Do you believe everything you read online?
No – of course you don’t. More and more these days we are exposed to “fake news” on social media, false advertising and let’s not even talk about some of those “newspapers” you see at the check out in the supermarket. Where the heck do they get the inspiration for the headlines? It always gives me a chuckle while I am standing in line. Here’s a few good ones …
So what about hotel reviews? How do you assess the reviews that you may read on Trip Advisor? Do you take it all with a grain of salt and figure out if over 50% of the people liked it then it is probably OK? Or if there are a couple of bad reviews does it totally put you off booking there?
I am not immune from Trip Advisor – yes I look up hotels and see how they are reviewed. But I do balance it out with looking at other review sites such as Oyster.com which is an excellent resource as it is independent and the reviews are submitted by people who specifically go there to review the hotel and take photos. Trip Advisor has expanded from hotels to restaurants as well and it was this story that really had me freaked out – how a person created a fake restaurant and then ended up with that restaurant rated number 1. Here is the full story – it’s fascinating
https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/434gqw/i-made-my-shed-the-top-rated-restaurant-on-tripadvisor
Just to whet your appetite (‘scuse the pun) here is one of the false reviews that pushed a non-existent restaurant up to number 1
Oh my goodness – does that destroy your faith in humankind or what? Or perhaps we are the stupid ones being so reliant on and faithful to what we read online.
But you have to laugh – right? You just have to reading some of these beauties
HOT AND BOTHERED IN CENTRAL AMERICA
“You said the town was next to a volcano, but we went and there was no lava. I’m pretty sure it was just a mountain.”
NEW YORK’S NO ZOOTOPIA
“The animals at the zoo looked very sad and it made our children cry. Can’t they train them to smile?”
LOST IN SPAIN
“The street signs weren’t in English. I don’t understand how anyone can get around.”
NOT PLAIN SAILING
“I went on your cruise around the Med [Mediterranean Sea] and the sea was so loud outside I couldn’t get any sleep.”
NAAN TOO PLEASED IN INDIA
“I was disgusted to find that almost every restaurant served curry and I don’t like spicy food at all.”
SIGHT-SEETHING IN KENYA
“The elephants we saw on our honeymoon were visibly aroused which made my wife upset and made me feel inadequate.”
DOUBLE TROUBLE IN FRANCE
“My boyfriend and I asked for single beds in our room and you gave us a double. Now I am pregnant.”
FEELING SECOND BREAST IN SPAIN
“Women were sunbathing topless on the beach and my husband spent all day looking at them.”
IN DEEP WATER IN ITALY
“No one told us there would be fish in the sea — the children were surprised and upset.”
TAKEN FOR A RIDE IN TURKEY
“There was no sign telling you that you shouldn’t get on the hot air balloon ride if you’re afraid of heights.”
IT GOT OUT OF SAND IN THAILAND
“The beach was so sandy that sand got into my clothes and was hard to wash off my skin.”
TIME MACHINE IN CARIBBEAN
“It took nine hours for our flight to get from the UK to Antigua but the Americans at our resort said it took them just three.”
OFF COLOUR IN MALDIVES
“The sand was much too white and not yellow like it is shown in your brochure.”
DOOM AND ROOM IN PORTUGAL
“Our one-bedroom apartment was much smaller than the two-bedroom one next door.”
TAKING THE BISCUIT IN BULGARIA
“The local store sold hardly any British food and did not stock my favourite brand of biscuits.”
LOST IN TRANSLATION EN ESPANA
“There were way too many foreigners and everyone spoke Spanish.”
KENYA TELL THE DIFFERENCE?
“We bought designer sunglasses from the market and later found out they were fake.”
GHASTLY GREECE
“We could not enjoy the tour as our guide was too ugly.”
GIVING IT LARGE IN SPAIN
“The beach had too many fat people. It was gross.”
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