Your small hometown could be the next trending travel destination! With ever changing trends in the digital travel landscape, new “hidden gems” are emerging constantly. Unlike mass tourism, many travelers enjoy traveling to destinations that consist of authenticity, originality, and charm.

Small travel businesses can offer personalized, sustainable, and story-rich experiences that resonate with tourists. Over the past few years, internet trends have taken over the tourism industry by storm; promoting tourism at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi, Thailand or the Dr. Pepper Museum in Waco, Texas.

I asked our PR and growth experts: What PR tactics can be most helpful in promoting travel destinations that are considered to be “off the beaten path”? What narratives or angles are most enticing to potential tourists when advertising “hidden gem” tourism? How can small businesses use PR tactics to make “hidden gem” tourism appear sustainable rather than exploitative?

Here are the experts' insights:

• Publish joint press releases and social media content
• Travelers want to feel connected to something real
• Find your niche community first and let them be your megaphone
• Put the locals at the center of the story
• Leverage community narratives and local ambassadors
• Frame niche destinations as immersive experiences
• Share the story behind local makers and artisans
• Create trust based on stories that are relevant
• A moment based in context, no fluff.
• People travel for story & food; texture & trust

Publish joint press releases and social media content

Emily Reynolds-Bergh, Owner at R Public Relations

"It’s important for PR teams to educate audiences that there’s more to do in town than just one activity. Create downloadable itineraries or partner with other attractions to bring travelers to the area. You can publish joint press releases, collaborate on social media content, or enact discounts together. There’s power in numbers!"

Travelers want to feel connected to something real

Dr Trenice Brinkley, Publicist at Two Queens Media

"Turning a hidden gem into a must-see destination takes more than a pretty picture or a viral hashtag. It takes strategy, story, and a little soul. Travelers want to feel connected to something real, not just another tourist trap. Your job is to make them care. Tell stories that hit home and highlight the people, pride, and purpose behind the place. If the town’s charm comes from Grandma’s pie recipe or a mural that tells a local story, start there.

Use social media trends with intention. A viral video might grab attention, but substance keeps people interested. Collaborate with local creators and businesses so your campaign feels genuine. And let’s be honest, sustainability sells. Travelers want to know their trip helps, not harms, the community. Be transparent about how tourism supports locals and preserves culture.

Finally, let your visitors brag for you. User-generated content is the best kind of PR. When people see real joy, they want in. Good PR makes hidden gems shine without losing their authenticity."

Find your niche community first and let them be your megaphone

Sonny Da Badger, Cofounder at Support Bikers

"I've spent years building Support Bikers into a worldwide directory, and what I've learned is that authenticity beats advertising every single time. When we featured small biker businesses on our Small Biker Business Saturday back in 2020, the ones that told real stories—like Matt's custom woodburning art or Steel Horse Life Magazine—connected with our community way more than any polished campaign could.

For "hidden gem" destinations, the PR tactic that works best is finding your niche community first and letting them be your megaphone. We didn't promote every biker bar in Florida—we shared the ones we actually ate at during Daytona Bike Week, like Racing's North Turn and Iron Horse Saloon. Our members trusted those recommendations because they came from real experiences, not a tourism board.

The sustainability angle is simple: show how the tourism directly supports the local community and give travelers a way to give back. With our Wrecked Rider Fund, bikers can donate or volunteer, so they're not just taking—they're contributing. When you feature local business owners by name and face, like we do on our directory map, tourists see real people they're supporting, not just a destination to exploit.

The narrative that works is "you're supporting one of us" rather than "come see this cool thing." When I talk about Gene taking me to buy my Honda Shadow or working at Six Bends Harley Davidson, people connect with the human story. That's what turns a hidden gem into a trending destination without destroying what made it special in the first place."

Put the locals at the center of the story

Leah Miller, Marketing Strategist at Versys Media

"One of the most effective methods is grounded influencer partnerships. But instead of going for big names, we usually work with micro-influencers who already have niche, trust-heavy audiences. This feels more authentic and aligns better with the small-scale charm of these destinations. Also, earned media through local stories pitched to regional outlets or travel blogs gives off a grassroots vibe that’s harder to replicate with paid strategies. Lastly, UGC-style TikToks or Reels with native voiceover (not overly edited) have driven strong curiosity for places like hillside tea farms or local artisan villages we’ve worked on in Southeast Asia.

The story has to hinge on emotional payoff. Whether it’s peace and disconnection, meeting real locals, or discovering food found nowhere else, people need to see how the trip changes them. For a mountain village in Northern Italy, we framed it as a “reverse luxury” story,no Wi-Fi, no reception, but days full of conversations, handmade cheese, and panoramic hikes. We didn’t sell the place. We sold the feeling of remembering your own pace.

Put the locals at the center of the story. Shift the narrative from discovery to partnership. For a conservation-led island retreat campaign, we featured the family that had run the eco-lodge for 60 years. They spoke about how tourism helped fund coral restoration,not just how pretty the beaches were. When small businesses own the voice of the campaign and frame their offerings around reciprocity (what guests give back vs just take), it diffuses the sense of outside exploitation."

Leverage community narratives and local ambassadors

Calin Oancea, PR leader & Co-Founder at Oancea Media

"I’ve seen authentic storytelling and hyperlocal content drive up to 23% more tourism growth compared to generic campaigns.

These small towns offer personalized, sustainable experiences that resonate profoundly with many travelers, so with that in mind, the most successful PR tactics my team has used leverage community narratives and local ambassadors.

But making it clear that tourism is responsible is the most important factor, so that you can build trust and really set these hidden gems apart from mass tourism."

Frame niche destinations as immersive experiences

Juan Montenegro, Founder at WalletFinder.ai

"With hidden-gem destinations, PR works best when turning the narrative into one about the authenticity and character of a place. Data show that 70% of millennial travelers prefer different experiences than traditional sightseeing. This means small towns and niche destinations can thrive, framed not as undiscovered destinations but as immersive experiences. I’ve seen firsthand how an example of a good digital narrative can work to change perception. What looks like just another place offline can trend and go global just by being positioned with the appropriate narrative.

Angles work best, focusing on heritage, community stories and behind-the-scenes perspectives. Tourists aren't just buying a trip, they are buying the feeling of discovery. Hidden gems stop being hidden, when you develop a story they can imagine themselves in.

To support sustainability, small businesses should position themselves as guardians against tourism instead of as promoters of tourism. Language in the form of preservation, responsible travel, or reinvestment into the destination/community show travelers their presence at the destination is allowed while supporting the destination, not exploiting or pillaging it. By doing so, PR is crafted into marketing or stewardship."

Share the story behind local makers and artisans

Katie Jones, Owner at Squirrel A Store of Buried Treasure

"To start, promoting hidden gem destinations relies on authentic storytelling and sustainable practices. Small businesses can stand out with a unique focus which makes its location different, especially surroundings to connect with local places as well as the ethics of tourism.

Begin with sharing the story behind local makers or artisans. Small travel businesses can promote a lot of PR opportunities, digitally and blogging of these stories, using stunning imagery that captures behind the scenes events of women's work, farmers, producers and behind the guides work. From my personal experience, I’ve been successful when highlighting behind the scenes tours or working with local products. I can shape a picture of what's available while educating the special nature of the people hired, engaged and ways to be a part of it. I’d recommend using influencers or a local ambassador who had a genuine interest in sustainability. There is much strength in authentic stories for these hidden gems. In my store, my connection to small local vendors allows me to share how their work supports sustainable work practices and this can easily translate into tourism.

The best angled narrative is authenticity. Tourists seek experiences that feel off the beaten path yet still value based. Consider authenticity with the meaning of the destination preserving wildlife, ethically creating crafts, community role of it or cultural meaning.

Small businesses can link sustainability if the PR message has a history of being transparent, outlining steps that tourism does to support local traditional craft, supportive eco-travel lodging or a community driven effort of preservation. In my experience, I’ve seen consumers feel good about supporting small companies because they believe their consumer action has a positive impact. Being transparent with sourcing and practice with specific examples of sustainability will show that this experience does not contribute to the exploitation of the destination, rather the sustainability for future generations."

Create trust based on stories that are relevant

Michael Alexander, Managing Director at Tangible Digital

"In the case of the so-called hidden gem destinations, the most effective PR strategy will be a combination of online presence and real storytelling. Placing earned media in credible blogs, local and niche influencers not just achieves awareness but also generates authoritative backlinks that boost long-term search visibility.

The stories that motivate the traveler are people and place based and not polish based. A small, home-owned cafe, a local craft market or a local maintained trail is more interesting than a mass-tourism promotion. Such human stories spark shares, enhance discoverability and provide travelers with a reason to become emotionally engaged in the destination.

Credibility is either won or lost at sustainability. Similar to SEO, there is no such thing as shortcuts, the visitors are interested in learning about how their visit benefits the community and how it helps to save the environment. In a partnership in position tourism, the locals would showcase their culture; the travelers would help in conserving it.

I believe that the best PR of a hidden gem is not hype, but rather creating a trust based on stories that are relevant and can survive through time."

A moment based in context, no fluff.

Jacob Elban, Creative Strategist at Davincified

"The best public relations strategy for “hidden gems' tourism is narrative compression, one big image, one concrete story, no fluff. In my practice, the broad messages collapse. Precision generates virality.

Small towns don’t need entire campaigns, they need a moment based in context: the baker waking up at 3 in the morning to bake, the trail with no markers, the family that’s been running the same store for 42 years. Shoot vertically, use stickers as captions, post under 22 seconds. Leave the mystery intact.

Do not sell the town. Document the rhythm of the town. Make tourism an invitation, not an invasion. Sustainable stories tell you what stays, but not what is changing."

People travel for story & food; texture & trust

Brian Gunterman, CEO & Founder at DDR BBQ Supply

"The strongest PR program for slower destinations is a combination of sensory narrative, and operational transparency. People travel not for brochures. They travel for story & food; texture & trust. This means however, that PR begins with the product and your people, rather than place.

The magic is lived-in, not curated. Visitors want to feel like they stumbled onto something, but want to know you are genuine. Focus on rituals over gimmicks. Show the baker at 4am not the pastry display case. The further you can depart from “hidden gem” terminology, the more it will become a hidden gem

If you ever want to discover a way to being sustainable, try to stop pretending at scale. Do not overstate capacity. Tell the truth relative to who you can serve, and invite others to adapt rather than conform. That is where future attraction lies. Not in refinement, but truth. Authenticity does not need amplification. It needs accuracy."

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