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Jess Gibson, 25, works three days a week as a social media manager and the rest running a blog, The Travelista. From hot air ballooning in the Serengeti to diving in the Maldives Jess manages to visit a host of countries for free. With colourful photographs, exquisite hotels and helpful tips, the blog has gained a legion of fans and awards. Most people cherish two or three holidays a year, but one lucky traveller managed to go on 12 amazing holidays in 12 months last year, while holding down a job based in London. And here she reveals how you, too, could rack up a similar number of getaways. From hot air ballooning in the Serengeti to diving in the Maldives, travel blogger Jess Gibson, 25, lives a luxury jetsetting lifestyle, but this is a far cry from her life before she got into online writing. Moving to London at the age of 21 after university, Gibson, who goes by the blog name of Travelista, took a 'deathly dull' job as an office PA, which she said quickly extinguished her graduate glow. She was too poor to pay for the tube and crippling rent and like many 'living the London dream' could barely afford to actually enjoy the city. Thankfully fate stepped in, and she learned that her offices shared floor space with a men's luxury magazine, where she quickly volunteered to write for free in her spare time. Finding she had a natural flair for writing and an interest in the luxury sector, Jess realised that she wanted to make her passion her career and created her blogging website, The Travelista. With colourful photographs, exquisite hotels and helpful tips, it is clear to see why the blog has gained a legion of fans as well as winning many awards in its three-year existence. It was listed in the Top 10 Luxury Travel Blogs in 2015 by Vuelio and won Highly Commended Travel Blog in the Cosmopolitan Blog Awards 2014 and last year Jess secured the Best Blogger / Journalist prize at the SATOA Blog Awards 2015. Within two years the website was earning Jess a decent income and it now allows her to regularly follow her passion - travelling. So much so that last year she managed to tick off a whole host of destinations last year: Dublin, Barcelona, Cape Town, Tuscany, Monaco, The Maldives, Tanzania, Spain, Dubai, Bath, Cancun and Val d’Isere. Working as a freelance social media manager three days a week, specialising in luxury travel and hotel brands, Jess manages to spend the rest of her time running her website or travelling. 'I aim to travel once a month to a different overseas destination,' she said to MailOnline Travel. 'There’s no time to lie on the beach though! 'I hate routine, so for me, I love the feeling of waking up every day knowing it will be completely different from the last.' The Yorkshire explorer takes trips both paid and unpaid, and either travels on group press trips or is sometimes lucky enough to be able to take a plus one. She advised that networking and maintaining contacts in the industry is key to securing the best trips. And the fruits of her labour were seen by her managing to last year achieve her goal of one trip each month, including visits to Barcelona, Cape Town, Tuscany and Val D'Isere - visiting some of the top luxury hotels. In the Maldives she stayed at the Four Seasons Kuda Huura where she did scuba diving and in Dublin she stayed at The Westbury where golfer Rory McIlroy always stays when he's in town. 'My two standout trips in 2015 had to be Tanzania and The Maldives. The safari in The Serengeti was a once in a lifetime experience that I wouldn’t have ever been able to do had it not been for my writing,' she said. 'There is something magic about seeing such beautiful animals in the wild and the trip was a true taste of Africa.' Despite her lavish lifestyle, Jess maintains that it is all achievable through hard work. 'All of my family live up North and I came to London with absolutely zero contacts, but I am a strong believer in networking and I have worked hard to get my name out there and build my own network,' she said. 'Although my life may look privileged now, I went to a state school and have built my career with absolutely no financial support. 'My biggest passion is writing. It has always been my dream to become a travel writer so I made my blog an online portfolio. 'I got my social media work off the back of running my blog, so it’s proof that launching a blog can really help your career.' Jess has no plans to slow down her busy lifestyle. She is aiming to visit another 12 countries in 2016, and in the future hopes to launch an online magazine for women that will be a one-stop destination for stylish luxury travel.