I like that, or maybe an option to create static HTML pages with everything baked in, that you can download. Hopefully with more active users I'll get a clearer picture of what users want and need in that regard.
Regarding monetization, right now my goal is to make this as useful and attractive as possible to people. Down the road I'd really like a donations/pwyw approach. For me travel and generosity go hand in hand, so I think it would be meaningful. Not sure if it would work, but I'd be willing to give it a try.
I agree that some type of download would be nice to have just in case. I don't know what format to use.
Signing up and playing around a bit is on my todo list for the end of the week. A couple questions.
Do the locations have any function or are they just for reading?
Are the albums shared by default?
Have you considered a way to let a couple people add to a single trip album? I find that coordinating pictures after a trip can be a challenge, from receiving a zipped dump of all pictures to just getting 1 or 2 by text. If I went on a weekend bike trip with 3 friends it would be kind of nice to let them put a few pictures in and have a semi collaborative album. This might be going too far from your goal, but it's been an idea I've been thinking about as I stopped using instagram for sharing trip pictures with friends on those trips.
The locations are also used to show the route on a map. You can actually see it by clicking on a yellow location marker. It's a bit hidden because the UI is still a bit buggy, so until I get it fixed it's more of an easter egg.
The "MVP" for collaborative albums would be sharing an account. At this point you could even create a new account just for the trip, so your friends don't get access to your other photos. I realize it's not ideal, but maybe it's enough to try it out?
The albums are shared insofar as anyone with the link can see them and they get indexed by google. But there is no central feed where albums or photos might appear. Adding password protection and a noindex option on a per-album basis is also on my list.
Is this a free service, taking donations or do you plan on charging at some point?