Instagram is now home to countless travel bloggers trying to make a name for themselves, but Alyssa Ramos was there before being a “travel influencer” was even a thing. She’s been traveling full-time for over a decade, and she’s visited every continent and over 100 countries, all on her own.
Ramos used to work as a veterinary technician in Florida, before discovering her passion for writing and traveling after moving to California. She started traveling on her own because she was tired of waiting around for other people, and this decision opened up a window to a whole new world of amazing possibilities.
Her rise to prominence started when her Huffington Post article “Yes, I’m Pretty and I’m Traveling Alone” went viral. She went on to attract over 200,000 followers to her Instagram page My Life’s a Travel Movie in the years to come, and even published a book titled Yes, I’m a Woman, and I’m Traveling Alone.
One of the reasons why people enjoy Ramos’ content is her full transparency about the ups and downs of travel blogging. She doesn’t see herself as someone who was lucky to find a dream job, but as someone who worked hard and spent countless hours doing low-paying freelance jobs on her quest to get where she is today.
“I paid for all of my first initial trips after saving for over a year, then kept writing and reaching out to people for opportunities until finally I traveled and wrote enough to find a niche and grow an audience, and make a name for myself in the travel blogging world,” wrote Ramos on her blog.
