What makes for a good trip report?

[AquamarineSteph]

I have read lots of great trip reports here and in other travel forums. I know what I like to see when somebody describes their tour, but I was just curious --

When you read a trip review, what makes it interesting for you? Photos? Details? Things that went wrong? Things that went right? Hotel rooms? Food details?

I meant to do a trip review for my last two Adventures. Clearly, I did not. I want to try to write up one for my next trip this summer. And I'm just curious about what you like to learn from a trip review?

 

[tink1970]

I think I enjoy almost everything you listed above

I'm always interested in the rooms/bathroom aspect; activities; any funny or learning moments; OYO time activities and photos seem to help illustrate all of those things. I also enjoy knowing a little about the participants and why they chose the particular adventure (or cruise) they did.

Many people are very interested in food, whereas I describe my palate as belonging to a picky four year old so "food porn" isn't my thing but nothing keeps me from just scrolling down!

Writing up a trip report does take a little bit of time, but I think it's very beneficial for the author (helps seal in the memories) as well as the audience (not a heck of a lot of information about some of these itineraries). It's also a nice way to get a "travel fix" by living vicariously. Please do write up yours

 

[DCPhotoGal]

This is a great question! I have found trip reports really helpful for planning for on my own time as well as packing. I like to see what people are wearing in photos (so instead of just scenery, it's nice to see people in the photos) to get a sense of weather. Some of the tips for add-ons or on your own time are great, like adding the military Tattoo in Scotland (so glad we read about that) and the cat park in Lima. I think it's good to keep a balance of sharing what you really liked on the trip and the things that folks might want to set slightly lower expectations for as well. But I don't like to see folks putting down individual guides or focusing too much on negatives, since I think a lot of this is expectation- or individual-experience based.

I'd also like to add it's not too late to write up trip reports from trips you've taken in the past. I went back last week and did a trip report from the Peru trip I did 9 months ago, and I found that armed with my itinerary and lots of photos I was able to remember most of what I wanted to share. It took some time to put together the reports, but I find other reports so helpful that I wanted to try to contribute to this great sharing community.

 

[White Rose]

I have read lots of great trip reports here and in other travel forums. I know what I like to see when somebody describes their tour, but I was just curious --

When you read a trip review, what makes it interesting for you? Photos? Details? Things that went wrong? Things that went right? Hotel rooms? Food details?

I meant to do a trip review for my last two Adventures. Clearly, I did not. I want to try to write up one for my next trip this summer. And I'm just curious about what you like to learn from a trip review?

I look for a balance of information provided subjectively. If someone's trip had a few bad things happen, some people let it color their whole trip. An overly negative review will turn me off. Yes, a trip might not be perfect, but if someone is nitpicking... I can not trust their review at all.... ( "OMG the trip was ruined..the whole thing horrible....they said we would get to XYZ at 9 am but it was actually 9:15 and we got no compensation for the late arrival due to traffic!")

Same with an overly positive review. (For example: "while I was on vacation the tour provider slammed my finger in a door, and I had to miss a day of the trip and need surgery on my finger with no compensation or apology.. the guide blamed me! I give the tour provider 5 stars!")

The two examples above are not real events, but I have seen some really negative Nancys and some cheerleaders!

When bad things happen, I want to know how it was resolved. I know sometimes companies might ask you not to provide details of compensation, (to avoid false claims expecting to get something for nothing.) but it is good to know if the provider "made it right".

I like to see pictures of places, balanced too, not 1000s of pictures, just a few to give a feel for the place.

 

[Burgundy Rose]

Oooo what a great topic, AquamarineSteph! Thanks for starting it. Trip reports are my favourite kind of topic. I personally will rarely read a report that doesn't have any pictures - they're essential to me. Not only pictures of the people writing (which I also appreciate, but I think they're more of a private thing) but photos of what they're talking about. I'm currently trying to learn photography so I'm more and more aware of the difference between great and poor pictures. I'd rather read a trip report with great pictures and I do avoid those with poor pictures a lot more now as I just can't seem to lose myself into the experience as much.

I'm a foodie, and the first thing I'll do is usually scroll down the first page and see if the OP has included shots of food. If they haven't, it's fine, but I'm a lot less likely to read it. Not only pics but detailed descriptions of mouth-watering food is what makes life worth living. The 'Disney Dining Reviews' section of this forum is my absolute favourite.

My favourite trip reports include tips or what people would do different/do the same, not just at the very end but throughout. I love when people talk about how they planned something, again, not just at the beginning, but throughout. I also enjoy it when they say things like 'this is what we did, however if you're more of a person who likes X, you should definitely do Y, we saw other people doing it and they looked like they were having a blast', so a trip report, with a sprinkle of educational stuff thrown in (if you can call it that).

Last, but not least, I like it when people take me somewhere I've never been and can only dream of or do something that's on one of my wishlists. For example, I read a lot of trip reports that include dinner at the Victoria and Albert's, people who stay in concierge at WDW, concierge level during cruises, and anything Adventures by Disney.

Good luck with your TRs, they might take a while to write but they're worth it. I love memory keeping and I want to make it more of a priority in the future (hence the interest in photography).

 

[tgeorge]

I agree with all the above sentiments. I love pictures and some personal information (pic of yourself and what you like to do, helps me find you in pics and understand your likes/dislikes, which can help me decide if our tastes are similar).
I also love when people can add humor. I know that some people are just great story tellers, but when people can add that in I get drawn in even more. I want to know about your next adventure! I read a TR on cruise critic by a woman who operates a blog entitled 'Adventures of a Midlife Drama Queen' and I just died laughing at some of her stories. The story of her seeing Michealgelo's David still makes me laugh thinking about it

I love reading them because it helps me add more trips to my list and I also love when people give a wrap up at the end...What they liked, what they didn't, how they rate it compared to other trips, etc. I've always found it helpful. I'm also incredibly easy to please and I'm not a big foodie,so I don't think my TR will ever be helpful to many, but I can see the advantage of writing it down to reminisce about later.

 

[BluesTraveler]

I love this topic and I adore trip reports. I really like the substantive information on what the day included, what was great, what might need tweaking. I read every trip report with eye towards "will we want to take this trip"? I was so happy last summer when there were frequent trip reports happening in real time - the perfect work break during the day.

I like to know the "this was an amazing day" and I like to know the "this was frustrating" because it helps set expectations. I also like hearing about what was a good value and what wasn't, and what folks did during free time.

I LOVE pictures although I didn't include them in my own trip report (didn't want perfect to be the enemy of good - I knew I'd never get around to it if I tried to include pictures). But I do love the pictures to accompany the text. That said - I've read several non-picture trip reports that were super helpful, including one of Wyoming, which is our trip for this summer. And I would definitely rather someone write something even if they don't feel like they can take on adding the pictures.

 

[calypso726]

What a great topic! I've never thought about what makes a great trip report. I've only ever written them here on the ABD forum. I tend to do them day by day during the trip, post pics and write the way I speak and think. I found I enjoy doing that but would like to make them more appealing and informative to everyone here, so I am taking notes about what people like to see on a trip report.

As for me, I like seeing pictures and I like knowing how each part of the trip made the person feel or what they thought. If a person really enjoys an experience I like to live vicariously through them and be able to really "hear" the enthusiasm and excitement in their words. I love to see what people did on a pre or post trip and OYO time. This helps me with what I may want to plan or not want to plan. The travel hacker in me wants to know how they got to their destination. Which airline and from which airport. What did they think of their flight and seat? I do like to see what people are wearing and know where they are from. What is mild weather to one person from the north may well be freezing to this Floridian. Our 4 seasons are warm, hot, hotter and August.


I like when people explain their opinions on why they liked or didn't like something and provide context. If they didn't like the food, I want to know why. Was it bad, was it the service, the atmosphere, the company, or was the fact they only like meat and potatoes? So, the idea foie gras paired with sous vide sweetbreads is what made them nauseous. One person may read that and think eew gross. I will read it and think, ooh, can I get seconds? I think opinions need to be taken into context. I have a tendency to complain about how hard a hike might be on me during trip. But, I also make it very clear that my age, asthma, aversion to exercise or recent injury are the cause of my complaints and not that the hike itself is difficult for the average person. Obviously I continue to do them, so I do enjoy them once I am at the top

I like to see an honest report. Even on TripAdvisor, when I read the bad and good I always take the bad into context. If the person is totally bashing the experience relentlessly and it seems a bit out of whack then I dismiss their entire opinion out of hand. I will do the same if the review sounds like a shill for the company then I'll dismiss that too.

 

[disneyphx]

What a great topic!
I love reading trip reports of all kinds - I subscribe to a bunch of travel blogs, and read them here on DisBoards and on Cruise Critic. But I have never really thought too much about wheat I do and don't like, so here are some things that make a great trip report for me:
- info about the author, who they are, why they chose the trip, their interests, likes and dislikes
- pictures are not critical to me - a couple are OK, but not of every element
I like detail about logistics - so I can imagine what it is like to be on the trip
- what to do in OYO time
- how the days actually flow compared to what is in the itinerary (is the bus ride one hour or 6 hours? when they see free time before dinner, did you have 1 hour or 4 hours?) and how the day/event was compared to what you expected
- in terms of packing (a slight obsession of mine) things to take, things you wishyou had taken what you would have done differently
- like others have said, why you liked or didn't like something and provide context (both details of the situation and and your personal perspective)
I tend to skim over 'tour book' type descriptions of sights, history etc......
Trip reports I have read here have helped me plan, helped us decide on trips - and also given me fun flashbacks of our trips