u/NoAssociate4609

I’ve been testing Shorts across a few travel channels and I’m starting to notice a pattern.

On more straightforward travel content, like apartments, costs, quick tips, Shorts are easy. You cut it down, add a hook, and it usually does something.

But on a more personal channel, where it’s daily life overseas, moving countries, just walking around talking and figuring things out… it doesn’t seem to translate the same way at all.

Clipping moments from longer videos feels flat. Even when a Short gets views, I’m not convinced those people care about sitting through a 20–30 minute video after. It feels like two completely different audiences.

So I’m trying to figure out if this is just the wrong approach, or if Shorts actually need to be made in a totally different way for this kind of content.

Has anyone here had Shorts actually help grow a more personality-driven travel channel? Not the polished, cinematic stuff, just real day-to-day content.

Did it bring in people who watch your long videos, or just inflate views without much impact?

At the moment it feels like Shorts reward quick, surface-level ideas, and anything slower or more reflective just gets lost. Curious if anyone’s found a way around that, or if it’s just better to double down on longform.

I’m trying to figure out if Shorts actually work for a more personal travel/lifestyle channel.

Most advice I see is based around:

• food spots
• “top 10 things to do”
• cinematic B-roll

That’s not really what I make.

My content is more:

• daily life overseas
• moving countries
• walk and talk style videos
• honest thoughts about places over time

Less highlight reel, more “this is what it’s actually like living here”.

On my more commercial-style travel content, Shorts are easy. Quick, clear, they perform fine.

But with this more personal stuff, I’m not seeing the same effect. Clipping moments from longer videos doesn’t seem to hold attention, and I’m not sure it’s bringing in the right audience anyway.

So I’m curious if anyone here is in a similar niche:

• Have Shorts actually helped grow your channel in a meaningful way?
• Did you have to completely change how you structure content for Shorts?
• Are you seeing viewers convert into longform watchers, or just getting views?
• Is it even worth the effort, or better to focus on longform?

Feels like this style of content doesn’t naturally translate unless you almost “rewrite” it for Shorts.

Would be good to hear from people doing more reality-based travel/lifestyle, not just highlight content.

After spending time living in Da Nang, Vietnam, I decided it was finally time to return to Hanoi. In this video I talk honestly about why I left Da Nang, what brought me back to Hanoi, and why this city still feels more like home to me despite the chaos, traffic, and smog.

This isn’t a “Vietnam sucks” video or one of those dramatic expat meltdown videos. It’s more about routine, friendships, creativity, burnout, martial arts training, and trying to figure out where you actually belong while living abroad.

I also talk about my upcoming trip to Hong Kong and China, the martial arts documentary I’ve been filming across Asia, training in Vietnam, getting dental work done in Hanoi, and why Hanoi continues to inspire me creatively more than Da Nang.

If you’ve ever lived overseas, traveled long term, or felt disconnected from a place that everyone else seems to love, you’ll probably relate to this one.

What do you think of my short film?

Met someone in Da Nang who’s been travelling full time for 3 years while working online, so I asked if she’d be down for an interview.

Honestly, I’m kinda burnt out by the fake “digital nomad” stuff online. Every second video feels like someone trying to sell a course, flex a laptop in Bali, or tell people to quit their job after making $14 on Shopify.

This was just a normal conversation with someone actually doing it long term.

We talked about the good parts, but also the weird side nobody mentions. Constantly moving, loneliness, trying to maintain friendships, relationships, routine, motivation etc.

I’ve been travelling/living around Vietnam myself for a while now and wanted to make something a bit more grounded than the usual YouTube guru stuff.

Curious what people here think honestly. Has “digital nomad” become a bit of a meme now? Or do you still think it’s freedom?

I’ve been spending time in Da Nang recently and I’ve started noticing more posts (and a few real-life situations) about foreigners causing problems .. fights, arguments, general disrespect.

I’m not saying this is the majority at all, but it does feel like a small group is starting to shape how locals view foreigners overall, which is a bit concerning.

Curious if others living here (or in other parts of Vietnam) have noticed anything similar? Or is this just social media amplifying a few isolated incidents?

I ended up putting my thoughts into a short video just to organise what I was seeing, but I’m more interested in hearing other perspectives here first.