I have been recently reading and writing about Web 2.0 and the social media phenomenom.

Today I want to write about the different Web 2.0 websites within the Travel Industry, that I have come across in the last few weeks.

As we have previously discussed Web 2.0 changes the way people perceive information. These type of websites use Web 2.0 elements like Blogs podcasts, user reviews and comments, ajax, tags, etc, and they are particularly attentive to RSS, which represents a formidable opportunity for the travel industry.

RSS is also spreading rapidly across the internet. The new format is changing the way we access news, revolutionizing the way we inform ourselves – the required information comes to the user. An intelligent tailored access to information – each surfer, depending on his requirements, can personalise his news bulletin: “It is information on demand.”

A well informed traveler is a happy traveler!

Here are some of the Web 2.0 websites that I have found in the travel sector:

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TripAdvisor is a collection of more than 5,000,000 traveler reviews & opinions of hotels, destinations and vacation packages worldwide. URL: www.tripadvisor.com

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TravBuddy: Easily create your own travel blogs with amazing maps, upload unlimited photos, share travel reviews and meet people from all around the world! URL: www.travbuddy.com

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43Places: Share stories about places in your city and around the world. URL: www.43places.com

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Epictrip: Epic Trip is a new and unique way for travelers to know what their destinations and their hotels are all about, even before setting off. By connecting travelers with videos, virtual tours, reviews, and the wealth of experience brought to bear by the very users of Epic Trip, it is their mission is to spark people’s desire to discover their own epic trip. URL: www.epictrip.com/

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TripHub Group Travel Site: Great site to plan, coordinate and share any trip or event that involves people going to a destination. The service allows you to: - Invite people to join your trip and keep track of who is coming (eVite like functionality) - Research and discuss hotel options in over 350 cities (provided by hotels.com) - Share travel itineraries from any source or supplier - Send e-mails to some or all members of the group - Track who owes money Cool site. Launched in March. URL: www.triphub.com

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World66: Open content travel guide, where people all over of the planet can write about the places they love, hotels and restaurants they love. URL: www.world66.com/

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Thisplaceiknow: There are tons of travel guides that have touristy places like The Empire State Building or The Hollywood Sign, but this is a travel guide that has places that are “more personal”. So for example: There’s this awesome place in Rehoboth, Massachusetts where you can see all the way into Providence. It’s not that big of a deal, but it’s a great place to go to see a really cool view of the city, and it probably wouldn’t be in any travel guide URL: www.thisplaceiknow.com/

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Rent Me A Vacation: World wide vacation rentals direct from the owners. Uses google maps. URL: www.rentmeavacation.com

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I would highly recommend to visit these websites and explore the different opportunities with them. I think that adding our travel content on these websites will be a good start.

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