tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post6161150522508470290..comments2023-10-26T17:06:56.408+04:00Comments on cool travel guide: How travel writers 'discover' hotelsLara Dunstonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05568159382939703162noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post-3854864402564115272009-03-16T08:55:00.000+04:002009-03-16T08:55:00.000+04:00This was a very informative post for us, squirrele...This was a very informative post for us, squirreled away in the emerald rice fields and sugar cane plantations of Isaan! <BR/><BR/>We'd love to welcome you to the area (which definitely differentiates itself from the more travelled regions of Thailand), but as there are no "pavements to pound" in the region, can only rely on the internet (and writers such as yourselves!) to get our word out. <BR/><BR/>Your post also makes us wonder how you and your readers would define "luxury"? For us, it's a combination of genuinely hospitable service, facilities offered, and style - but importantly, also, space and unique elements in both the product and the the experience. We wonder if you would agree that if we made a graph, with Product in the Y axis and Experience on the X axis, would the "luxury line" start high on the y axis and move lower as it travels along the x axis? (Perhaps a thought for a new forum!)<BR/><BR/>Green Gecko is a single, private pool villa in what some might call the middle of nowhere, and some see as a "hidden gem." We aim to score well on both axes above, but hope that those looking for a rural getaway, with freshly prepared Thai and Isaan food in a natural setting, will find what they have been looking for here and that the unique experience offered will help encourage visitors to get off the beaten path and try something new. <BR/><BR/>Again, many thanks for your interesting insights and a thoughtful, "sticky" blog!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post-29899418026199734982008-11-28T17:45:00.000+04:002008-11-28T17:45:00.000+04:00Interesting post, thank you.Interesting post, thank you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post-44919170399052881862008-11-10T23:45:00.000+04:002008-11-10T23:45:00.000+04:00I found that really interestingI found that really interestingAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post-82231115402291596862008-08-31T08:58:00.000+04:002008-08-31T08:58:00.000+04:00Hi Tamara - yes, I agree, I love that part of the ...Hi Tamara - yes, I agree, I love that part of the job too. It beats sitting at a desk writing for 14-16 hours a day, which is what I'm doing now!<BR/><BR/>Hi Travelmuse - I've checked in on extravigator a few times... still thinking about how I feel about it actually... But as for your Portland hotel, you need to stay there and write about it before anyone else does!Lara Dunstonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05568159382939703162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post-87122532615283815162008-08-31T08:32:00.000+04:002008-08-31T08:32:00.000+04:00Lara - I do a lot of the same research when lookin...Lara - I do a lot of the same research when looking for hotels. I also hit extravigator.com for discussions on luxury travel. You can't beat walking the streets though. I discovered a gem of a hotel in Portland that's not in any of the guidebooks or online. I can't wait to go back and stay there.TravelMusehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10228395710107525480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post-79312846506050467012008-08-28T13:03:00.000+04:002008-08-28T13:03:00.000+04:00Hi LaraI don't know about you but the bit I love m...Hi Lara<BR/>I don't know about you but the bit I love most about my job is the 'pounding the streets' bit. Even though it can be exhausting, it's almost always worthwhile for the information you come back with. When you do discover a hidden gem - well - that's the bit that after so many years now of looking at hotels, still gets me excited!Tamarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17508791885687261165noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post-48317930745841613162008-08-25T03:45:00.000+04:002008-08-25T03:45:00.000+04:00Hi Janice - thanks! Much appreciated. You're absol...Hi Janice - thanks! Much appreciated. You're absolutely right. It takes a lot longer for word to spread about a new hotel in say, a small town in Bolivia, or even in a big town in Syria. <BR/><BR/>For instance, we wrote in the last edition of our Lonely Planet about the 'boutique' hotels that had started in restored old houses in Aleppo (that was 5 years ago that we did that research), but it wasn't until 2-3 years ago that stories started appearing in travel supplements and magazines about the emergence of this 'new' breed of hotel. Probably because a journalist had gone there using our book, wrote a story, and then everyone caught on. <BR/><BR/>For the latest edition of that guide, which we researched in May-June last year, we drove across the whole country and went to every single town and village in Syria with anything of interest to it. If there was going to be a new hotel anywhere, we'd find it. And as it turned out, we did find quite a few in Damascus, currently under construction and being renovated. <BR/><BR/>But you're right, aside from Damascus, those places are not going to know how to send press releases to Conde Nast Traveller and they are certainly not going to employ a PR rep in London!Lara Dunstonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05568159382939703162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1024398511254172770.post-14369214700094254852008-08-24T19:35:00.000+04:002008-08-24T19:35:00.000+04:00Great post topic offering worthwhile insight. Pers...Great post topic offering worthwhile insight. Personally, I've found the "pounding the pavement" approach to be most effective, particularly as it relates to countries emerging from third world status.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com