Social Networks Playing Big Role in Travel

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“What, me, Guidebooks?” – Is something the ultra-hip, still gap-toothed, contemporary version of Alfred E. Neuman would say. The days of hardcopy guide books are nearing an end. Move over paper, for the era of ‘e-nteractive’ travel is here. Social Networks are the order of the day when it comes to many things, and travel is no exception. An increasing number of travelers are posting content online, sharing everything from hotel stays and must-visit venues to travel faux pas and alerts. What’s even better is that travel social networks offer you a platform to seek information from trusted sources, like from your circle of friends. According to a global survey by Frommer’s Unlimited, 65% of respondents said that they use social networks for travel related purposes. And this percentage is only poised to increase. Which are the top sites that provide accurate travel information and what is it that makes Social networking so vital to travel? Read on.

  • Stay Updated: Social Networks for travel make it easier to garner personalized advice and suggestions from your circle of friends. From people who have been there and done that to ardent bloggers who take intense pride in sharing accurate, albeit vicarious knowledge, there is no dearth of information available to the eager traveler. You will rediscover the value of the hashtag or the status bar, on seeing the countless valuable responses to a niggling question that just popped up before or during your travel.
  • Share on the go: Click, upload and let the whole world know. Share moving moments, impromptu pictures and snippets of travel memoirs while on the go. You may discover that there is a lot more to a place than meets the eye as soon as the responses to your travel post start pouring in.
  • Niche Travel Sites: There are travel networks galore for each field of travel. Location-based social networks such as Foursquare and Gowalla take personalised reviews and socializing to a whole new level. This is a list of top five travel social networks that have taken the world by storm.
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  1. TripAdvisor – Direct reviews from the horse’s mouth. No noenese travel review site that catalogs more than 212,000 hotels and 74,000 attractions in over 30,000 destinations worldwide.
  2. Tripatini – Its USP? Ask the Travel expert. Gain direct access to professionals who can make your travel experience simple and satisfying.
  3. Lonely Planet Thorntree Forum – If you haven’t heard of Lonely Planet, you probably were marooned on an island since the past decade. Probably the same island that was featured on LP’s guidebook cover. Guidebooks galore, a great travel community, forums that are packed with tips and advice. You couldn’t ask for more.
  4. Dopplr – Share your travel plans with a personal group of friends, and embark on a journey of smart travel. You never know when you might bump into a familiar face, in an unfamiliar part of the world.
  5. WAYN – Where Are You Now? Connect with like-minded people with similar travel tastes. In short, travel networking with a theme.