A large wall covered in big colorful photos
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Ever come back from an amazing trip with thousands of photos and think, What am I going to do with all of these pictures?

Sure, you can toss them into a digital frame, set a screen saver, or make a photo book. But I’ve always dreamed of something more permanent and visible: a big, bold travel photo wall.

After moving into our new condo (with lots of big beautiful blank walls), I finally made it happen.

Here’s how I created my travel photo wall, what worked well, what mistakes I made, and a few lessons from the (sometimes frustrating) process.

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Step 1: Choose the Right Wall and Layout

In our living room, we had a wide, open wall, visible from where we spend most of our time — perfect for a photo feature.

Light yellow walls in an apartment with a brown table in front, flowers in a vase and a square box fan on the floor. A couple large pieces of white paper are taped to the wall.
My blank canvas!

What size prints?

That was a surprisingly hard decision. 8x10s? Too small and cluttered. 16x20s? Too big — and I’d have to cut down the number of photos displayed. I settled on 12×12” prints as the ideal middle ground.

With a 102″ wide wall, I used Excel to lay out a clean grid: 24 prints with 4″ of space between each. This spacing helps each photo stand on its own without looking crowded.

A grid showing square photos in rows and columns - this was the planning map for my travel photo wall.
Planning the images and the spacing

Step 2: Keep It Flexible (and Avoid a Wall Full of Nail Holes)

Framing 24 pictures was going to be really expensive — and put 24 holes in our brand new wall. So after a ton of research, I settled on 3M Command Poster Strips, which are removable* and will let me rearrange or add new photos later.

I left them unframed and attached them directly to the painted wall.

* Lesson #1: Not all adhesives are truly “removable” or “repositionable.” Many become permanent after a few minutes or hours. Be sure to read the fine print AND the reviews.

Blank backside of a square photo with adhesive strips attached in each corner, plus a box of Command strips on the table next to it.

Step 3: Pick Your Favorite Photos (Yes, This Is the Hardest Part)

I was trying to represent a cross-section of our travels over the past few years — ideally one perfect photo per country. I also wanted a mix of architectural shots, mountain vistas, wildlife, birds, sunsets, and unique cultural moments.

The toughest challenge? Narrowing down thousands of incredible shots — especially from places like our African safari — into just a few favorites. (Spoiler: I picked five from that trip!)

Lesson #2: Perfection is impossible. Instead, pick the images that bring you joy — the ones that make you smile every time they show up on your screen saver.

On my Excel spreadsheet grid, I carefully arranged my chosen photos to create balance – no mountain views next to each other, no buildings next to each other, the African animals spread out, the colors balanced.

Even during the hanging process, I had to pivot and switch a couple of photos around.

Step 4: Hang Like a Pro (Without Losing Your Mind)

I started by painstakingly measuring each photo placement with a plastic ruler and pencil. It was slow, frustrating, and still didn’t give me straight lines. Each photo was taking me 20-30 minutes to hang!

Mistake #1: Trying to be too perfect wastes time — and it doesn’t really matter because

Lesson #3: “Close enough” really is good enough. Trust your eyes more than your ruler.

Light yellow wall with two columns and four rows of photos taped up - and a ladder to the right of the pictures. The start of a travel photo wall.
First two columns are up!

Eventually, I switched tactics:

Lesson #4: Using an 18″ level to draw out straight horizontal and vertical lines made the process faster and more accurate. Once the first column was up and aligned, everything else snapped into place. And it was so much FASTER! I hung the last 8 images in about 30 minutes.

Woman (me) using a level to make sure photos are lined up straight on the travel photo wall.
Pencil marks on the wall, showing where the sides of the photo will be placed, relative to the photos already on the wall above and to the left.

Lesson #5: A plastic ruler is perfect for smoothing out air bubbles behind each print — essential for that flat, finished look.

16 photos arranged on wall in a 4 by 4 grid. Ladder and tools wait nearby.
Next two columns are up!

The Final Result

Once I stepped back and looked at the finished wall, it hit me: I’d created something that captured the spirit of our adventures — across continents, cultures, and moments.

Lesson #6?/Mistake #2?: I chose glossy prints to get vibrant, rich colors — and they look amazing. But I didn’t account for the glare from nearby lights. If you have bright lighting or tons of sunlight flowing into the room, matte might be the better choice.

A Travel Photo Wall showing 24 square photos mounted, six across by four down. A mix of mountain vistas, famous buildings and temples, wild animals and birds.

Still, when I sit on the living room couch off to the side, then there is no glare. So Glossy was the way to go for me!

My travel photo Wall showing 24 square photos mounted, six across by four down. A brown table stands in front of the light yellow wall.

Mistake #3: Since I didn’t use frames, cropping is very important. A few of my photos that had white sky or clouds along the edges that look a little “unfinished”. Now I wish I had cropped a few of them a little tighter to bring a darker color to the edges.

A close up shot of a Male Lion in the Serengeti, so close you can see the details of each hair on his mane.
The horizon line on the top makes this photo look crooked on the wall.
Enormous Elephant approaching across the grasslands of the Serengeti with his trunk twisted up to his mouth.
I should have color corrected the sky to be a slightly darker gray for more definition.

What You’ll Need

  • Photo prints in whatever size you choose (I got mine from Walmart.com)
  • Plastic 12″ ruler
  • Sharp Pencil with a good quality eraser
  • 18″ or 24″ Level
  • Ladder
  • 3M Command Poster Strips – 4 per print
A black step ladder shows tools on the top step, including a red level, a plastic ruler and a pencil. A long orange level rests against the wall.

Total Cost

I was very happy with the quality of the prints from Walmart.com. As long as you use clear, high resolution photos and you crop them well, you will get stunning pictures.

But I was very surprised when the prints came rolled up. It took several days of placing them under something heavy to get them to lay flat again.

Final Thoughts on Creating a Travel Photo Wall

Creating this travel photo wall was part design project, part nostalgia trip — and 100% worth the effort. Whether you’re an avid traveler or just want to display your favorite memories, a photo wall is a beautiful, personal way to turn your empty walls into a Showcase.

And best of all? You get to relive your travel memories every time you walk by.

Wall showing 24 square photos mounted, six across by four down.

Some Other Examples

There are so many unique ways to create a Photo Wall – here are some other examples I have found over the years:

More Information

Here are some more posts about Traveling, Bucket Lists, Safaris, Photography and Cameras, including some that I’m still working on. If you’d like to receive emails when I’ve posted new content to the site, please complete the short form above.


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