Expedia's Cool Tool<< American Airlines' round one... ding ding ding | Main | Princess Cruises: between a dock and a hard space >> Diane Clarkson | July 18, 2006, 02:40 PM Expedia has joined in the ever-growing efforts to find new ways to help travelers plan online and, through a partnership with Home&Abroad, has introduced a rather cool feature called Virtual Guidebook. Travelers enter their travel style and interests and will receive a customized itinerary. The skeptic in me was pleased to see that the itineraries also include free activities along with the wide range sold through Expedia. Though my inner skeptic did giggle a bit at the press release announcing itineraries for “more than 50 of the most popular travel destinations in the world” – they may be overselling a bit. 85% of these destinations are in the US, Mexico and Caribbean. In the interest of expectation management, I might have promoted this a bit differently. No offense to Baltimore, but it’s hard to believe the city is among the top 50 worldwide tourism destinations on a list that doesn’t stray further internationally than a half dozen European cities. Nonetheless, the potential for building this feature into something really useful exists. It’s already quite innovative. Check it out. |
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