned a lot of lessons. The biggest lesson learned is to use an industry-leading provider such as Blue Host or GoDaddy for reliable hosting, back-end support and customer service. A web hosting provider that is not industry leading may be suitable for some time, but a managerial or ownership change may have negative results such as diminished service, suspect customer service and increased fees.
Travelociraptor.com recommends Blue Host for your travel blog website hosting provider.
The web hosting company I specifically recommend for your travel blog is Blue Host. Blue Host specializes in offering optimized hosting for WordPress-based websites. In my experience Blue Host has 100% uptime, fast and reliable servers, expert back-end support, and excellent customer service.
Part Three: Best WordPress Travel Themes (Coming Soon)
Copyright: softlight69 / 123RF Stock Photo
