Top TikTok & Instagram Marketing Strategies for Airlines & Cruise Lines

The world of travel is shifting, and TikTok and Instagram are leading the charge. With the cruise tourism market set to explode from $158.4 billion to over $436 billion by 2034, airlines and cruise lines need to ride the wave of social media engagement to stay ahead.

In fact, TikTok has seen an eye-popping 46% surge in engagement in 2024, while Instagram is up by a more modest yet still impressive 13%. As if that weren’t enough, influencer marketing is now a cornerstone strategy, with brands forming authentic, long-term partnerships to connect with audiences on a deeper level.

But how exactly can airlines and cruise lines leverage this surge in social engagement? Enter SunExpress—a Turkish-German airline that made waves with a TikTok In-Feed Auction Ad campaign. With 33 million impressions and 120,000 clicks, they demonstrated the true power of platform-specific video content.

Ready to learn how they did it? Keep reading to uncover the strategy behind this standout campaign and discover the best TikTok and Instagram strategies for airlines and cruise lines.


1. Maximize Brand Awareness with TikTok In-Feed Auction Ads for Airlines

Airlines looking to create brand awareness without breaking the bank need to pay attention here. TikTok’s In-Feed Auction Ads offer a flexible, cost-effective solution that allows brands to control their spending while reaching their target audience efficiently.

Think of it like buying tickets to a concert: you want the best seats for the best price, right? Well, that’s exactly what auction ads offer. They allow you to bid for prime placement in the TikTok feed, ensuring your ads reach the audience that will appreciate your content most, while still respecting your budget.

The beauty of this ad format is its ability to maximize reach without wasting money. TikTok’s algorithm does the heavy lifting, helping you find the right audience through audience targeting and delivering your content to them at the right time. Want to get more out of your marketing spend? This is your ticket to making every dollar count.

Take SunExpress, for example. The Turkish-German airline decided to launch an upbeat campaign to spread a little joy and promote the excitement of flying post-pandemic. They turned to TikTok’s In-Feed Auction Ads to create a fun, engaging video that showcased the positive vibes of air travel. By setting up an auction, SunExpress ensured that their campaign hit the right people without blowing their budget.

The flexibility of TikTok’s In-Feed Ads allowed SunExpress to target specific groups and focus on the most cost-effective audience segments. With no duplicate views and a high click-through rate (CTR), the airline was able to deliver brand awareness at a scale they couldn’t have imagined through other ad formats.