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Reviews 4.2.

76,091 total

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Clean n comfortable room. Accessible from causeway n shopping mall

Clean n comfortable room. Complimentary cake n card n balloon for our anniversary. Only bidet not functioning properly. Else all good. Water dispenser outside room/pathway. Only room temperature. Parking is myr5 per day, activate 30mins upon leaving. Breakfast hv wide selections. Well managed by staff though heavy traffic in the morning to breakfast. Connected to shopping mall with movie theatre. Lots of food though ex for Malaysian standard.

Date of experience : April 13, 2024

Reply from Trip.com

Hi Raviah Maidu, Thank you so much for your time in leaving this positive review. I am delighted to know that you are satisfied with your stay. Our user-friendly application/website is designed to provide you with a range of options to plan your desired travel or vacation. We will continue to improve our services to ensure that you have the best possible experience with us. Thank you once again for choosing Trip.com, and we look forward to embarking on a beautiful journey with you soon. Best regards, Emilia Trip.com

Wonderful Customer Service

I encountered a problem with regards to my hotel booking during one of my trips. I sent a review of my experience and received an email from Andy inquiring on the details of the situation. After some email back and forth, Andy provided a feedback as to what happened and the resolution made by their team. This not only gave me the assurance that trip.com value their clients but they also ensured that the same situation will not happen in the future to other travelers.

Date of experience : April 10, 2024

Hi JU, Thank you so much for taking the time to leave such a wonderful review. Your willingness to share your experience with our customer support means a lot to us. Please know that we are dedicated to consistently providing the best customer experience possible. Your feedback serves as a great motivation for us to continue improving and surpassing our customers' expectations. Once again, we sincerely appreciate your choice in selecting our services, and we hope you have an incredible day. Best regards, Emilia Trip.com

Have used it twice for flight bookings…

Have used it twice for flight bookings and it had been a good experience so far, ticket issuance takes some time after payment but it is still safe. Unfortunately I had to cancel my ticket once where airline denied any compensation but trip.com provided me small voucher which was not enough but still a good gesture from the company.

Date of experience : April 16, 2024

Hi NISHANT AGARWAL, Thank you for taking the time to leave us this feedback. We are delighted to hear that you appreciate the convenience our APP/Website provides to our customers. We are committed to continuing this level of service and providing even more competitive deals and offers for our customers. We appreciate your continued support and look forward to serving you on your next journey with us. Thank you once again for choosing us. Best regards, Ella Trip.com

I took a trip to Florida during my…

I took a trip to Florida during my vacation in the USA to Puerto Rico, Florida and Georgia and it was very nice. I got to the airport and thought the weather was really nice. I also got a budget fare from Frontier fairly easily and there was little wait between when I purchased the ticket until when I was at my ultimate destination.

Date of experience : January 21, 2024

Hi Nicole Oliver, We appreciate your feedback and are glad to hear that you find our APP/Website convenient for our customers. Our team is committed to upholding this level of service and constantly enhancing it to offer even more attractive deals and offers for our valued customers. We sincerely appreciate your continued support, and we're excited to serve you on your next journey with us. Once again, thank you for choosing us as your preferred option. Best regards, Avery Trip.com

Accurate and reliable

Accurate and reliable. Hotel pricing comes slightly higher than Booking.com and Agoda but comes with good deals. Flights sometimes come with free lounge access if leaving from KLIA1. I've been using Trip.com since they started as Ctrip. The user interface is also easy to the eyes, and easy to navigate around. During Covid, they managed refunds for my flight promptly.

Date of experience : April 06, 2024

Hi Arlia Hashim, Thank you for providing your feedback. We're thrilled to hear that you find our APP/Website convenient for our customers. Rest assured, we are committed to maintaining this level of service and striving to offer even more competitive deals and promotions to enhance the experience for our customers. Your continued support means a lot to us, and we can't wait to serve you on your future journeys with us. Thank you once again for choosing us. Best regards, Kylie Trip.com

I was so devastated and the level of…

I was so devastated and the level of stress is unexplainable and I thought no more chance to retrieve my booking because of error while I'm making new flight booking however I'm grateful for all the staff who helped me all the way to get my ticket back.Thank you Jessie you are so nice,kind and accomodating,Best customer service I ever experienced.Friendly,I feel the empathy and the eagerness to help me.Thank you Karol,the manager as well for the quick response and help me to process the investigation.Thank you very much for the unforgetable experience. 31574538850

Date of experience : April 15, 2024

Hi may balabbo, We greatly appreciate the time you took to leave such a positive review and share your experience with our customer support. Rest assured, we are committed to consistently providing the best customer experience to all our customers. Your valuable feedback serves as a strong motivator for us to continuously improve and exceed customer expectations. We eagerly anticipate our next trip with you. Thank you for choosing us, and have a fantastic day. Best regards, Ella Trip.com

Very slow and unreliable!

Very slow and unreliable! When it comes to canceling a booking, the process takes forever. It took me 12 hours to cancel a train ticket, and eventually, they were sold out. Also, once you purchase airline tickets, they redirect you to the airline to make any changes instead of handling it themselves. I find the customer service hours very inconvenient and ridiculous. Get it together, TRIP!

Date of experience : April 14, 2024

Dear CTO, Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused. Please be assured that we will check it further and reach out to you directly. We are committed to providing the best possible experience for our customers. We appreciate you taking the time to contact us and share your feedback. Best regards, Victoria Trip.com

Support and contact

As a customer, it is important for me to follow up and be committed by the seller to the service and product, my experience in buying flights from Trip.com showed that it is committed and supportive. My friends suggested that I buy tickets directly from the airline, but I used the Trip.com application and now I am completely satisfied that I used this application. All flight related messages, changes, are available and support is also in contact with you to result. Thanks Trip.com team.

Hi Maria, We sincerely value the time you invested in sharing this wonderful review. We're thrilled to learn about your positive experience with our customer support team. We fully recognize the importance of delivering exceptional customer service and strive to provide an unmatched experience for all our customers. Your feedback serves as a motivating factor to consistently uphold our commitment to excellence, surpassing the expectations of our valued customers. Thank you once again for choosing our services, and we wish you a fantastic day filled with joy and satisfaction. Best regards, Skylar Trip.com

Very helpful in changing tickets due to…

Very helpful in changing tickets due to the wrong birthday input for free. Though the enquiry by phone calls were unsuccessful in the beginneirng, the online chat and staff calling back were efficient. The follow up was comprehensive and I was regularly informed with the progress, which let me feel Trip.com was with me and did not put the case aside. This is a big difference from other booking apps which I have used in the past.

Date of experience : April 02, 2024

Hi AChan, Thank you for taking the time to provide this lovely review. We truly appreciate hearing about your experience with our customer support. Please be assured that we strive every day to deliver exceptional customer experiences. Your feedback serves as a source of motivation for us to continually improve and surpass our customers' expectations. Thank you again for choosing us, and we sincerely hope you have a fantastic day. Best regards, Natalie Trip.com

A full day to immerse in the magic of Malaysia.

A full day to immerse in the magic of Malaysia. the day started with a visit to Malaysia’s Hindu religious shrine and temple and then to the hinterlands - immersed in beautiful surrounds and endless shopping at brand outlets. Terrific tour guide with great humour

Hi Abby, Thank you for your kind words. We are so glad to hear that you are satisfied with our service. Here at Trip.com, we strive to provide the best customer service experience possible and your feedback is invaluable to us. We look forward to continuing to provide you with great service in the future. Best regards, Angelina Trip.com

Have a ticket to the conflict /warzone…

Had a ticket to the conflict /warzone in Palestine/Israel to do some neutral humanitarian. (I was there in Oct-Feb also and can provide previous ticket copy) My flight had been changed which caused a lot of problems but trip were able to adapt to the situation once they had the full information and understanding of the situation. Sometimes the policy cannot accommodate for a unique situation but a good member of staff can, so thanks to Gaby and other staff members that resolved this speedily on a quickly changing situation. Thanks Trip.com

Dear Ryan Birks, We acknowledge your concern and appreciate you bringing it to our notice. We apologize for any inconvenience caused and assure you that we will check it further and get in touch with you directly. Your feedback is of great importance to us, and we are treating it with the utmost seriousness. We thank you for your patience and understanding in this matter. Best regards, Madeline Trip.com

I had been looking for tickets on…

I had been looking for tickets on several different sites for a last minute emergency trip and thank goodness for Trip.com. No joke, this saved me so much money, brain cells and sanity. I've only used it once and I highly recommend. Most definitely worth it.

Hi Xena Moeai, We greatly appreciate the time you've taken to share this review. We are delighted to hear about your positive experience with our customer support. We deeply understand the importance of delivering exceptional customer service, and we strive tirelessly each day to provide an unmatched experience for our customers. Your feedback is an inspiration for us to continue our unwavering commitment to providing the best services and exceeding the expectations of our valued customers. Once again, we express our gratitude for choosing us, and we sincerely hope you have a truly fantastic day. Best regards, Alexandra Trip.com

Good price and trustworthy

We booked our hotel and train tickets for our Korea trip through trip.com. The hotel price was competitive and it was convenient to book the train tickets. I like that we can selected the car number and seats by ourselves. I used other site before and the seats were random. Everything went smoothly. No unexpected problem at all :)

Date of experience : April 12, 2024

Hi Karn, Thank you for taking the time to update your feedback. We are delighted to hear that you find our app/website easy to use. Your satisfaction is always our motivation to improve. We are committed to continuing this level of service and providing even more competitive deals and offers for our customers. We appreciate your continued support and look forward to serving you on your next journey with us. Thank you once again for choosing Trip.com. Best regards, Riley Trip.com

Trip is easy to use and very informative

Trip is easy to use and very informative, especially about the built and renovated year of the building. But it is more helpful if there is a clear information or additional one if I may request about directly connected to mrt station underground or on street. Thanks.

Date of experience : April 07, 2024

Hi Erwin/Simardjo, Thank you for taking the time to update your feedback. We are delighted to hear that you find our app/website easy to use. Your satisfaction is always our motivation to improve. We are committed to continuing this level of service and providing even more competitive deals and offers for our customers. We appreciate your continued support and look forward to serving you on your next journey with us. Thank you once again for choosing Trip.com. Best regards, Layla Trip.com

Smooth reservation process for hotel…

Smooth reservation process for hotel and train. It would be good if you can enable us to directly contact the property via Trip.com message instead of only phone call is allowed to facilitate communication before trip. It is costly to call abroad before our trip.

Date of experience : April 11, 2024

Hi SH, Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your valuable feedback. We appreciate your effort in writing a review for us. At Trip.com, we are committed to providing our customers with the best deals and offers in the market, and we are pleased to hear that you find them interesting and affordable. We will continue to work hard to improve our services and provide even more competitive deals for our customers. We hope that you will continue to use our app/website and find a deal that suits your needs. Thank you once again for choosing Trip.com, and we look forward to serving you in the future. Best regards, Ella Trip.com

Better Reach!!

I was not getting appropriate location through other competitive sites and Trip. Com easily offered multiple of them. This shows their reach. Thank you Trip.Com.

Hi Jay Shankar Mukherjee, We appreciate your feedback and are glad to hear that you find our APP/Website convenient for our customers. Our team is committed to upholding this level of service and constantly enhancing it to offer even more attractive deals and offers for our valued customers. We sincerely appreciate your continued support, and we're excited to serve you on your next journey with us. Once again, thank you for choosing us as your preferred option. Best regards, Ellie Trip.com

Convenient hassle free booking…

We booked both China hotel accommodations and train tickets. Convenience Trip.com facilitated that all on the app and was easy to use. Only thing i did not appreciate was having to pay in advance instead at the hotels which makes cancelation and changes a little inconvenient.

Hi Joey Lee, Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your positive feedback. We are thrilled to hear that you were satisfied with our APP/Website, and your kind words have made our day. At Trip.com, we are committed to providing our customers with the best possible deals and offers. We are pleased to hear that you have found our app/website useful, and we encourage you to continue using it to find more deals that meet your needs. We look forward to serving you on your next journey with us soon. Thank you once again for choosing Trip.com. Best regards, Madeline Trip.com

Poor service, pushy

The travel agent doesn't work at the best interest of their customers. I booked tickets Bristol-Athens (round journey) from Trip.com. However, airline canceled the return flight firstly, so I asked for an alternative flight from Athens to London. Later on, the same airline canceled the out bound (Bristol to Athens), so this time I opt for cancellation of both ways. However, trip.com says they can only provide me the refund of the outbound cancellation. And the return journey, they said it is the airline's policy not to provide a full refund. In a chat service, I asked trip.com (their Success team) to investigate this and communicate with airline. However, the reply from trip.com is very pushy and provide no solution. So I contacted the airline myself, who offered apologies and full refund on both ways. I will not book anything through trip.com again.

Dear Shan Hua, Thank you for taking the time to contact us. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience you may have encountered. Please be assured that we will investigate the matter and reach out to you. We value your feedback and appreciate your patience. Thank you again for bringing this to our attention. Best regards, Skylar Trip.com

After my previous negative review they said they would respond to me

After my previous negative review they said they will contact me on the reply to this review. It is a lie. They didn't even attempt to reply to me. They must just have an AI bot posting replies to these negative reviews to make them look less bad

Dear Jake Alfred, Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We apologize for the negative experience you had with us. Kindly know that we will double-check the situation and contact you directly. We take customer service very seriously and we will take the necessary steps to ensure we improve our customer service skills. Thank you for your feedback and we hope you continue to have a pleasant experience with us. Best regards, Evelyn Trip.com

Good experience, no issues

Booked a far away trip for a great deal using this site, using China Eastern airline. No issues whatsoever! Their app worked great in terms of getting status updates about the flights and had a handy overview of my itinerary.

Hi ROBIN, We appreciate you providing this positive feedback. It's wonderful to know that you find our APP/Website convenient for our customers. We are committed to delivering and enhancing this level of service, continuously striving to offer even better deals and promotions for our customers. Your ongoing support holds immense value to us, and we eagerly look forward to assisting you on your next journey with us. Thank you once again for choosing us. Best regards, Evelyn Trip.com

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The Most Trusted Travel-Review Sites

Hundreds of online platforms post traveler reviews, but only a handful police recommendations for fake or promotional content. Which ones should you rely on when planning a trip? Our expert weighs in.

Heading out the door? Read this article on the Outside app available now on iOS devices for members! >","name":"in-content-cta","type":"link"}}'>Download the app .

Any number of concerns are on our radar as we plan our next trip, from serious issues like how destinations are working to mitigate tourists’ environmental impact to inconveniences like months-long passport wait times. In this column, our travel expert addresses your questions about how to navigate the world. 

There are so many online review platforms out there—Google, Tripadvisor, Yelp. When I’m planning a trip and looking into hotels and activities, which one should I trust the most? —After Good Advice

Online, everyone has an opinion. Even seasoned travelers can find themselves easily led down the rabbit hole of online review platforms and come out overwhelmed.

A friend of mine was recently considering vacationing in Hawaii and interested in the Hana-Maui Resort. Five-star reviews on Tripadvisor tout the property as a 2022 Tripadvisor Travelers’ Choice winner, with comments highlighting it as “Exceptional” and a “Bungalow in Paradise,” though others cautioned, “Not Quite as Expected” and “Don’t Stay Here.”

When she looked further into the critiques, she discovered that the negative reviews complained of the lack of air-conditioning and TVs in rooms (who goes to Maui to watch TV?) and of wind and rain during their stays—the latter something no hotel could remedy. Knowing I live part-time on Maui, she reached out to see if I had any first-hand intel. The handful of negative comments on varying review sites gave her pause.

I believe nothing compares to word-of-mouth recommendations, particularly from someone who knows you and your travel tastes. My friend relayed that she and her husband were planning to use points to stay at a trio of Hyatt properties on Maui—in addition to the Hana-Maui Resort, they’d booked the Andaz in Wailea, and Hyatt Regency near Lahaina, both tony, amenity-laden areas on the south and west coasts, respectively.

The town of Hana, on the eastern side of the island, is the exact opposite: remote, undeveloped, sleepy. I knew my friend and her husband preferred the ocean to hiking, and they loved restaurants and nightlife. While I thought the Hana-Maui Resort was heaven, I knew they’d be bored to death and said as much.

“We’re not perfect, but we are constantly working to stay one step ahead of the fraudsters,” says Brian Hoyt, a spokesperson at Tripadvisor.

Trust plays a huge role in our travel decisions. When a friend who shares your tastes posts rave reviews about a hotel or restaurant on their Facebook page, you’re more likely to check it out. When we don’t have personal recommendations to go off, we tend to turn to review sites to see what others thought of it.

Online reviews can be a great tool for anyone planning trips, as well as for businesses looking to drum up interest from prospective adventure seekers. But how do you know which reviews and which platforms to trust?

Where to Find Reliable Reviews

For starters: no one site can (or should) be considered the only option. Because users are providing the information, the sites can inadvertently post misinformation, says Nick Ewen, director of content at The Points Guy, a travel-resource site that reaches over seven million people each month. It’s best to use multiple sites, as casting a wide net allows for a wide variety of perspectives.

Based on my interviews with dozens of travelers and industry veterans, including agents, hotel owners, and tour operators, Google, Tripadvisor, Trustpilot, and Yelp have the most reliable user-generated content. These companies have policies in place to ensure the trustworthiness of the reviews that appear and allow users to dispute content or to click icons within the post to flag suspicions, such as a review that’s promotional or not based on a genuine experience.

Tripadvisor , the world’s largest travel-guidance platform with more than one billion total reviews, has an investigations team of experts specializing in network forensics and fraud detection to help spot suspicious reviews. Shady posts often include review boosting, where a business owner asks someone connected to their company to sing their praises; review vandalism, in which someone tries to slander a business with negative reviews; or review optimization, which occurs when companies are paid to falsify reviews on a business’s behalf.

“We’re not perfect, but we are constantly working to stay one step ahead of the fraudsters,” says Brian Hoyt, a spokesperson at Tripadvisor. Last year, 1.3 million reviews were identified as fake and removed from the platform, and 72 percent were caught before being posted, he says.

Yelp also maintains a team of moderators who keep a hawkish eye out for companies that might be engaging in compensated or incentivized review behavior, which is strictly prohibited. In 2022, Yelp closed more than 77,400 user accounts for violating such policies. Both Google and Trustpilot, too, use software to automatically screen for fake reviews or promotional content.

Tips for Navigating Travel-Review Platforms

Even when you feel solid about a site, it doesn’t mean you’re immune to the barrage of opinions, good and bad. Here’s how to filter what you’re finding.

1. Consider When the Content Was Posted

The more recent the review, the more relevant an experience might be, but older reviews can paint a picture of more consistent experiences had by travelers over time. If reviews suddenly go from positive to less than glowing, consider whether the hotel, restaurant, or tour operator might be under new ownership. If someone is complaining about limited things to do at a resort while visiting in the off-season, that won’t apply if you’re planning to visit during peak periods, says Ewen. And remember: post-pandemic, the service industry continues to lack sufficient personnel; as a result, you might see more negative reviews than positive ones on this front.

2. Read Beyond the Stars

Everyone has different travel preferences, so take time to read the actual review closely, whether it’s a five- or one-star rating, says Ewen. “Someone might give an all-inclusive resort a one-star review because they were traveling for their honeymoon and couldn’t stand all of the families,” he says. “That’s hardly a negative if you’re traveling with your kids.”

3. Look for Consistency

Gather insight across review platforms to look for trends. If a hotel boasts high marks on multiple sites, chances are the reviews are accurate and it’s great. If it has mixed ratings, however, you may want to reconsider. Similarly, when looking at tour operators that run trips in multiple destinations, make sure you’re seeing positive reviews in all of those places but specifically where you’re headed. If, for example, its experiences in California are five-star but those in Utah and Colorado have been rated as mediocre, you might want to do more research or even call the outfitter and enquire about the inconsistency.

4. Use Search Filters to Save Time

As noted, first make sure you’re sorting remarks by most recent. Then use any other filters to zero in on things like the time of year you’re visiting (Tripadvisor has this functionality), specific mentions of amenities (Google has this), or even specific keywords you want to search, such as surfing or hiking (both Tripadvisor and Google offer this), recommends Ewen. With restaurants and hotels, he typically starts a search with Google, as it provides both the location and star rating together.

5. Take Bad Reviews with a Grain of Salt

You can’t please everyone. When I looked for comments about Yellowstone National Park, one of America’s most visited destinations, on Google Reviews visitors lamented, “There was no service and no way to update my Instagram” and “They don’t even let you touch the geysers, and there’s only black and grizzly bears no panda.” Before you write off an experience because of some bad reviews, take the time to actually read the criticism and decide whether it’s warranted. If there’s one bad review but 20 great ones, likely someone had a bad day.

It’s also worth noting whether anyone from the company responded to a negative post. “A bad review is a great opportunity to showcase your true colors,” says Melanie Fisher, an Oregon-based travel agent who also rents a property on Airbnb. “As the business owner, how you respond is very important. If you come across as rude and condescending, you are just confirming the bad review was deserving. Instead, if you respond, explaining how you couldn’t meet the customer’s needs—unsafe, unrealistic, never agreed upon, natural disaster—and you did everything in your power to make it right, others will understand more about you and your business—and in most cases respect the business more.”

Go Beyond the Reviews for Information

Tripadvisor’s forums and journalist-reported travel stories , on topics like family-friendly Greek islands and epic road trips in Ireland, can offer helpful vacation tips and trip inspiration. And take a gander at traveler- or diner-submitted photos. Yelp’s Ask the Community feature allows users to post queries for Yelpers to weigh in on, like how much time you should budget for a visit to New York City’s Museum of Natural History (at minimum four hours).

When looking for activities, Ewen’s first stop is often the website of the local tourism board. “While these marketing organizations have a vested interest in promoting the destination, they also have no incentive to send you on a bad tour, because that’s a loss for the destination itself,” he says. “Virtually every tour or activity I have booked in this way has been positive.”

Magazines, both print and digital (like Outside ), are another great source to legitimize any opinions you read on user-generated review sites. Additionally, the social-media feed of a company can provide insight. Have travelers left positive comments on a hotel or tour operator’s Instagram or Facebook feed? Has that company made an effort to interact with customers? Finally, if you’re mid-trip and still looking for recommendations, chat up the locals. I’ve discovered some of my most memorable meals and hikes based on tips from a bartender.

Have a question of your own? Drop us a line at [email protected] .  

Outside correspondent Jen Murphy is one of the most well-traveled people we know, and we’ve long relied on her expert advice about awesome adventures and how to get there in a sane way.

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See more, plan less – try Google Trips

Sep 19, 2016

[[read-time]] min read

We wanted to reduce the hassle and help travelers enjoy their hard-earned vacations. So today, we’re introducing a new mobile app to help you instantly plan each day of your trip with just a few taps of your finger:  Google Trips .

Google Trips is a personalized tour guide in your pocket. Each trip contains key categories of information, including day plans, reservations, things to do, food & drink, and more, so you have everything you need at your fingertips. The entire app is available offline — simply tap the “Download” button under each trip to save it to your phone.

Choose your own adventure

For the top 200 cities in the world, Google Trips shows you a variety of day plans featuring the most popular daily itineraries. We’ve automatically assembled the most popular sights, attractions, and local gems into a full day’s tour — all based on historic visits by other travelers. Say you’re visiting Barcelona. You can choose from multiple day plans, like “Eixample District,” which maps out the can’t-miss buildings by Antoni Gaudi, the famous Spanish architect.

Plan each day of your trip like magic

Say your friends told you that you have to see the Sagrada Familia — and you’re looking for suggestions on things to do around that spot. Press the “+” button in the day plans tile to jump into a map view containing all the top attractions in your destination. If you’re time constrained, you can specify above the map whether you have just the morning or afternoon, versus a full day. Then simply tap and pin the Sagrada Familia to build your itinerary around it. Google Trips automatically fills in the day for you. If you want more options, tap the “magic wand” button for more nearby sights. You can pin any new spots you like, and if you want even more, each tap of the “magic wand” instantly gives you a new itinerary with updated nearby attractions like Palau Macaya or Parc del Guinardo, so you can build your own custom itinerary in minutes while munching on your morning churro.

All your travel info, all in one place

Keeping track of all your flight, hotel, car and restaurant reservations when you travel can be tough. With Google Trips, all your travel reservations are automatically gathered from Gmail and organized for you into individual trips, so you don’t have to search and dig up those emails. They’re waiting for you within the reservations tile, even without WiFi.

Vacations are a chance to recharge and experience new places and cultures. For your next trip, let us help you see all the sights you want to see, without all the work. Google Trips, available now on  Android  and  iOS , has you covered from departure to return.

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How important is Tripadvisor compared with Google? What should you steer your customers towards?

The power of Tripadvisor is rapidly diminishing. Google, on the other hand, is stronger than ever , consistently being used by travellers in NZ and Australia as THE place to share online reviews. In fact, 70% of people , when given a choice, decide to share reviews on Google, 15% on TripAdvisor and 15% on Facebook Recommendations *. ‍

Tripadvisor is still a powerful platform that can help you get bookings, but Google reviews is taking the crown as the most influential decision-making tool for most customers.

‍ Getting 5-star Google reviews from customers is also helping businesses boost their search presence. The more 5-star reviews you have, the higher relevance Google will give your web page in search results.

Google says: ‍

“Our algorithms might decide that a business that’s farther away from your location is more likely to have what you’re looking for than a business that’s closer and therefore rank it higher in local results.”

→ A quick look at movements Google has made in tourism in the last few years:

The Google Travels website was launched in 2019, pulling together flights, hotels and vacation packages, as well as a variety of trip-planning tools and recommendations , all on one page. The features are also available in Google Search and Google Maps, making Google Maps more of a super-app for travel, dining, events, spa appointments, and more. On top of that, Google can often proactively ask people for a review when it has seen your phone has visited a certain business. ‍

When your customers search for “things to do”, Google provides everything they need to know , from pricing to FAQ’s to reviews, right at their fingertips .

Are you doing everything you can to build the best Google profile?

It’s important to make sure that your Google My Business details and business hours are always up to date and correct . Set up FAQs and share a link to your Google reviews page with your customers to make it easy for them to review — Yonder can help any business automate this .

‍ Yonder can also help you save time when it comes to monitoring and responding to your online reviews , which is something Google highly recommends doing: “When you reply to reviews, it shows that you value your customers and their feedback . High-quality, positive reviews from your customers can improve your business visibility and increase the likelihood that a shopper will visit your location.”

*This split is measured when given only three options of Google, Tripadvisor and Facebook reviews.

How exceptional businesses use customer feedback to grow

Get the guide

Start turning customers to raving reviews today, come chat with us today, a few of our customers.

TripIt vs Google Trips

We give you the lowdown on which to use

Organizing flight reservations, booking hotels, and renting a car can be both frustrating and time consuming. Fortunately, there are free travel apps that can not only consolidate all of these tasks but also give you tips on your travel destination.

Of all the travel apps out there, which one is best for you? How do you know which to use? There are several options, but we’ve narrowed it down to two: Google Trips and TripIt.

Here’s a list of must-haves when it comes to choosing the right service:

• Easy to use and mostly automatic itinerary creation
• The ability to share an itinerary with others
• Automatic updates for flight changes
• Data synchronization across multiple devices
• Smooth and easy-to-use user interface

Tip: You might also like to use a travel app that helps you find travel deals .

TripIt provides both a free and paid service ($49 a year) for those who travel frequently. TripIt Pro includes a few extra features like real-time flight alerts, seat tracking, and an alternate flight finder. However, for most of us, the free version should be enough.

TripIt is straightforward in its execution. Simply forward to TripIt all confirmation emails from the services you’ve purchased (e.g., hotels, car rentals, tours), and the app will instantly create a travel schedule that’s right for you. You can also have it scan your email for new confirmations so that it can auto-add and organize them into trips in the app.

The TripIt travel app not only consolidates all services into one place, but also tells you when to arrive at your flight gate, when to pick up your car rental, and when you’re able to check in at your hotel. TripIt even keeps all of your restaurant reservations in one place!

We also really like the alerts you can enable in the TripIt app. You can receive notifications for when booking emails have been received, when an upcoming trip is approaching (as if you’d forget!), and for when the trip itinerary has been shared.

There’s also a neat calendar subscription feature built-in to TripIt so that you can share your travel calendar (as an ICS file) with anyone, and all they have to do is add your feed URL to their calendar. It’s as simple as that to share your travel plans via calendar events.

Google Trips

Google joined in with their own “personalized tour guide in a pocket” app known as Google Trips. When you sign up with Google Trips, Google automatically synchronizes the app with your Gmail account, so reservations are added to your travel schedule immediately, which is super handy. You can also enter your own reservations manually.

The Google Trips app also has an offline mode that lets you open your schedule even when there’s no internet connection, which is perfect when you don’t have cell service or Wi-Fi, and doubles as a battery saver when needed. Offline mode works for your entire destination guide, too.

This is all starting to sound similar right? The big stand out with Google Trips is their combination of data from Google Maps and crowdsourced contributions from what people post about restaurants, tourist attractions, points of interest, and more. The Things to do tab shows local sites such as historical sites, museums, parks, shopping, and kid-friendly places of interest.

Google Trips also has useful information on transportation, including walking routes, ride sharing services, and public transportation. While you’re searching for a ride, you can access information over local dining venues, bars, and clubs, or even a place to get a good cup of coffee.

As an added bonus, Google Trips includes a discount tab, its items of which vary depending on the destination but might include money off things like car rentals, plane tickets, tours, events, and even select restaurants.

If you’re not sure whether you really want to visit any particular place while on your trip, just mark it as a location that you might want to visit, and it’ll be stored in Saved places . This is a great way to plan a rough trip without feeling like you’re tied down to a super-strict schedule. All of your saved places can be browsed on Google Maps for an awesome overlook of all your potential visits.

The Differences

Nobody is stopping you from using both services, but a key difference between TripIt and Google Trips is their travel itinerary features, or Google’s lack thereof. For example, TripIt lets you add an extra traveler who can share suggestions and edit trips, which is extremely useful if you’re bringing someone with you but they have ideas for the trip, too.

What Google Trips does bring to the table is their ability to pull together suggested day trips with a Google Maps plan. This lets you see sites on interesting listings, making the service feel more like a personal e-guidebook.

Plus, Google Trips is simply easier to use. You can install the app, log in with your Google account, and see all your past and upcoming trips in literally seconds. Quickly finding things to do in a new town and locating restaurants on the fly will be what you walk away with when you use Google Trips.

TripIt includes an auto-add feature from email, too, but it doesn’t seem as streamlined. However, it’s a bit more customizable and includes easy-to-use web access (Google Trips can be used online , too). If you like to be hands-on with your trip and store specific details like your passport and driver’s license, you’ll enjoy that app.

Both TripIt and Google Trips are available on Android, and iOS and are absolutely compatible with each other. In other words, you can use both apps at the same time without feeling like they’re tripping over each other.

Founder of Online Tech Tips and managing editor. He began blogging in 2007 and quit his job in 2010 to blog full-time. He has over 15 years of industry experience in IT and holds several technical certifications. Read Aseem's Full Bio

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Google trips: a fantastic (and free) travel app you should download now.

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I don't typically like travel apps, but Google Trips is pretty fantastic. It’s a free app that compiles all your personal travel info (tickets, reservations, etc) and combines that with top spots to see where you’re going.

Just that would be cool, but using the power of big data, Trips goes a step further and helps you plan your adventure based on what you’re interested in and how much time you have.

It’s all wrapped in an easy-to-navigate interface and even better, all the info is available when you’re offline (presuming you downloaded stuff ahead of time). Since it’s free you should check it out now . But if you’re still not convinced, here’s a closer look.

Planning a big trip? Check out  10 Things To Bring On Every International Flight (And 3 Things Not To) ,  Is Verizon’s TravelPass Worth It? ,  Should You Pay in Local Or Home Currency When Traveling? ,  Are Travel SIM Cards Worth It? ,  Is Travel Insurance Worth It? , and  The Best Cellular Plan for Travelers .

Reservations

The part of Trips I find most handy is actually the simplest part of what the app does. It puts all your reservations in one place: Airline tickets, hotel/hostel reservations, etc. Click on an upcoming flight, say, and it gives you the times plus the terminal and gate (if available). The confirmation number is there too, as is a link to the email where Google found the info.

For hotels and hostels, it shows a map too.

That's just the easy part...

Getting Around

The second most handy is the Getting Around section. Arrive in a new place, and there’s always the moment of confusion of how to get from there to the center of town (and/or from there to your accommodation). This section gives you detailed info on how to get from the airport to the city either by public transport, taxi, rental car, and so on. The taxi section even gives estimated fares.

This extends to getting around the city itself. For example, I’m currently in Tokyo, and it talks about the Suica and Pasmo cards, JR Rail Pass, and tips for navigating the elaborate subway system .

Things to Do

By compiling user data and reviews, the Things to Do section has lists of the top things to see in the city, the top things to see near you, and even personalized recommendations. I was skeptical of how accurate the latter could be, but it recommended the Ghibli museum and a few other things that I did find interesting.

Food and Drink

I’ve found crowd-based restaurant recommendations to be pretty inaccurate. Some are indeed good, some are really mediocre. To each their own, it seems. But that’s here too if you want to try.

This is probably the cleverest of the features. Trips builds an itinerary based on the top things to do, and how much time you have.

For example, it gave me a “48 hours in Tokyo” to-do list that included things like the Imperial Palace, the lovely  Shinjuku Gyoen , and more, and in what order to see them to optimize your time. If you’re interested in some of the sights Trips recommends, but not others, you can save the ones you do and add new ones. The itinerary adjusts accordingly. The whole thing is based on some really fascinating math .

There are also pre-built itineraries for things to do with kids, or just see the old part of town, or just see cool architecture, that kind of thing.

The best part about these is if you download the city ahead of time (and there’s multiple places to give you the option to do so) the itinerary, things to do, AND the map of the city are available in airplane mode (so you don’t need to find WiFi or incur roaming charges).

A Few Little Things

Trips isn’t perfect, of course. Not every city is included, though Google claims the “top 200 cities” are, so you should be covered. It’s a little cumbersome to change the itinerary (you need to press the pencil icon at the top to start), but it makes sense to start with a pre-determined route, since to start with a blank slate would be far more intimidating.

But in all, it’s a pretty fantastic app.

If you want to find out more, you can check out the Google Trips webpage , or Google’s blog about it .

Trips is available for free on Android (obviously) and iOS (surprisingly).

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Trip.com has a rating of 1.19 stars from 1,103 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally dissatisfied with their purchases. Reviewers complaining about Trip.com most frequently mention customer service, full refund, and credit card problems. Trip.com ranks 459th among Hotels sites.

• Service 586
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This company responds to reviews on average within 5 hours

What reviewers want you to know

Positive highlights.

• I was able to contact customer service within 30 seconds from their chat system linked easily in my confirmation email.

Critical highlights

• They only refund me for the cancelled flight but not return flight .
• They refused to refund us our money and we lost both our flight tickets which was 1700 dollars.

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Booked hotels, no issues at all! Don't understand the negatives! I needed to ask a question, got a real person (no bot)

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When I paid for tickets on the website, an error occurred that the payment did not go through. I closed the site and moved on. Later I found out that the full amount was withdrawn from my bank account. When I contacted them, they promised to solve it in 24 hours, but for 17 days no one has contacted me or even complained. I do not recommend this site to anyone.

Reviews (1,103)

Reviews that mention popular keywords

Hello Kids F. Thank you for taking the time to leave us this review. We are sincerely sorry for this unpleasant experience that occurred. We'd love to investigate your concern. Please follow the below steps for further assistance. 1. Provide us with your detailed concern, booking number, passenger/guest name, and reserved email during the booking at [email protected] so that we can look into it further. Thank you. 2. Please include a specific indicator on your email subject line: {sitejabber} Thank you for your cooperation and understanding. We are waiting for the next time cooperation. Promino Trip.com

• Comments (1)

Dear Anais, We apologize for the late reply. Per checking the record, we could see that you have reached out to us via another platform as well, and I am pleased that our agent eventually found a solution to your concern. If you need any more information or have any concerns, please feel free to get in touch with us. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Wishing you a wonderful day! Best regards, Andrew Trip.com

Hi Maks, Thank you for your feedback. We are sorry for your experience with your flight reservation. Please send us your booking details at [email protected] so we can investigate your issue further. Kindly include {Sitejabber} in the title of the email so that we can differentiate your concern from others and assist you better. Best regards, Andrew Trip.com

Hi Samantha, Thanks for taking the time to explain the issue to us. I'm delighted our agent has managed to help with your issue. Kindly reach out to us if you have any inquiries. Thank you and we hope you have an incredible day. Best regards, Andrew Trip.com

• Follow Angel F.

Lynx airlines has announced that they will ceased Operations, hence they cancelled my flight. Trip.com stated that my refund is estimated to be processed latest Feb 2025. My booking is on Mar 23 2024. Lynx stated that refund can be processed thru card company. I do not understand why it would take a year for refund to be processed this is unacceptable

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Dear Angel F., I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused and deeply regret that the service you received did not meet your expectations. Please rest assured that we are fully committed to providing you with the utmost support and ensuring that your concerns are addressed promptly and effectively. We will promptly escalate your concern to the relevant team for further assistance, and our dedicated specialists will keep you informed of any developments. Thank you for your patience and understanding in this matter. Best regards, Eugenia Trip.com

Dear Ethan C., Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We are genuinely sorry for the inconvenience regarding your flight reservation. We would love to check your concern. Please follow the below steps for further assistance. 1. Kindly provide us with your detailed concern, booking number, passenger name, and reserved email during the booking at [email protected] 2. Please include a specific indicator in your email subject line: {Sitejabber}. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding. We look forward to your information. Best regards, Destiny Trip.com

Dear margaret r., Thank you for bringing this to our attention. I regret to learn that you have encountered inconvenience. We are sorry for any inconvenience caused to you due to payment failure. Upon checking, I noticed that you have already successfully made a booking in the end and the tickets have been issued. If you still have any other concerns, please feel free to send us a message or email us at [email protected]. We greatly appreciated your understanding and cooperation in this matter. Best regards, Lucia Trip.com

• Follow Tina T.

Horrible customer service. I requested a cancellation within 24 hours of booking, and they have not been able to process the cancellation. This is preventing me from re-booking flights as the airline recognizes duplicate itineraries for the same travel days and thus automatically cancelled my newly re-booked flights. As a third party travel agent, they have no incentive to help you. Avoid at all costs.

Dear Tina T., Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We are genuinely sorry for the inconvenience in the cancellation request. We would love to check your concern. Please follow the below steps for further assistance. 1. Kindly provide us with your detailed concern, booking number, passenger/guest name, and reserved email during the booking at [email protected] 2. Please include a specific indicator in your email subject line: {Sitejabber}Thank you for your cooperation and understanding. We look forward to your information. Best regards, Eugenia Trip.com

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Review: How to use Google Trips for traveling

Well, that was fast! Google announced that it will retire Google Trips app by August 5th. So make sure you're not on a trip on that date :) But don't panic. Many features of Google Trips app will live on in Google Maps and some in Google Travel. I've written a blog post outlining where you can find you saved locations and past trips from Google Trips in Google Maps and Google Travel .

For nostalgics, here's my original review.

Traveling is an experience that starts way ahead before I actually leave. I used to maintain a bucket list of places I planned to visit during a trip.

For a while now, I’ve been using Google Trips app to plan my travels; but the app is not only for planning but also quite valuable for getting around in e.g., a city because of its integration with Google Maps.

But Google Trips offers more. You can get hints on food and discounts, and because of the tight integration with Google Maps, you can even get an idea when places are crowded and how much time people spend there.

Finally, you can add flight, hotel, and car rental information and download all of that stuff for offline use to save on data roaming while traveling and having it always at hand.

But way before I plan a trip using Google Trips, I like to get inspiration from a variety of sources, and I use Pinterest to collect all those ideas. If you’re curious, you can follow my public “Places I’ll go sooner or later” board on Pinterest .

Using Google Trips consists of three steps.

• Add places you’d like to visit plus travel related info like hotel, flights and so on
• Enjoy your travels and use Google Day Plans to get an idea what you can see on a single day.
• Use the integration with Google Maps to get from one place to another.
• Bonus and not Google Trips related: Take lots of great travel photos using your Smartphone.

In this review, I’ll share how I use Google Trips for a trip to Warsaw, Poland.

How to create a trip in Google Trips

Let’s begin by collecting and adding ideas for places to visit in Google Trips and view it on a map.

Then create a new trip by entering a destination in Google Trips like e.g., Warsaw into the search field at the top of the screen. This will create a trip to the destination you’ve just entered.

Creating a trip in Google Trips

Once you’ve created a trip, you’ll see the following screen:

Google Trips overview

Here’s what each of those cards does:

• Enter your flight details, hotel reservation or car rental reservation under reservation .
• Things to do contains a searchable list of suggested places to visit based on the city you entered as the destination.
• Saved places holds the lists of places you plan to visit after you’ve saved them from the Things to do section.
• Day Plans (automatically) creates and suggests a daily itinerary based on the places from Saved Places , the distance between those places and the average time people stay there. If you don’t like the automatic suggestion, you can create a manual itinerary, too.
• Discounts displays, as the name suggests, discounts for your destination. I guess that those also (or mainly) contain paid advertisements.
• The Getting around and Need to know sections contain tips for your destination like how to get from and to the airport, public transportation, shopping districts and so on.

Add places to visit in Google Trips

So, now let’s get some inspiration for places to see and photograph from the Things to do section for my upcoming trip to Warsaw, Poland, by tapping Things to do .

You’ll see a list of suggestions from Google. Browse the list by swiping down (and up). To further narrow this list of recommendations, use the scrollable menu at the top of the screen that says Top Spots , For you , Local Favorites , Parks and Gardens , Museums , Fashion , Indoor , Outdoor and many more.

Bookmarking locations in Google Trips

Once you find a place you’ll like to see, tap the bookmark icon, and a menu will pop up in which you can add the place to an existing list or create a new one.

To create a new list, just tap the new new list entry at the bottom of the menu that pops up after you pressed the bookmark icon.

Select a list for a bookmark in Google Trips

I’ve created a few additional lists based on my interests like

• Night Photography
• Lost Places

I use those lists above in addition to the default Want to go list for particular places.

If you don’t like the suggestions by Google, tap the search icon in the upper right corner to find exciting places and search like you would do using Google, e.g., “museums,” “parks,” etc.

Once you’ve added places you’d like to see, it’s time to check the map view of your saved locations. Make sure you’re in one of your lists under saved places and tap the map view in the upper right corner.

Your saved places will either display using a green pin (with a bookmark symbol) or a grey pin. Green pins are from your current list, grey pins are from any other list. Swap the list by tapping on a list name displayed at the top of the screen.

Display bookmarked locations on a map in Google Trips

Using Day Plans in Google Trips

One nice feature of Google Trips is the ability to create Day Plans from your saved places. Google jumps ahead and generates some suggestions for you. Here’s an example of such a day plan that Google thinks is great for me.

Day plans in Google Trips

I admit that I only occasionally use this feature and use it just as a rough guide for the day because Google also takes the average time people spend at a place into account.

That average time spent by other people may be totally different for me as a photographer. What I do like is that day plans displays the walking or driving distance and opening hours of places. That’s valuable info.

If you feel you need a day plan that better suits your travel style, create a manual day plan by tapping the big plus icon in the lower right corner of the screen.

Getting around using Google Trips and map view

If you’ve created a day plan or want to follow a Google suggested day plan, just open the Day Plans section and follow the plan. It doesn’t get much more comfortable.

If you’re like me, I’ll just start in the Saved places section at one point and will go and see one place after another. To determine the best way to get to the next spot, I tap the marker on the map, open the card, then go to Google Maps and have Google show me options on how to get there.

For example, there’s one spot that lies a few miles away from the city. That place is an abandoned castle that was allegedly used by Napoleon. See the map marker in the upper right corner? That’s probably a little too far to walk there. So I need to check my options on how to get there:

Getting directions in Google Trips

• I tap the icon of the place in Google Trips
• Google Trips displays a card of the location at the bottom of the screen. When I tap the card, it opens in fullscreen
• Then I tap directions. Now Google Trips may ask which maps app it should open. I use Google Maps here as Google Maps is way better for public transportation than Apple Maps.
• In Google Maps, I tap directions, and Google will display the route from my current location to the fortress. That’s not what I want right now (as I’m still in Vienna planning the trip) and so I enter the name of my hotel in Warsaw
• Now I can check and see the best way to go to that place.

As all your data is saved in Google Maps, the trips and places basically sync between all devices you use. I usually use my iPad to create a trip and then use the iPhone during the journey.

For the past months I’ve been using Google Trips to plan my travels. It’s a straightforward and convenient way to plan a trip and finding your way once you’re there.

One thing I really like about Google Trips is that all my saved places are stored inside Google Maps, and I can even add locations to those lists using Google Maps app.

To find the lists you’ve created in Google Trips inside Google Maps.

• Go to Your places in Google Maps app
• Tap the middle tab called Saved .

Here are all your lists and saved places.

One thing I’d like to see is the integration of flight status. If I’ve entered a flight number in Google Trips, it would be great if the app displays flight information and possibly even seating advice for the plane.

As a Backup, I also write down vital travel information like flight Info, hotel contact, embassy phone number, in a Field Notes Memo Book and use this as a travel journal. But that’s a different story, and you can read about it in the How I use a Field Notes Memo Book as a travel journal blog post.

Needless to say, I went to Warsaw just with carry on luggage only. If you’re curious about my carry-on backpack, foldable daypack and the other gear I use for traveling light, check them out:

In 2012, I ditched my cumbersome DSLR in favor of an iPhone to document my travels.

Review: Olight S30R III. Perfect for Urban Explorers

How to change the color of water in lightroom mobile.

• Nation & World

Google unveils updates to make trip planning easier

Google Maps is launching new updates that are intended to make finding travel inspiration and local recommendations in your destination easier. Users will start seeing these lists of suggestions popping up in Google Maps in more than 40 cities across the U.S. and Canada this week. These updates will also be rolled out globally on Android and iOS mobile platforms later this month.

With this trio of updates, users can discover curated lists of local recommendations from other users and esteemed websites, customize their own lists and access key insights, making vacation planning a breeze and ensuring a seamless on-the-go experience. To access the new features, simply search for a city in Google Maps and swipe up to see curated lists of places from people who know the city inside and out. You’ll also see lists from such reputable sources as Lonely Planet, The New York Times and OpenTable.

And, when away from home, the question of where to eat is always top of mind. Now, whether you’re a traveler or just want to find a trendy spot in town, you can use new restaurant lists created by Google Maps. These lists will spotlight the eateries people are showing interest in or rating highly on Maps at the time. Google has sorted restaurants into three separate lists based on various criteria, creating indexes for trending, top-rated, and hidden gem locations.

The Trending list is updated weekly to spotlight places that experienced a recent spike in popularity on Maps, making it ideal for discovering the latest hot spots.

The Top list showcases the places that the Maps community has consistently shown love for. Use this list to find a neighborhood’s longstanding favorites.

The Gems list is for places that are considered an area’s best-kept secrets, highlighting great restaurants that still fly under the radar.

Creating Maps lists allows you to organize places you’d like to visit and places you’ve already been that you might wish to revisit. With the new lists format, users will also be able to more easily arrange their selections for easy reference, as they can now choose the order in which places appear. Simply move them up or down in whatever order you prefer to have them displayed. Users can also link in content from their social media streams, such as their own reviews of a certain venue.

Similarly, to give users a good sense of each place at a glance, Google’s AI pulls key insights to display from the Maps community. When you search a spot, you’ll see select photos and reviews that encapsulate what patrons love about it. The AI function can even help you identify the name of a particular dish and display helpful information based on a restaurant’s menu.

New design updates are also set to give Google Maps a fresh look, including a simplified home screen and new pin colors that make places on the map easier to find.

Trip-planning AI

Google has also just announced an update that’s coming to its Search Generative Experience (SGE), which will enable users to create travel itineraries and compile trip ideas using AI. This means that Google will be taking on other companies that are already applying the generative AI’s capabilities to help travelers plan their trips, such as Mindtrip and Layla.

To come up with its travel recommendations, Google’s AI engine relies upon information from sites across the internet, as well as photos, reviews and other specifics users have submitted about any given place. Conversationally, users can ask the AI something like “plan me a five-day trip to New York City that focuses on entertainment” and receive a sample itinerary that includes local restaurants, attractions and points of interest. Once you’ve constructed your ideal itinerary, you can export it to Gmail, or Google Docs or Maps.

This new capability is currently available only in the U.S. (in English) to those who are signed up for Google’s Search Labs program, which invites users to experiment with early-phase Google Search functions. The company has not stated if or when this function will become more widely available. According to TechCrunch, Google is not only testing out new realms for using generative AI, it’s also gathering data about consumers’ travel purchasing intent, which would support its wider ad business.

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February 27, 2018

Should I Ask for Reviews on Google or TripAdvisor?

At Odysys, we get this question a lot. Most innkeepers know that asking guests to write online reviews is an essential part of attracting new guests and keeping their brand name strong. Just look at the results of our past Odysys survey:  well over half of innkeepers actively solicit reviews for their property. However, many innkeepers are also unsure of which online review platform is the most important to their business. Though TripAdvisor is the big name in the industry when it comes to reviews, Google reviews may provide the best opportunity for direct bookings. Here’s why.

Reviews are SO Important to Bookings

Online reviews have the power to make or break your property. Travelers trust online reviews just as much as they trust reviews made by people they know. 76% of travelers are willing to pay more for a hotel or bed & breakfast with positive online reviews. A simple 1-point increase in your review score can allow you to charge more for rooms while also attracting more guests to your property. If these stats don’t convince of the importance of online reviews, nothing will.

Not All Reviews Are Created Equal

However, not all online reviews are created equal. You are likely getting online reviews across a wide variety of platforms: TripAdvisor, Google, Expedia, Yelp, Booking.com, even Facebook. While these are all important, your main focus should be on receiving a large number of positive reviews on your Google Business Listing.

The simple fact is that Google highly values the reviews made ON Google for your business. These reviews subsequently influence your ranking in the Google map more than those made on other websites. Positive reviews on Google will help you rank higher on the results page.  Sure, reviews from Expedia, Booking.com, TripAdvisor, ect. factor into the map rankings on Google. They just don’t matter nearly as much as the reviews made directly on Google.

How It Works

Google has an built-in system for vetting the reviewer. When someone leaves a review on Google, Google already knows all about the reviewer. Reviewers have to be logged into Google to leave a review. Therefore, Google knows if they’ve left other reviews, if they’ve searched for your property before, and so on. Google trusts this “first party data” more than it trusts “3rd party data” coming in from the Booking.coms of the world.

According to Moz’s study of local search ranking factors, “quantity of Native Google reviews” is a huge factor. Keep in mind they also value:

• Velocity of reviews (ie- how frequently reviews are coming in over time)
• The sentiment of reviews (ie-positive, negative, etc.)
• Keywords in reviews
• The actual rating (of course)

How to Get Reviews on Google

So what do you do with all this information? Simply make a point of asking your guests for online reviews, especially for Google reviews. There are many ways you can go about this. You can ask them in person upon check-out, in a “post-stay” email or text, or through a card or note left in the guest room. The most important part is that you are doing it.

Our advice is to always give your guests a choice, such as “Please review us on TripAdvisor or Google.” The truth is that people are more familiar with TripAdvisor reviews and may be more comfortable with leaving a review there, but nudging them towards Google as well is worth the effort. The people who already leave frequent Google reviews will be more than happy to do it and those that don’t know how may even ask.

Lastly, do not copy and paste reviews from one review site to another (or do not ask your guests to copy them from one review site to another). Google is capable of identifying this and can use it as a negative ranking factor. You want the reviews on each site to be individual and unique.

Receiving and managing your online reviews can be a stressful and time-consuming process. Sometimes, it can feel like a full-time job. You have to ask your guests for the reviews, monitor the content and quality of your reviews, and take the time to respond to your reviews, both good and bad . Reviews involve a lot of work but it is work that will pay off in the long run. Always make sure you are asking for your reviews and do your best to steer your guests to Google whenever possible. By focusing on positive Google reviews, you can attract new guests to your property, improve the image of your brand, and help your property rank higher on the search results page.

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'Civil War' is one of hardest movies to watch, and the most important you'll see this year

It’s misleading to call “Civil War,” Alex Garland’s latest film, political, because despite all appearances there are no politics to speak of.

Which maybe in itself is political. But there’s no bothsideism here. There are no sides at all, at least not in that way. What there is, in propulsive, unrelenting intensity, is war — and the violence and the horror and the destruction it demands. This is the aftermath of politics gone wrong, of deepening divisions and hunger for unchecked power — and the journalists documenting it all, and the price they pay to do so.

It’s one of the best movies of the year. And among journalists, at least, it should be one of the most-talked about.

What is 'Civil War' about? Probably not what you think

The film opens with the President of the United States (Nick Offerman, outstanding, as ever), hair helmet firmly in place, rehearsing as he is about to address the nation. “Some are already calling it the greatest victory in the history of mankind,” he says. Sound familiar? The images we see put a lie to what he’s saying: This “victory” is the U.S. military turned on American citizens. Texas and California — strange political bedfellows, which is doubtless the point — have seceded, forming the Western Alliance. Florida has formed its own breakaway nation.

The president is in his third term. He has disbanded the FBI. He hasn’t given an interview in more than a year. If this sounds like Trumpian wish fulfillment, fair enough, but that’s it for the political backdrop. We don’t learn more about how or when the nation split apart. We only know how it’s playing out.

And it isn’t pretty.

The film tracks four journalists who are chronicling events. The informal leader is Lee Miller (Kirsten Dunst, as good as she’s ever been), a legendary war photographer. She and reporter Joel (Wagner Moura) work for Reuters. They’re covering what turns into a bombing in New York when Lee helps out Jessie (Cailee Spaeny), a would-be photographer who thinks of Lee as a hero. Later that night, at a hotel bar, Lee and Joel chat with Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson), an aging reporter for “what’s left of the New York Times.” He’s a mentor of sorts to Lee.

They’re going to attempt to drive to Washington D.C. the next day; Joel and Lee have a line on the elusive interview with the president. Much to Lee’s chagrin, Jessie tags along. What follows is a road trip through the worst nightmare of what the country could become.

Jesse Plemons is terrifying in a small role

At least let’s hope it’s the worst. A run-in with a rogue soldier played with menace as quiet as it is chilling by Jesse Plemons is horrifying. At a gas station a gun-toting lunatic talks about how one of the men he’s got strung up out back didn’t much talk to him when he was in high school. It is the petty grievances that have become so popular taken to their logical conclusion. And it is terrifying.

To Lee, it’s a matter of getting everything on the record. Should they intervene in violent situations? Should they stand against something they know is wrong?
“We don’t ask those questions,” Lee tells Jessie, who has done just that. “We record, so other people can ask those questions. If you want to be a journalist, that’s the job.”

But is it? How far do you carry that belief? Lee gives you a pretty good idea after she warns Jessie she’s afraid she’ll lose her mind or get shot.

“Would you photograph that moment — if I got shot?” Jessie asks?

“What do you think?” is Lee’s simple reply. What matters most to her is the story, and she will go to almost any lengths to get it. It is a dedication that goes increasingly unappreciated — the dedication to telling the truth, no matter how ugly that truth is.

Alex Garland's direction is flawless

Garland, who also wrote the script, shoots incredibly intense battle scenes. I saw the film in an IMAX theater and recommend it. The sound enveloped the audience, percussive, disturbing. Between the galloping pace of the action and the percussive soundtrack and sound editing, you remain tense the entire time. Garland just won’t let you relax.

But there are subtler touches, as well, and Garland’s direction is flawless. As they drive through Pennsylvania we see the words “Go Steelers” painted on a bridge. It takes a moment to notice the bodies hanging from it.

Eventually, they arrive at their destination. But they are changed. What they have seen and are about to see is unimaginable. Or it should be. What happens when your job is to bear witness to the destruction of everything you have known or believed in?

“Civil War” offers some answers, none of them easy. Let’s hope these are questions we never really have to ask.

Don't miss: Alex Garland's 'Ex Machina' passes the test

'Civil War' 5 stars

Great ★★★★★ Good ★★★★

Fair ★★★ Bad ★★ Bomb ★

Director: Alex Garland.

Cast: Kirsten Dunst, Nick Offerman, Cailee Spaeny.

Rating: R for strong violent content, bloody/disturbing images, and language throughout.

How to watch: In theaters Friday, April 12.

Reach Goodykoontz at   [email protected] . Facebook:   facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm . X:   @goodyk . Subscribe to   the weekly movies newsletter .

Subscribe to azcentral.com today .   What are you waiting for?

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Dream Of Cappadocia

View prices for your travel dates

• Excellent 271
• Very Good 6
• All languages ( 282 )
• Turkish ( 210 )
• English ( 55 )
• German ( 5 )

" Rent a car, hotel has free parking. To experience cappadocia as a whole it is best to travel to the other towns aswell as Uçhisar "

" Carry umbrellas with you as it may rain . Bring your sports shoes . "

" Book the king suite if you can swing it- very spacious room with a great view. The price to value ratio for this room is incredible. "

" There is a parking spot near the hotel "

" It seems like the rooms 109 and 105 has good views, but can be noisy because very close to terrace and restaurant. "

Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.

DREAM OF CAPPADOCIA - Updated 2024

Time to Claim Your Free Oversized T-Mobile Tote Bag

We may earn a commission when you click links to retailers and purchase goods. More info.

T-Mobile customers, today is the day to claim that free oversized T-Mobile-branded tote bag. Perfect for your next beach trip, this magenta-colored bag is going to make you the life of the party. Or at the very least, people will appreciate its uniqueness.

To claim this week’s gift, you’ll need to open the T Life app, save the offer to My Stuff, and then quickly head to a T-Mobile store near you. There’s surely to be a limited number of these bags, and when you’re ready to claim, you’ll have just 5 minutes after hitting the redeem button to get your bag. So again, make sure you’re actually at the T-Mobile store and ready to take the bag.

Best of luck to everyone attempting to get one of these gorgeous bags.

Google Play Link

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