Joann C.

I have been using this site for ears. I love that I can go back and look at trips and remember all the fun adventures I had. It is great that you can include as many or a few details (if you are pressed for time) that you want - pictures too. They have made some changes over time and some are for the better, some make it a little more complicated than the basic blog I started with but for the most part I think it is a fun way to keep people updated on your trip right along with you. It allowed my friends and family to follow along - even before facebook was huge and everyone started using it for instant posts of trips; but you can't search facebook and go back (without a lot of scrolling) to go over all those memories. I know someone else said they won't let you post hotels - unless that is a recent change I haven't had that problem before and have even used my blog to go back and give recommendations of hotels / hot spots / must not misses etc to others who are traveling. They also put your pictures together for you (if you want) which is a great, great feature.

I like using Yelp to search - it is great when you are in a new area and are looking for something- especially a restaurant. I recently heard that businesses can purchase a subscription or membership and then control what gets posted - that is disappointing but I still plan on using it. Not all businesses can or choose to do that and these are public reviews anyway - everyone's views are different, tastes are different, and standards are different. If you use it as a guide and not gospel I think you are in pretty good shape - at least you have more information and options than if you are just walking down the street hoping to find something.