It would need a bit more work there, as a demo maybe or a huge button with info on it.

I am usually skeptical of the local insider type of listings, but Nileguode offers a nice hybrid of local expert tips as well as their own listings. When planning a trip to a place, a widget/real time list that shows the top places other travelers have been putting on their itineraries to the same place. This would not only balance the Nileguide curated with local’s insider listing but also telegraph to me the hot spots (especially bars/restaurants.)

After all the twitter/facebook homages, Leena’s posts are actually refreshing.

las-vegas/best/luxury-hotels
Wynn is not listed in top 15 and Luxor is at 5.
Anyone been at NG stayed at these two? I have and wynn is luxury and luxor should be under cheap

Most annoying was the windows popup error saying could not load page. This is happening on every other page.

I like the concept of printing a guide it sounds like a cool feature they jsut need to get it right.

Cheers,

Honestly, I liked it the more I used it, so it was mostly just the UI that turned me off initially. On the other hand, I didn’t feel that urge to head to the airport after I was done, and for me that’s unusual.

One test destination I thought would be informative was NYC, where I live and consider myself somewhat of an expert. The offered guides were okay, but that’s info you can get anywhere. I didn’t find that the filters were all that useful in paring down or sorting the 803(!) things to do in NYC.

The poster above said that the site helped prevent him from making an unrealistic itinerary, but that wasn’t my experience. (Maybe I missed a button?) I think this is the functionality where an aggregator can really shine. There are certain combinations of things that go well together, and some that really don’t, and there are some places that must be visited first thing in the morning. I amused myself by creating an itinerary for my worst enemy.

Bottom line: I’ll probably check back to the site next time I’m planning a real trip, but I don’t expect to be blown away, and I certainly wouldn’t use the site exclusively.

More generally, I’m skeptical about the fervor to aggregate all things travel. I do acknowledge that some trips benefit from careful research and planning, but I’ve never really been overwhelmed by the task, nor have I minded going to multiple sites. I read reviews of hotels at a hotel aggregator site before I book a room, but then I like to go looking for small sites that specialize in the destination, authored by local experts or enthusiastic amateurs. Add to that a couple travel articles and a guide book for the plane, and I’m all set.

On the other hand, this company has raised quite a bit of money, so obviously some people think this is the next big thing. I guess there are different kinds of travelers, but for the laid-back adventurer type, I think there are better options still.

mariano