newelty

a favorite vintage store in Austin, home to SXSW Interactive

I’ve attended a couple of social media conferences lately, and with South by Southwest (or for the too-cool-for-school, #sxsw) around the corner, I’ve been wondering: Why hasn’t social media created even more of a sea change as to how we travel? Why hasn’t it replaced my guidebook?

I’m planning to go to Vught in the Netherlands to attend a fancy-pants language school to learn Dutch (more on that in later posts). I’m not going to use dopplr for that trip because, frankly, it seems more pain than what it’s worth. And even so, I can’t access it–or any other recommendations–as I’m walking down the street, using my iPhone, until there’s a reasonable international data-roaming plan. Is that the holdup?

Writing for the Guardian, Vicki Baker says that the problem of sharing travel advice through social media is of information overload, at least as far as the Secret London Facebook group goes.

There’s something to that. I want the filters to be customized and incredibly well-curated.

What I want, in whatever form, is a custom-made guidebook–either on the page or on my phone–one that I cobble together from all my online research, including a bit from Twitter and Facebook.

I use Yelp. I ask Facebook friends for recommendations all the time. I’m thrilled when a post here is retweeted, and I enjoy finding something worth reposting to newelty’s Twitter feed. I get a little giddy around shiny new gadgets.

For pete’s sake–I went to conferences on social media. For fun. I’m not the Internet-will-never-succeed guy from 1995. I love technology, and honestly want to know: Why isn’t social media more influential in travel writing and our travel experience beyond the “hey have you tried this restaurant?” post on Facebook?