How to Get a Better Travel Experience Using Social Media

Is there a point to social media? Non-believers might want to give social media a second chance. Travel + Leisure recently sent me to Portland for a quick weekend getaway. My mission: To experience how travel companies respond to social media. After all, no one wants to be greeted with the sound of crickets.

Would my tweets and posts vanish into the Interwebs? And from a trip-planning perspective, could I eat my way through Portland using suggestions gleaned from Gogobot, Yelp, Foursquare, and Foodspotting?

Well, I certainly tried. From booking hotel deals to asking a blogger where to eat, these "9 Rules for Using Social Media on the Road" pretty much sum up what I learned. (Here's the online slideshow.) My only regret is not checking the Twitter feed of Blue Star Donuts sooner. If I had, I would've known that they sell out quickly—and I wouldn't be haunted by this sad photo.

I will be going back for the blueberry bourbon basil doughnut. That's a promise.



Photo credit: Travel + Leisure (top), Amy Chen (bottom)