Trip Advisor - true or false?

Trip Advisor has become a vital resource for those planning holidays, with many people only choosing their hotels on the basis of its recommendations. As a specialist tour operator we are not only surprised by the number of prospective clients who select their accommodation according to this 'guru' site, but often puzzled by some of these choices when compared with our own first hand experience of the individual properties.

But questions, it seems, are increasingly being asked by others as to the reliability of its advice and the authenticity of the sources of information posted on the site. The latest to raise doubts is the highly respected Good Hotel Guide, as its latest newsletter reveals

It has also been our practice, when our consultants talk to clients about their 'Trip Advised' choice of hotels and don't share the same opinion, that they ask the client to compare one of their own personal favourites with the comments on the same hotels posted on the site. In many cases these reveal significantly different opinions, both where a client's favourite has been downgraded by comments on the site and where a property poorly rated by a client has scored highly. We are not suggesting that such discrepancies are necessarily suspect but that, short of a personal recommendation from a friend or relation, it may be far better to trust the first hand knowledge of a professional than the views of a complete stranger.

We'd love to hear your thoughts on this topic - feel free to add your comments below

Adam Raphael writes:

Shameless

TripAdvisor has millions of consumer reviews on its website and is regarded as an increasingly powerful marketing tool by hotels. But its refusal to screen out collusive and malicious reviews is brazen. When a hotelier complained that a critical comment was planted by a competitor, he received this brush off from TripAdvisor: “Since reviews are posted by our members on our open forum, and we do not verify the information posted in them, we are unable to provide you with proof that this member reserved, stayed, or actually visited [your] hotel.”
This reply has the virtue of honesty, but it is shameless. TripAdvisor has dropped its slogan: “Get the truth and Go”, , but it continues to claim that it provides: "real hotel reviews you can trust”. It says that it uses a sophisticated algorithm to sort out the bogus from the genuine, and that hotels are penalised if they try to manipulate their ranking. But it is all too easy to evade these controls. I posted a bogus, over-the-top glowing review of a truly terrible hotel using a false name and a false email address. It was put up on TripAdvisor's website within hours. Investigations by the Sunday Times and the Times have come to a similar conclusion. The website is wide open to abuse. In its defence, TripAdvisor says that its users read reviews with “the right level of scepticism”. They need to. The sad truth is that millions of consumers are being gulled.

A group of British hoteliers is now considering taking legal action for defamation against TripAdvisor. A legal action would be fraught and expensive, but the website is undoubtedly vulnerable, as it has no idea who its contributors are and makes no attempt to find out. It would therefore not be able to put forward a defence of justification. The hoteliers are also mounting a campaign to force the website, owned by the travel company Expedia, to publish the names of its reviewers. Ending anonymity would stop much of the malicious and collusive reviewing that is going on. But TripAdvisor should also check whether the names and email addresses of its reviewers are genuine. Until it takes these elementary precautions, anyone using its website should beware.

Sunday night's TV - Bridge & Wickers' recommendation...

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New luxury lodge opens in New Zealand - Matakauri Lodge

Luxury travellers to New Zealand will have a spectacular new destination - Matakauri Lodge near Queenstown, when it’s unveiled on 27 August.

Matakauri Lodge is the newest addition to the New Zealand luxury lodge collection of US investor Julian Robertson and family - owners of Kauri Cliffs, in the Bay of Islands, and The Farm at Cape Kidnappers.

The recent acquisition extends the Robertsons’ accommodation portfolio into New Zealand’s South Island, and is seen as a logical complement to their two North Island properties - both sought after destinations for discerning guests wanting exclusive accommodation, fine dining and onsite internationally acclaimed golf courses.

The Robertson family would be delighted to offer guests "an opportunity to experience the spectacular South Island of New Zealand", managing director Jay Robertson said.

Lakeside retreat
Matakauri Lodge - described as a lakeside retreat - sits in a dramatic sub-alpine landscape, fringed by forest to one side and the waters of Lake Wakatipu on the other.

The lodge has sweeping views across the lake to the rugged peaks of the Remarkables range but, in spite of its wilderness location, is only 10km from the South Island resort town of Queenstown.

The surrounding region is renowned for its premium wine and food. It is also New Zealand’s premier winter sports destination, and a popular summertime holiday spot for walking and trekking, golfing, water sports, and adrenalin adventures.

Contemporary architecture
Matakauri lodge - originally built in 2000 - was New Zealand’s first organic spa, and was named in Tatler’s 2008 'Top 101 Hotels of the World'.

Constructed in a contemporary New Zealand design, the strong simple forms of the lodge have been designed to minimise the visual impact on the landscape and maximise views of the natural location.

The lodge has accommodation in 11 luxurious suites, plus a stylish and spacious main lodge.

Three guest suites are located in the main lodge, and eight more in private cottages nestled in native forest and overlooking the lake. Each suite has a private porch, bedroom with sitting area and open fireplace, walk-in wardrobe and bathroom.

Facilities include a full-service luxury spa, fitness centre, outdoor infinity swimming pool, sauna, jacuzzi and walking trails. While the Matakauri property does not have onsite golf facilities, Queenstown offers several high end golf courses.

Extensive refurbishment
Since the new owners acquired the existing property 12 months ago, Matakauri Lodge has been closed for extensive refurbishment.

The new interiors have been styled by New Zealand interior designer Virginia Fisher, whose signature contemporary casual style features in high-end lodges in New Zealand and overseas.

An emphasis on natural materials, warm colours and textures, reflects "the ruggedness that is very Queenstown", she says.

Fisher describes the lodge’s new style as "crisp and clean and full of natural light ... gutsy and contemporary .... a touch of glamour here and there."

Fine food & wine
British-born chef Dale Gartland, who has worked at Kauri Cliffs and The Farm, will head the Matakauri kitchen.

Gartland - who also has the role of group chef for the three lodges - has won accolades for his food, including Conde Nast Traveller (UK) Gold List ‘Best for Food’ in 2009 (The Farm) and 2010 (Kauri Cliffs).

The 31-year-old chef learned his classical French techniques working at a series of well-heeled English country hotels before moving on to Gidleigh Park Hotel - a Relais & Chateaux property where he worked under Michelin two-star chef Michael Caines - and then to Kauri Cliffs, New Zealand.

Gartland, who has shared his kitchen with celebrity guest chefs including Rick Stein, Peter Gordon, Neil Perry and Guillaume Brahimi, says Matakauri will offer a fresh tasting menu each day, and a choice of dinner courses.

While he doesn’t want to give away any secrets, the chef admits there will be a "simple and modern approach to New Zealand / European cuisine" and that he will remain committed to using the best regional and New Zealand produce - "letting the ingredients speak for themselves to give guests an honest taste of New Zealand".

"Finest local ingredients will remain the main inspiration for the new menus at Matakauri, where dishes will make full use of the local flavours and reflect the rustic character of the region and New Zealand," Gartland says.

Luxury Lodges of New Zealand

New Zealand's famous lodges are a unique collection of properties, often located in secluded, remote places where you can indulge in great comfort despite the rugged landscapes that surround you.

The pages on our website will reveal a fascinating diversity of lodge experiences, ranging from working farms and sheep stations to Alpine retreats and stone and timber homesteads.

Although no two lodges are the same, our hand-picked collection all share a passion for offering guests a friendly welcome and some of the best food and wine in the country. As the foundation of a touring itinerary there are no finer places to stay.

Contact us now on 0207 483 6555 or email nz@bridgeandwickers.co.uk


To order a copy of our New Zealand brochure, call us or click here

Special offers on escorted tours in Australia & New Zealand

Travel with Australian Pacific Tours and Bridge & Wickers and receive a fantastic saving of £300 per couple when you book any of their Australia or New Zealand escorted tours of 10 days or more.

Book by 31 August 2010 for travel before 31 March 2011 to benefit from this great saving.



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Travel to New Brunswick with David Wickers

These days it’s rare to find a destination that’s easy to reach (a six or so hour flight from Heathrow), is as big as Scotland, has wonderful natural sights, delicious food and interesting places to stay, yet one that few Brits have even heard of, let alone would be able to find on the map.

Welcome to New Brunswick, one of the Maritime Provinces on the eastern seaboard of Canada. I flew there a few weeks ago, accompanying a group of British travel writers (see photo!) who were keen to see just what this little known province has to offer their readers.

We flew there with Air Canada via Halifax in Nova Scotia, followed by a short hop to St John. Our first two nights were spent in the delightful seaside resort of St Andrews at the west end of the province, close to the US border with Maine. First settled by loyalists, who swore allegiance to King George III rather than the American revolutionaries, it’s long been a popular retreat from the heat for city folk - not only from Montreal and Toronto but also from Boston and New York.

We spent one night in the Fairmont Algonquin, the 120 year old, mock Tudor old railway hotel, oozing with character, another in the Rossmount, an 18-room inn owned by a Swiss chef which has, not surprisingly, a superb restaurant drawing on produce from local fishermen and farmers, plus an enormous vegetable plot.

New Brunswick is a wonderful place for soft adventures. From St Andrews we zipped off by Zodiac – hence that photo of me and the journalists swaddled in Guantanamo orange survival suits – on a whale watching trip with Fundy Tide Runners and were rewarded with sightings of two Minkes.

Day three was a cross country drive on roads described by one of the journalists as being “as quiet as a Christmas Day.” We stopped at Kings Landing, an authentic recreation of a 19th century village, complete with costumed characters going about their traditional ways and original historic buildings, and had lunch in the capital, Fredericton, famously home to Lord Beaverbrook and well stocked with historic sites and museums . Our night was spent on the thickly wooded banks of the Miramichi River, one of the best in the world for salmon (as fished by a celebrity hotlist that includes Marilyn Monroe and Prince Charles). Eight of us went a’casting and eight of us caught nothing but big fibs, but the experience – led by a guide who taught us how to cast (and pray) – was memorable. Some of us stayed in the Pond’s Resort, others in O’Donnell’s, both similar in style (rustic lodges beside the water, with log fires, kitchen facilities and a choice of one to three bedrooms), plus restaurants.

The third leg of our tour took us down the east coast of New Brunswick, which is fringed by beautiful sandy beaches, the waters as warm as southern England on a summer’s day, and spiked by huge sand spits and barrier islands inhabited by scores of seals and seabirds. We got up close and personal to both aboard an enormous voyageur canoe in the Kouchibouguac National Park, later followed by a boardwalk hike along the Dune de Bouctouche.

This French speaking part of the province is the traditional home of the Acadians who were originally thrown out of Canada by British colonialists in a shameful act of ethnic cleansing. There’s even a mock French heritage village, Le Pays de la Sagouine, showcasing New Brunswick’s Gallic roots in a lighthearted ‘ooo la la’ style with ribald humour and foot tapping bands. We stayed in Moncton at Maison Tait, a 9-room, Queen Anne style grand maison in seaside Shediac with, again, another passionate chef.

One of the all time highlights of our one week trip was a morning spent kayaking around the Hopewell Rocks which have been eroded by the sea into the shape of flower pots. The Bay of Fundy experiences the highest tides in the world, with the difference between high and low water being as much as a four story house. We then headed to Cape Enrage for incredible sea views and sea food served in a new restaurant that forms part of the historic lighthouse.

After a short hike along one of the trails in the Fundy National Park we returned to Shediac for a ‘Lobster Tails’ cruise on the Bay. The skipper, in between nautical matters, demonstrated the art of trapping these leggy crustaceans, explained how lobsters walk, mate and end up in the lobster pot, told us how they should be cooked and showed us all how we should eat the ones we were about to be served. And very delicious they were too, though we all wished we’d paid more attention to the ways of shell cracking.

IF YOU'D LIKE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS FACINATING PART OF CANADA, PLEASE CONTACT US VIA EMAIL OR CALL 020 7483 6555.

FOR A COPY OF OUR CANADA TAILOR-MADE BROCHURE, PLEASE CLICK HERE