Master for Webs

Sometimes, the best travel advice comes from the travelers themselves.

Those looking for information on hot destinations in the form of personal anecdotes can click on Concierge.com, where the recently unveiled "travelog" feature shifts the balance of power and makes the user the expert. The site (www.concierge.com) is the online home for the well-established Conde Nast Traveler magazine, and offers readers stories by the site's own cadre of experts, as well as photos and articles from the magazine. But three weeks ago, Concierge.com rolled out the Travelog, inviting visitors to create their own Web pages and share their stories and photos from personal travels. The travelogs range from basic destination ratings to more thorough entries, including

excerpts from journals, the trip's hits and misses, and hotel reviews. The personal travelogs are then listed by destination, and are shared with site visitors, who can post comments or questions in response to the entries or photos. "We feel that by being able to tap into the community, which has far broader experience than any one writer could have, we can give our users multiple points of view that would be helpful," says Jonathan Fishel, general manager of Concierge.com. "We think it'll become powerful over time." In one travelog, a New York couple wrote of their recent trip to Java and listed "discussing riots with a sexist political student" as their most memorable experience with a local. The couple also included colorful photos of sarongs, temples, and a live volcano. Concierge.com, which boasts monthly traffic of 700,000 unique users since its launch in August 1999, also offers Insider Guides, written by correspondents in 10 different cities. The monthly updates highlight special events for travelers, such as holiday window dressing in New York City or dolphin watching off the coasts of Hong Kong. According to Mr. Fishel, the correspondents write an average of 12 or 13 reviews of restaurants, nightlife venues, and hotels in their city. "They'll be able to tell you that in April, these are the things you really should do in Barcelona, as if you had a friend in that city."

Leave a Reply

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website

Submit Comment