TripAdvisor asked me if I was paid for a review…

AI featured image today…

I had an interesting experience last week, after I reviewed our recent stay at Hilton Istanbul Maslak on TripAdvisor.com. I wrote a very detailed review about our stay and included pictures. I gave the hotel at four star rating, although if I’m honest, maybe it should have been more like 3.5 stars. A couple of hours later, I got this message from TripAdvisor, with the subject line “One more question about Hilton Istanbul Maslak”.

I have been reviewing hotels on TripAdvisor since 2008. At this writing, I’ve written 210 reviews and gotten 314 helpful votes from the community. All you have to do is read the review and notice the many details of it, and it’s pretty obvious that it’s not a fake review. I took the two question survey, anyway. Basically, they asked me if I’d been compensated in any way for my review of the property. I responded that I hadn’t, and that was that. This was the first time I’ve ever gotten such a survey from TripAdvisor. I was surprised and a little puzzled by it.

Now, I suspect anyone who reviews that particular hotel gets this survey, which really doesn’t offer any incentive for being honest. TripAdvisor claims that they don’t “tolerate” fake reviews, which is why they sent the survey. But what’s to stop someone from lying? Especially if they get payment or some other reward for writing a review? It’s not like the person who got paid $10 for a review is going to be honest about it so the review gets removed.

Today, I went back to see if any new reviews had been posted since mine, which I wrote about a week ago. Right now, I count eleven reviews ahead of mine. Ten are very new reviews, and one is the hotel’s “favorite” review, a five star rating from someone in Frankfurt, posted last June. I notice that most of the new reviews are very short, lack detail, and come from people who have never before posted on TripAdvisor and appear to live in or near Istanbul. I notice a couple of them specifically mention a certain employee.

I decided to investigate further, and found some people on Reddit discussing this issue. Some had mentioned that Hilton rewards people for being called out in reviews. Others mentioned that the TripAdvisor rating is of paramount importance to Hilton hotel managers. Here’s a Medium post in which a writer claims that TripAdvisor has basically become a scam.

I know I probably shouldn’t be surprised about this. It seems like most things that start out pretty good eventually turn to shit, as businesses decide that money is the most important thing. But this is the first time I’ve noticed how very obvious the so-called fake reviews are… and it was TripAdvisor itself that pointed it out to me by sending me that bullshit “survey”.

I do still think TripAdvisor is useful. I always make a point of reading the reviews that aren’t five star and consider those over the super short five star ratings. Hilton Istanbul Maslak is a very nice hotel, but I don’t think it rates the inflated 4.8 stars it currently has. There are some obvious drawbacks to staying there that travelers should know about. Moreover, sometimes a good one star review can be extremely entertaining reading and draw more readers to a site.

I always put my true opinions about the places I stay in my travel blog. I know not everyone cares to read the blog, but I’m just pointing out that the information is out there. I’m sure I’m not the only one who writes honest reviews, either. It’s a shame that the hotel industry doesn’t consider that real information is useful to them, and helps them find consumers who will be happy with what they offer. And it’s a shame that TripAdvisor is not being honest about their pledge not to tolerate fake reviews.

I write my reviews in the spirit of how I used to review things on Epinions.com, which really was a site where people posted their honest (and usually very well-written) opinions. It’s too bad that site went under. It was truly valuable. I also met some great people there and made money, not because I got paid by people to promote their products, but because I earned ad revenue from people who hit the site to get honest information.

I also think YouTube can be a good source of information. There are some good content creators out there who really do a great job in showing what you get for your money. Currently, one of my favorites is Walk With Me Tim, who stays in different types of properties all over the world.

Anyway… this is just something I noticed today. I realize it’s been a problem for awhile, but this was the first time it affected me, personally. Be careful out there!

adventure, Champagne Bucket trips, Iceland, Nordic

Our first Icelandic adventure: How did we end up there? (part one)

Bill and I just got home from Iceland yesterday afternoon. I’ve been itching to write about our visit to the mysterious island nation for days now, but have held off on starting the series until we got home. Although I sometimes start writing before trips end, this time, this time I decided I needed to wait. I wanted to be near my desktop computer, where I have more tools to edit photos and make videos. I also find writing on the desktop much easier than writing on the laptop; that’s important, because I have a lot of ground to cover.

But, really, the main reason I waited was because we have been VERY busy. Seriously… it seems like we’ve been gone a month, even though our trip was only for about ten days. One of our drivers estimated we saw about 30 percent of Iceland on our trip. My guess is that we saw less than that, mainly because Bill and I are older and less willing to traipse through the wilderness. There’s a lot of wild country in Iceland, and the weather can be brutal, especially if you’re not adequately prepared.

I’m sorry to report, I was not quite ready for Iceland’s hostile climate. Bill had, at least, done some shopping on Bergfreunde.de for new shoes and a hat. Luckily, there are businesspeople in Iceland who anticipate tourists like me, and there are quite a few Icewear stores scattered about the more populated areas. When we stopped by Icewear, we saw many other people who were in the same situation we were… buying raincoats, shoes, beanies… and the smarter ones probably invested in waterproof pants. I sure wish I had!

Nevertheless, in spite of being somewhat underprepared, Bill and I managed to enjoy our visit unscathed. Neither of us got sick or injured. And… according to the pedometer app on my iPhone, we covered about 17 miles walking… which may not seem like a lot to younger, fitter people, but for a fatass housewife like me, it’s a pretty good deal. Especially when one considers the weather! It wasn’t super cold, but the rain and wind were incredible; I had never experienced anything like it before. I wasn’t prepared for that on this visit, but if we manage to go to Iceland again, I will definitely be more ready for it.

So how did we end up going to Iceland in the first place?

Bill and I have a ritual of choosing our vacations by luck. We used to be fans of Eurowings’ “blind booking” program, in which you book a flight somewhere, but don’t know where you’re going until after you’ve paid. We did that a few times when Eurowings was still called Germanwings. But then we later had more money, and less desire to fly places on the cheap. I’m sure my expanding ass had a lot to do with that. 😉

We also have two dogs who have to be accommodated by the local Hundpension, which makes it harder for us to be too spontaneous. When we still had our comparatively small beagles, Zane and Arran, it was sometimes easier to just take them with us when we went places. But now we have Noyzi, who takes up all the cargo space in the back of the Volvo. And we have Charlie, who is still kind of afraid of riding in the car. It’s better to board them when we go places.

We started planning trips with the same “surprise” idea of blind bookings, only instead of letting the airline decide, we let the champagne bucket choose. We put scraps of paper in the bucket and Bill picks one. If the selection is feasible for when we want to travel, we book it. At some point in the spring, he picked Iceland. We were delighted with that result, because Iceland was a place we both really wanted to visit before we shove off the mortal coil. Iceland isn’t cheap, so it’s good to go there when the cash flow is good… and it’s also potentially physically challenging, so it’s best to visit when one has the stamina and ability to get around somewhat easily.

I did have some worries about the weather, even though we were technically visiting in the summer… but then I saw memes like the one below…

*Don’t let that “green land” fool you… Bring a jacket!*

I got fooled into thinking Iceland is more temperate than it is. I mean, it is temperate, considering where it’s located, but it’s certainly not temperate like Germany is. When we left Germany, it was hot as the dickens! The funny thing is, when Bill went to Reykjavik in 2009, it was around the time of my June birthday. He brought me a wool scarf and a CD of Icelandic folk tunes sung acapella by people with very ordinary voices. I was confused by the wool scarf in June… until now. 😉

Finding Iceland Luxury Tours…

So anyway, Bill picked Iceland out of the bucket, and the responsibility came down to me to plan the trip. I don’t know why I was inspired to hire a guide for our visit to Iceland. We’ve never done a private tour before, although we have done at least one group tour together (which I’m not very good at). I guess, somewhere in my brain, I realized that visiting rugged Iceland, with its unpredictable weather and rough roads, might go better if we had a local doing the driving. I wasn’t as wise about the weather in terms of dressing, but I did at least have enough common sense to look into finding us a guide/driver. Somehow, in the process of planning, I came across Iceland Luxury Tours.

I’m a big believer in reading reviews, although I do realize that a lot of people tend to write them when they’re either pissed off or very happy. I found many positive reviews of Iceland Luxury Tours on multiple sources, including Trip Advisor, which in my experience, often turns out to be the most accurate source of all. I review most of our travel experiences, and I try to be as honest as possible, even if I’ve had a mediocre time. I was impressed that Iceland Luxury Tours had many five star reviews and glowing comments, and only three four star ratings. It had not been rated lower by anyone. On Google, there were far fewer reviews, but the ones they had were all raving. So I asked Bill to contact them to see what they could do for us.

Bill sent an inquiry to Iceland Luxury Tours, and the owner, Sveinn Sigurður Kjartansson, was quick to respond. After Bill offered a budget, Sveinn proposed some itineraries. Then we tweaked the trip to suit our interests. For example, I am a big time horse lover. Iceland is famous for its Icelandic horses (and they are horses– not ponies). Sveinn added a visit to a horse farm to our trip. We like spas, so he added a visit to the Sky Lagoon. We’re not super fit or thrill seeking, so those kinds of activities were omitted. Later, when I realized that flying home on Friday, as we’d planned, would be significantly more expensive, we added a day. Sveinn added activities for that extra day.

How much did it cost?

Well, folks… I’ll be honest. This was a very expensive trip. Iceland Luxury Tours planned everything for us, to include our luxury hotels, breakfasts, private tours/tickets to several attractions, transfers to and from the airport, transportation to the Sky Lagoon, and five full days with our guide, Ivar, and a very capable Toyota Land Cruiser. I think Bill said it all came to about $17,300 or so… And then I booked round trip Saga Class (business) tickets on Icelandair, which was well worth doing, but not a cheap endeavor. I think the tickets were about $2500 for the two of us, give or take $100. Fortunately, we had the money to cover it, and a new travel credit card from PenFed that offers generous travel benefits.

Now, I do realize we could have done this trip much more cheaply, even with a guide. We could have scaled down the budget significantly and still had a memorable experience. But these days, I like to travel in comfort. I’ve had my fill of traveling cheaply… and believe me, I’ve done plenty of that in my lifetime! Luckily, Bill doesn’t mind being more comfortable, and we currently have the means to travel that way.

Although we don’t usually spend that much on our trips, it did occur to me that last year, we spent a couple of weeks in Scandinavia and spent well over $20,000. That trip included about a week on our own in Norway, a week on the Regent Splendor, and then a couple of nights in Denmark. So, this trip to Iceland, which is probably going to be our one big vacation this year, isn’t that far out of line for us. But I do want to reiterate– you don’t have to spend that much yourself. You can do fewer days with a guide, concentrate in a smaller area, do group tours instead of private ones, eat cheaper food… and avoid drinking alcohol. 😉

I do recommend hiring a guide, though, especially if you want to go to any rugged parts of the country. There will be more on that in the coming posts. When I start sharing photos and videos, you’ll certainly see why!

So… now it’s time to write the story of our first trip to Iceland. I hope you’ll join me on this very bumpy but exhilarating ride!

short breaks

Turning 50 in Antwerp… part eight

On the morning of June 21, we got up and packed everything, and Bill took it to the car, which was buried deep under the hotel in their tiny parking garage. We went down to breakfast and enjoyed the other half of the delicious strawberry tart. It was even better the second day! I was sorry to leave De Witte Lelie, as it was such a welcoming and homey hotel. The staff is so friendly and helpful, and the accommodations are stylish and comfortable. Alas, we had to leave Antwerp and go home to our dogs. So, after we settled the bill and said goodbye, we got in the Volvo and took about half an hour trying to maneuver out of the garage, which has a steep incline to the door. Kudos to Bill and the many fancy sensors on the Volvo for getting us out of there unscathed!

*One last look at the champagne bubbles wallpaper.*

We also had much less trouble leaving Antwerp than entering it, as Bill didn’t make any wrong turns. I was sorry to leave without a new diamond, but I think I’d rather get one at a place where I’m not a tourist. There were a couple of Trip Advisor horror stories that advised me against shopping for a new rock in Belgium.

First on our agenda was to stop at a Belgian supermarket to pick up some beers for home. We stopped at a little co-op market and loaded up a cart with suds, as well as a few other items. Bill went to pay, and it turned out they didn’t take Visa. They also didn’t have an ATM. So the cashier was kind enough to watch our cart while we searched for a cash machine. That took about an hour, even with a GPS… but eventually, we got our euros, gassed up the car, I unloaded the breakfast beverages, and we went back to the store to make our purchase. The cashier had kept the cart safe for us. Next time, we’ll bring cash.

Then, we headed eastward, stopping at a typical German Rastplatz for lunch at McDonald’s. I had to laugh when Bill ordered two Royales and one of them came with the bun that is usually reserved for plain cheeseburgers (no sesame seeds). I guess McDonald’s in Europe are also suffering from supply chain shortages.

Our drive home was completely uneventful, and we arrived in the mid afternoon. I got started on my blogging, and Bill went to get the dogs, who were very happy to come home after four nights away. I always worry about Arran on our trips now, as he’s an old guy and would rather hang out with us. Noyzi was also very glad to be back home in his bed.

I was feeling okay… maybe there was a little scratchiness in my throat. I didn’t know that Wednesday, I’d be legitimately sick for the first time in several years and wondering if I finally got COVID-19. I have so far tested twice, and got negative results both times. I also feel a lot better today than I did yesterday. So… I’m thinking this was a cold. But, I will confess that this trip was maskless and restriction free. I might have gotten COVID-19, but so far, the tests say no… However, I don’t interact with people anyway, so I’m just riding it out at home. Today, I feel like I am about 85% normal. Yesterday, I was probably 60% normal. Wednesday night and Thursday were the worst, but even they weren’t as bad as the last time I had the flu. I haven’t had a fever, body aches, or exhaustion. I have had a runny nose, coughing, vomiting (from coughing), headache, sinus pressure, and mild fatigue. In other words, this sickness feels like a cold.

So ends my 50th birthday celebration. I must say, it was a lot of fun turning 50 in Antwerp. Belgium is a great destination for me, mainly because it has beer, frites, chocolate, and friendly, unpretentious people who are funny! I hope we can visit Antwerp again, and I would encourage you to visit, if you have the time and the means!

Stay tuned for my usual ten things I learned post… if you’re interested, that is. 😉

Uncategorized

Food and wine in Switzerland, Italy, and Liechtenstein… part nine

Figuring out Florence…

After I bought my new scarf, which was carefully packaged for me by the stylish shopkeeper, Bill and I took a walk over the Ponte Vecchio and crossed the Arno. Whenever I look at the Arno River, I want to break into “O Mio Babbino Caro” by Giacomo Puccini. I learned that song when I studied voice years ago. I’m probably too old for it, now… my “beloved daddy” has been dead for several years now. But when I was in my 20s, it was a good song for me. I did even better, though, with Puccini’s “Musetta’s Waltz”. Being in Italy makes me want to break out in song!

The Ponte Vecchio is a medieval stone bridge. It’s got many shops along it. At this writing, most of the tenants on Ponte Vecchio are jewelers. It was very crowded when we walked across, and God knows I don’t need any more jewelry, so we just walked across and milled around for a little while on the southern side of the river. Last time we were in Florence, circa 2013, we explored more on this side of the Arno, even visiting a beautiful church there and sitting in a park, where I observed several local seniors gathering to chat. I’m nine years older now, and have fewer spoons for walking, so we walked a couple of blocks and came back across the bridge to look for lunch.

I usually follow my nose when I go looking for food in different cities. My nose rarely lets me down. Such was the case when we found Ristorante Il Paiolo, not too far from the heart of Florence. An affable waiter who laughed at my jokes seated us at a table. I noticed there were models of the Bistecca alla Florentina in a case by the entrance. Several people ordered that during our visit, and I must admit, it smelled fantastic. But since we knew we were going to have that on Friday night, after meeting up with our wine tour, Bill and I deliberately made other choices for lunch. I went with chopped wild boar and polenta (Cinghiale alla maremmana e polenta). Bill ordered beef with cannellini beans. We paired our dishes with a lovely bottle of wine… one of many on our trip.

After lunch, we walked around more to burn off lunch. I took more photos and a video. Sadly, this time we didn’t run into Piotr Tomaszewski, a very talented busker we found during our last visit. He is easily found on YouTube. We bought his beautiful CDs in 2013, which I still love listening to now. Instead, we found this guy…

Not very exciting…

I didn’t make this video, but this is Piotr Tomaszewski, a talented busker we saw last time in Florence. I understand he was based there for several years. I don’t know if he still is. His music made me cry.

I stopped in here and bought a new leather purse from a very friendly vendor at FP Pelletterie.

Later, we headed back to the hotel, because I needed to call my bank in the States and get them to fix my online access to my account. I’m still hunting for a less annoying bank. I’m getting discouraged. That was also a good time for a nap, so I took one before we went out for dinner at a brewpub. We figured we were going to drink a lot of wine over the weekend, so beer would be a good idea., although I have had better burgers than what they had at Hops Pub. At least it was relatively cheap! And one of the waitresses reminded me of a friend from my hometown. We walked over 6 miles on Thursday!

Stay tuned for part ten…

Baden-Württemberg

Getting over getting naked…

Today’s post comes courtesy of a message I got on TripAdvisor last night. A young woman, visiting friends in Germany, was very anxious because her friend’s parents had purchased a luxury pass for her to join her friend and her friend’s parents at the Friedrichsbad Roman-Irish Bath in Baden-Baden. Apparently, she had found my TripAdvisor review of the famous nude baths and was hoping I could offer her some advice about the experience.

This young woman named Diana (not her real name) wrote that she’s just 19 years old, and she is very nervous about being naked in front of other people. Diana’s problem is a common one. A lot of people are nervous about getting nude in front of strangers. In Germany, it’s a normal thing to be nude in saunas, spas, and public baths. Many of the baths Bill and I have visited are “textile-free”, which is very different if you’re an American or a Brit… or, as I found out in July, from Sweden. I’m not sure how the French feel about nudity in the saunas and spas, but I do know they are very strict about men wearing “maillots” (Speedos) rather than “board shorts”. In fact, one of my most popular posts on my travel blog is about that subject, which you can read about here.

My husband, Bill, was very nervous about being naked in front of people. He finally “took the plunge” a couple of years ago, when we visited Palais Thermal in Bad Wildbad. Bad Wildbad has an “old school” therme that allows swimsuits. It also has a the nude spa, which is Palais Thermal. Bill was initially reluctant to try it. Palais Thermal was a good place to get his feet wet, though, because swimsuits are allowed on the first level. After a few minutes of seeing people of all shapes, sizes, ages, colors, and creeds walking around in the buff, it didn’t seem so embarrassing or strange.

Now, being nude in front of Germans has become “old hat” to us. We’ve done the nude spa thing many times and lived to tell the tale. It’s weird for a few minutes, but then you stop noticing. At most spas, you can bring towels or a robe and only have to be completely naked in the water, although at the Friedrichsbad, you will be nude almost the entire time. But really, you get used to it very quickly if you just relax and enjoy, realizing that being naked really is completely natural.

Still, I have a lot of empathy for Diana, because it IS embarrassing and strange to those who have never done it. I am a bit of a natural exhibitionist and have always kind of liked being nude. I find it very liberating. But if you have body image concerns or have been taught that being naked is wrong or “dirty” somehow (even though we were all born naked), it can be extremely embarrassing and scary to bare everything.

I ended up telling Diana that it’s her choice whether or not to try the Roman baths. She is concerned that her friend’s parents will be insulted if she doesn’t use their gift, but ultimately, a trip to the baths is supposed to be fun and relaxing. If she’s filled with anxiety and terror over baring her naked self to everyone, it won’t be a good experience for her. I did also advise her to visit the baths on a day when the sexes are segregated, although it appears that the baths are currently undergoing some renovations, so right now it might be “co-ed” every day. Bill and I went on a “co-ed” day, because we wanted to experience the baths together. But they normally also have days in which the men stay on one side and the women stay on the other. For the shy among us, that might be the best thing to do. There’s only one area where men and women mingle naked on the segregated days and one could easily skip that part. It’s the big pool in the middle of the spa, and it’s cold, anyway. I had to try it because it was so pretty.

Having written all of this… I do understand that public nudity isn’t for everyone. It’s best to take the plunge if you’re genuinely curious and want to try the baths. Personally, I really enjoyed them and would have no problem visiting them again. I don’t think any visit to Baden-Baden is complete without a trip to the Friedrichsbad. But I know that’s just my opinion. I have empathy for Diana’s situation, because I can tell she really doesn’t want to offend her gracious hosts. Frankly, I find her empathy for them very refreshing. It’s nice to see someone so concerned about being a polite and gracious guest. I hope she will try the baths, but if she can’t bring herself to do it, I also hope her friend’s family will understand. Part of being a good host, after all, is making sure your guest is comfortable.

Wiesbaden’s version… not as big or crowded, and very relaxing.

Here in Wiesbaden, we have the Kaiser-Friedrich Therme, which is like a much scaled down version of the Friedrichsbad. I think I like it even more than the Friedrichsbad, because it’s a lot smaller and less popular. In fact, I think we’re due for another visit soon.

Uncategorized

Using travel reviews to decide when to book a place to stay…

Last night, I decided to do a little shopping for our next trip. There are several places I want to visit. Some places are more urgent than others are. For example, I really want to get to Berlin before we leave Germany. Other places are more “bucket list” type spots.

Hmm…

One place I was really considering visiting was a B&B in the Champagne region in France. I had found the B&B the last time we lived here, but we never got around to visiting. Years later, I see they’re still in business and they have more reviews than ever. Most of the reviews are glowing, though they did get a few that were less than stellar.

I do pay close attention to comments left by previous guests, but I pay even closer attention to the responses left by the hosts. I believe that anyone in the hospitality business should realize that sometimes people aren’t going to like what’s offered. Sometimes they will leave negative comments. No one can please everyone all the time, so it is what it is. However, when a host’s comments are snarky or overly offended, I tend to want to steer clear of that property. Such was the case with the B&B I mentioned earlier in this post, a place that currently has an overall score of 8.2 on Booking.com.

Have a look at this comment left by a guest.

A review from 2012…

As someone who has been mistaken for pregnant before, I could definitely feel this lady’s pain. It’s just one of those things better left unmentioned. I can’t blame her for being upset. Maybe some would accuse her of being overly sensitive. Maybe I might even give the owner the benefit of the doubt. But then I read his response.

Clearly, her review pissed him off and he felt the need to retaliate by referring to her as “sensitive” and vaguely accusing her of stretching the truth.

I have to admit, reading the “sensitive lady’s” review made me decide not to book this particular B&B. When I go on trips, the last thing I want to deal with is offensive remarks from a host. I see similarly snarky remarks the owner left on other lowly rated reviews that make me think he may be a bit of a jerk.

I made a similar decision not to book a highly acclaimed property in Amsterdam because of comments left by the proprietors. Here’s an example.

And the manager’s response is below.

There are actually a number of snarky comments like this one on Trip Advisor for this particular hotel. The manager seems kind of “colorful”.

I can totally understand why people in the hospitality business want to defend their product. However, being in the hospitality business means actually being hospitable. Sometimes that means biting your tongue. I distinctly remember reading reviews of this hotel and wondering if I should book it just to see if the manager would get “snotty” with me. Then I realized that Amsterdam has lots of hotels to choose from and why would I book one in search of a really bad time?

Granted, sometimes people do complain about stupid shit. But when a hotel proprietor gets caught with their pants down, it’s probably best not to get too snippy about the guests who catch them. We once stayed at a B&B in Key West, Florida. It was not a bad place. For awhile after our stay, I read the reviews left by other guests. One guy, a man from Australia, took pictures of the mattress in the room where he stayed. It appeared that someone had peed on it. He posted the picture on TripAdvisor and one of the proprietors came back very defensively instead of apologetically. Basically, he claimed he was too poor to either have the mattress cleaned or replaced. That may very well be the case, but the guest’s complaint was entirely valid. I see now, it’s been removed from the reviews.

It’s not as easy to find reviews of self-catering places. I do pay close attention to what people say on Booking.com when I use that site to reserve a place. I am even more careful to pay close attention to any management responses. Fortunately, when I have left negative reviews, most of the responses have been professional. I am not too hard to please anyway, though, even though I do enjoy writing the odd vent now and again. It’s probably best to keep things civil by all means.

The Traveling Overeducated Housewife

…the wanderings and ramblings of a boring housewife…

Tag Archives: Trip Advisor