Travel images are images that are able to capture the wonders of travel, the exciting sense of adventure, and the beautiful world we live in in a way that inspires viewers to go out there and explore.
It is the type of image that is great at inspiring people and is often used as marketing material for companies to build a positive brand image and convey the company message in an inspiring way.
Heck, I can even attribute my curiosity, the unlimited sense of adventure, and my journey to becoming a travel blogger today to all the inspiring photos I saw in those early days of the internet.
Travel images are extremely powerful. If you are a content creator and are looking for images to inspire your readers, I have compiled a list of the very best websites to find free travel images for your content and businesses.
Without further ado, here are the 9 best websites to find free Creative Commons travel photos, starting with my favorite one, Unsplash.
Photo by Benjamin Combs on Unsplash
Unsplash.com is one of the most popular websites to search for high-quality, free images to be used however you like, with or without providing credits to the photographers.
It is one of the first websites out there that took the concept of providing a free curated list of creative common images to be used in this way to the mainstream and has spawned many other websites trying to replicate its success.
Since then, Unsplash.com has remained the king of websites providing free images, with over 2 million high-resolution images in its collection. These images are all generously provided by a talented and dedicated community of photographers.
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Unsplash has over 100,000 extremely talented photographers under its wing, and all the photos you see on Unsplash are handpicked and curated by their team, providing the very best and highest quality images for you to use.
Unsplash does allow photographers to tag locations on their photos, which will allow you to search and filter the results by places and easily find the photos of a location you are looking for. If you are looking for high-quality free images to use, you can’t go wrong with Unsplash.
Pexels.com is another great website to find free travel photos that you can use. They have over 140,000 high-quality travel images, all selected and clearly tagged by their staff, allowing you to search for the right travel images instantly and accurately.
Their travel images are on par, sometimes even of higher quality than Unsplash, and the website is equipped with one of the most advanced image search technologies out there. So much so, in fact, that the website is trusted to run a free photo search engine for companies such as Canva, Sketch, and Typeform.
If you are looking for a website to easily search, narrow down, and find the right travel photos for you to use, Pexels.com is the best option for you. It is definitely among the top three websites I use when I’m looking for high-quality images to use on my editorial content.
Pixabay.com is another great website to find free travel images to use, and it is among my top 3 favorite websites overall. It has a huge collection of photos, with over 2.2 million images available for you to use however you like on the platform.
The photos on Pixabay.com are very well tagged, allowing you to search for the right images effectively. They also have illustrations, videos, and music for you to use for free, in case you are looking for other types of imagery to use in your content.
Although the images on Pixabay aren’t as artistic as those on Unsplash and Pexels, they do provide a wider range of images with a more general purpose that you can use. So, if you are looking for more realistic and less artistic photos, Pixabay.com is a great place to begin.
Photo by Ethan Brooke from StockSnap
Stocksnap.io is another great website to search for free images that you can use however you like. It doesn’t have as large of a collection as the previous three websites, but it does provide some really unique stock-style photos you might not find on other websites.
It has around 4,000 stock-quality travel images for you to choose from, but what makes Stocksnap.io so unique is its ability to edit the images you would like to use straight from the website.
Want to use a photo of the Golden Gate Bridge but want it in a square format? No worries, you can click “customize image” and crop the photo however you like, and download the edited version straight from your browser.
That is quite convenient, and none of the other websites provide this feature. So, if you are looking for an easy way to search, edit, and download free travel images, be sure to check out Stocksnap.io.
Photo from Travel Coffee Book
Travel Coffee Book is a collection of wonderful travel photos created from a labor of love by a small team of committed travel photographers. They have been providing free travel images to the world since 2014, and their photos have covered locations all across the world since then.
It doesn’t have as big of a collection, nor does it have a great search capability on its website (powered by Tumblr). However, you can see just how much love they put into all these images. If you are looking for a travel image that maintains the heart and soul of a photographer, Travel Coffee Book is a great place to find these images.
Photo from Reshot.com
Reshot.com is a newcomer to the free images market, supported by one of the largest creative markets out there, Envato Elements. You can expect the same quality of images you would find on Envato, all at zero cost, and you can use them however you like.
These free images are provided and curated by individual contributors and through partnerships with other photography communities. There are around 1,700 free travel images available for you to download for free, ranging from Southeast Asia to Fiji.
It is not a big collection, but they sure have some talented photographers behind them, and all the travel photos you can find here are some of the best ones out there. If you are looking for an alternative to Unsplash, Pexels, and Pixabay, Reshot.com is a great option you can use.
Photo from Life of Pix
Life of Pix is another great collection of photos curated and provided for free by an awesome community of photographers. Every week, the Life of Pix team will pick the 10 highest-quality photos to feature on their website, allowing us to have access to great images for free while helping to promote photographers’ hard-earned images to the community.
They have around 300+ free travel photos, which is not a lot, but they are of the highest quality out there. They are the type of images you won’t find anywhere else but here. So, if you are looking for a unique but free travel photo to use with your content, Life of Pix is a great place to begin.
Photo from NegativeSpace.co
NegativeSpace.co is another community of photographers with a noble mission: to provide a platform for photographers to share their best work with the world and to help visitors like us find the best high-quality images out there by matching them to what we are looking for.
They have around 200+ travel photos on their website and many more in other categories. It is not a big collection by any standard, but their travel photos are some of the best out there.
The travel images you will find on NegativeSpace.co have one thing in common. They put a focus on a subject while deemphasizing the rest of the environment with defocusing, negative space, and minimalism.
This concept of negative space is what makes this website really shine compared to the rest of the websites on this list. If you are looking for travel images that command attention from your viewers, then NegativeSpace.co is the best place to be.
Photo from Burst by Shopify
Last but not least is Burst, a captivating collection of royalty-free travel photographs provided by Shopify, one of the largest e-commerce platforms out there. With such backing, you are sure to find high-quality travel images on Burst.
Burst has around 2000+ travel images, all of which are extremely high in quality and not overly processed like those you found on Unsplash. The photos are well-tagged, and the website comes with an easy-to-use search engine that allows you to narrow down and pinpoint the exact travel images you are looking for.
Travel images found on Burst can be used for both commercial and non-commercial purposes, as long as you do not repurpose and resell the images as digital photo files or in any other form.
Their collection is great for those of you who are looking for a nice, high-quality travel image to accompany your article and content. If you are looking for an Unsplash alternative, then Burst is one of the best options available for you out there.
Looking for more articles to help you with your travel, whether it be camera gear or clothing? Here is a collection of articles you might like:
Ever wondered what a full-time travel blogger like myself carries in my camera bag? Check out: What’s In My Camera Bag in 2024?
For the best hybrid travel camera to buy, the Sony a7R V with its 61-megapixel sensor and video capabilities is hard to beat. Check out my review here: A Traveler’s Review: The Sony a7R V Camera
If you are looking for a secondary camera to vlog or help you with time-consuming processes like timelapse, you might want to check this out: A Traveler’s Review: DJI Osmo Pocket 3.
Looking for the very best travel full-frame camera to buy for your next trip? How about the Sony a7C, the smallest full-frame camera with EVF in the world! Check out my review: A Traveler’s Review: The Sony a7C Camera
For APS-C camera owners out there, check out: What’s In My Camera Bag? – A Gear Guide to the Sony APS-C Cameras.
Looking to buy a new travel camera but not sure where to start? Check out our camera guide on 10 Best Travel Cameras to Buy.
Bought a new camera and not sure what camera accessories to buy? Check out: 14 BEST Sony Camera Accessories You Should Buy.
Looking for a good-looking and functional camera strap to buy? You are going to love the Langly Tactical, Premium Leather, and Paracord camera straps. Check out my review here: A Traveler’s Review: Langly Camera Straps.
Want to start a YouTube channel and looking to buy new cameras for travel vlogging? Check out: 8 Best Cameras For Travel Vlogging to Buy.
Finding a great camera bag you can travel with is not as easy as it sounds. If you are looking for one, here are the 10 Best Camera Bags for Travel, Backpacking, and Hiking You Should Buy.
Now, if you are looking for a camera sling/shoulder bag instead of a full-fledged camera backpack to travel with, here are the 11 Best Camera Sling/Shoulder Bags For Travel.
Looking for the most versatile camera sling bag? Check out: A Traveler’s Review: WANDRD Roam (Rogue) Sling.
For a smaller setup, the Nomatic McKinnon Sling is a great camera bag to check out. Here is A Traveler’s Review: Nomatic McKinnon Camera Sling 8L.
If you are looking for gifts to buy for your photographer loved ones, check out: 12 Cool Gifts To Buy For Travel Photographers.
Traveling light with camera gear is all about balancing between what you need and what you want. Here are the 8 Best Tips For Traveling Light With Camera Gear.
After years of research, I finally found the most beautiful camera backpack of all! Check this out: A Traveler’s Review: Langly Alpha Globetrotter Camera Backpack
If you are looking for a great camera accessory to help improve your travel photography skills, check out: 14 BEST Sony Camera Accessories You Should Buy.
Are you looking for the best travel camera for your next trip? Why not consider the Sony a6500? Here’s why the Sony a6500 is the best travel camera.
If you want to carry just one lens when you travel, here is why the Sony 16-55mm F2.8 is the best travel lens to get for your Sony a6600 or a6500.
This is the one lens I never knew I needed, but now that I have it, I can’t travel without it! A Traveler’s Review: The Sony E 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 Lens.
An ultra-wide lens is perfect for travel, and there is no better lens than the Sony 10-18mm F4 lens. Here is why: Traveler’s Review: Sony 10-18mm F4 lens.
Full-frame or APS-C Cameras? Here’s my take on which camera format to pick for travel: 5 Reasons Why I’m Sticking With a Sony APS-C Camera.
Wondering which Sony Mirrorless camera is right for you? The Best Sony Travel Cameras to Buy in 2024.
Just bought a new Sony mirrorless camera? Check out: 15 Tips & Tricks for Your New Sony a7C, a7III, and More.
Wondering which lenses to buy for your Sony cameras? Check out The Best Travel Lenses For Sony a7III, a7C, a7RIV, and More.
Looking for a compact and lightweight travel telephoto lens for wildlife and landscapes? You are going to love this lens. Here is A Traveler’s Review of the Tamron 70-300mm F4.5-6.3 lens.
If you are looking for a review of the first Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM lens and want to see if it is worth buying now, check out: A Traveler’s Review of the Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens.
The king of travel lenses has arrived. The Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM II lens is, hands down, the best travel all-purpose zoom lens I have ever owned. Here’s why: A Traveler’s Review: Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM II Lens.
Sony 70-200mm F2.8 GM II OSS lens is, hands down, the best telephoto lens to get for your Sony cameras, but it comes with an extremely high price tag. Here is a complete traveler’s review of the lens: A Traveler’s Review: Sony 70-200mm F2.8 GM II OSS Lens.
Looking for a lightweight and affordable landscape/architecture travel lens that is also extremely capable? Here is A Traveler’s Review of the Sigma 16-28mm F2.8 DG DN Lens.
Looking for the best travel portrait lens to buy for your next trip? You can’t beat the Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN lens. Here is A Traveler’s Review of the Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN Art Lens.
Picking a camera body is one thing. Picking the lenses is a whole different game. Here is the ultimate guide to the best travel lenses for the Sony a6500.
Looking for the best street and travel photography lens? Here is why Sigma 56mm F1.4 is the best travel photography lens for Sony APS-C.
GoPro is good and all, but did you know that there are many other GoPro alternatives that are better and cheaper? Here are the 8 Best GoPro Alternatives You Should Buy in 2024.
Looking for a great drone to travel with? Why is the DJI Mavic Mini the Best Drone For Travelers?
The best travel drone just got even better. Here is A Traveler’s Review of The DJI Mini 2 and why it is the best travel drone to buy.
Already have a Mavic Mini or looking to buy one? Here are 25 Tips and Tricks for New DJI Mavic Mini Owners.
For more travel drone options, be sure to check out the 8 Best Drones For Travel To Buy In 2024.
Looking for the best travel wireless earbuds or headphones? Here are the 7 Best Travel Wireless Earbuds & Headphones to Buy.
You can’t travel without a backpack, and if you are looking for one, check out my guide on the best Herschel Supply backpacks for travelers.
If you like hiking and going on adventures for weeks on end, you are going to need a bigger backpack. Here is Why the Osprey Atmos AG is the Best Hiking Backpack To Buy.
If you are into making travel videos, here is my ultimate advanced filmmaking gear guide.
Planning to go on your first-ever hiking trip? Here is How to Pack for Hiking and Camping.
Technical hiking gear doesn’t have to be ugly. Here is a guide to hiking gear that actually looks good on you.
If you are a light-weight traveler and are looking for powerful gear to go with your setup, check out the extremely light-weight photography gear guide.
Looking for gift ideas for your traveler friends or family members? Here are 16 Best Gifts to Buy for Travelers/Backpackers.
Or, if you are into gadgets, here is a quick guide on 10 tech gadgets you should buy this year.
Want to know the secrets on how to travel the world cheaply? Check out: 16 Best Tips on How to Travel the World Cheaply.
Looking for an Airbnb alternative for a better and more authentic stay in a place you are visiting? Here are the 8 Best Airbnb Alternatives to Use.
Looking to plan your first backpacking trip around the world? Check out: How To Plan A Backpacking Trip.
For more resources like this, visit my Resources page.
Want to learn how I was able to take so many good pictures of myself while I travel solo? Check out: How To Take Great Pictures of Yourself.
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