Do you regularly check your home territory boards, i.e. US, Europe, and/or if US, specific states,etc. to help travelers? If so, do you ever find yourself withholding info so as not to detract from the tourist experience? Resident vs. tourist biases? I will post this to Europe also.....just curious.

I check the Canada board regularly but I get the impression that people think there is nothing between Toronto and Jasper/Banff. Nobody wants to know anything about where I come from. But I still check.

I've looked at the US/California board a few times, I find it very disorienting. People seem to want to do the same things all of the time, like Venice Beach, Fisherman's Warf, Monterey, Yosemite...I find myself thinking, why do you want to go there? (excepting Yosemite, of course). Like they're doing some sort of superficial, required circuit.

Then I say to myself, well, then, what would you suggest they do?? For some reason it's hard to describe the things you really like to do in a place you know so well.

Then I find myself questioning my own approach to travel, and if I'm not doing the same thing - just thinking about going to the well-known spots that maybe don't offer the best experience there is to be had in a city.

In general I think the best travel advice comes from people who don't live in the country, but have been there a few times. They're familiar with the issues a newbie wants to know about, but still have that "foreign perspective" to be interested in things that might bore a resident.

Residents are good for things like, "is traffic likely to be bad on the way to the airport," etc...

Funny you should ask this question. After years of getting and giving help with trips I just decided to see what people are asking about the city I live. I realized I can be more helpful than just places I have vacationed. The truth is I don't think I was as effective as I hoped because I don't take cabs and haven't stayed at too many hotels, but I'll keep trying. And no, I wouldn't withhold info. I just hope I can give back what so many other have given to me. I have had so many great experiences thanks to other fodorites. I also feel that tourism is a great compliment to your city.

I spend so much free time studying up on Paris - I know far less about my own city. I'm actually a homebody, don't like events with crowds, don't eat out much...I prefer sitting in my backyard garden, playing with the dog, watching the koi swim around,maybe a movie now and then. I don't think Jacksonville is that much of a tourist destination, although it's a nice town.

I check on NYC questions once in a great while, but as others have said, since I live here I can't necessarily be helpful with what a visitor will want to see, where they will want to stay, how much they will want to walk vs ride, which restaurants may interest them as opposed to the ones that are in my neighborhood, etc. And I know little about most of the hotels.

About most aspects of visiting London I don't know as much as many regular visitors.

When I can help (such as with recommendations on restaurants etc) I do so.

I'm not sure what you mean about withholding info so as not to detract from the tourist experience... can you give an example?

There are so few posts on the Canadian forum that there is little incentive to scan it. And everyone, as an earlier poster said, wants to go to Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal/ Quebec City or the Maritimes.

On reflection, I could scarcely advise them to visit my natal city of Ottawa, with which I am growing increasingly impatient. Europe is better by far....

"Do you regularly check your home territory boards"

yes.

"If so, do you ever find yourself withholding info so as not to detract from the tourist experience?"

No.

"Resident vs. tourist biases?"

yes. Tourists often, if not always, want to hit the high spots at the cost of the more out of the way stuff.

Yes, I regularly check my home area--Seattle and try to mention other places besides the regular "tourist sights", although, I've come to the conclusion that the reason "tourist sights" are such is because they're usually worth seeing, but yes, there are other places that don't always make the "tourist list" that are great as well.

I'm a Europe board addict--leaving again in 3 days!!!, so I spend most of my time giving and getting info there, but I have to say, I love coming home as well and love where I live, so enjoy sharing information about the beautiful Pacific NW as well.

Hi nn,

Since we have such a good chamber of commerce here in Madison, GA it's not necessary for me to scan the US board.

Sometimes I do like to see why people want to come to my hometown, (San Diego). It's interesting to see what they like to do here. Like another poster on this thread, I don't get out much around my own city, except an occansional trips to our local art museums.
I always laugh when people ask about what to do in San Diego "off the beaten path". I think, like what? Go to the suburbs??? Perhaps take in a mini mall...

I think I was a regular here for a year or two before I ever saw a post about my hometown of Naples, Florida. Now it seems there's at least one or two a week. I never search the boards with a particular state and rarely for a particular topic unless I'm looking for something, as I'm here so much I just scan through the entire list down to where I left off last time. But I do find myself answering a lot of questions about Naples. I just have to do a double take to make sure I'm on the US board and not the Europe one as I flip back and forth. Once I did make the mistake of starting to list lots of suggestions when someone asked about restaurants in Naples before I realized I was on the Europe board -- and I was answering about the wrong Naples!

The Australian board has a very active, and occasionally outspoken, group of locals who answer questions. I've learned a lot about my city just tuning in.

I've also driven some Fodorittes around, and answered a heap of questions. Interestingly, the ones who ask the most questions, and often generate the most work, are the ones who don't contact you when they arrive, or acknowledge the effort you've made, even via a thanks email! Life, I guess!

I try to help people as much as I can about my hometown Indianapolis. Not many people view it as a tourist destination except for a race, the IRL Indy 500, the Nascar Brickyard 400 and the Formula 1 Indy Grand Prix.

It's too bad really. I think almost every city in the midwest is underrated, even Chicago, which is fabulous, doesn't get much play. I've had great get-away weekends in Cincinnati, Dayton and Cleveland, Ohio; Louisville Kentucky; St Louis and Kansas City, Missouri; Des Moines, Iowa; Omaha, Nebraska, etc.

If you show up in a city that has a population of 200,000 or more and can't find (oh my GOD!) ANYTHING to do for a weekend you're just being lazy and get the boredom you deserve.

I live in Bloomsburg, the "only town in Pennsylvania" (pop. 12,000), and I have yet to find someone on this board looking for information about my town (although we have many things to do, including an internationally acclaimed professional Theatre Company, a Children's Museum, a University, and one of the largest town fairs in the country). That doesn't stop me from regularly checking the threads for Pennsylvania, in hopes someone is looking for information that I can share with them.

<i> &quot;do you ever find yourself withholding info so as not to detract from the tourist experience?&quot;</i>

If I have info that I can share with a fellow traveller, I feel compelled to share my knowledge of the area with them so that they may have a better experience - both tourist and non-tourist info.

And when I'm looking for information on a place that I want to travel to, I would hope that my fellow Fodorites would not hold back on their knowledge. I'm always looking for the &quot;off the beaten path&quot; places to go and things to do - the non-touristy experiences.

Afterall, when I travel, I'm not only looking at the &quot;must-see&quot; sights, I'm also embracing the history and culture and want to experience what/where the local residents do/go.

Peace, Robyn &gt;-

It just never occurs to me to go to the US forum, except for a few small number of times I was personally looking for some specific advice.

I just now looked through 50 posts on each of the three states I know best - - Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana (there were no questions asking about Floyds Knobs!) - - for what it's worth, I think I could give some decent advice also on California, Iowa, Texas, Louisiana, North and South Carolina.

For OH/KY/IN I think I could give some decent advice - - and per my usual, I think I could advise on some of the better web sites where local info seems fairly trustworthy...

So, rather than going to match up individual answers with pertinent questions, here are my observations on the parts of the three states I'd comment about:

<u>Louisville and Southern Indiana:</u>

Falls of the Ohio Museum and Park - - as good a small museum as I have seen in a long time.

Huber's Orchard and Winery - - often rated most fun &quot;day attraction&quot; (and owned by my brother-in-law); while you are there, see also the Forest Discovery Center, also in Starlight Indiana (and where our daughter got married)

Best restaurant in Louisville - - I won't make a pick; there are a lot of B+++ or A- restaurants, but no A+, in my opinion. Still, the (internet) reviews of Robin Garr are something you can take to the bank. Match with whatever you're looking for.

<u>Columbus, Ohio</u>

Columbus Zoo - - excellent. Lives up to the hype.

New Albany, Ohio - - something to see. A thousand &quot;different&quot; (semi-identical) homes, all in the (near)-million dollar range, with white board fences, seemingly all sprung up over night (in the early-mid 90's), thanks to Les Wexner, funder/owner of the Limited, Vistoria's Secret, Bath and Body Works etc. Where did all these people come from? see also Easton Town Center - - Wexner's own &quot;non-mall&quot; mall

The Refectory - - risky to recommend a restaurant when I haven't even been there in three years; but enough visits there over 20 years tempts me to give it an A+

Ohio Theatre - - like nothing else left in America.

North Market - - other cities have better, no doubt; OH/KY/IN do not.

Ohio Village - - pretty good.

Other places I've been:

Cedar Point - - is there better in the world, for roller coaster lovers? A ten. Kings Island, near Cincinnati is a seven.

Wright-Patterson Air Force museum, Dayton - - excellent

Rock and Roll museum, Cleveland - - very, very good

Museum district, Cleveland - - very good; the best in the three states (but don't leave Chicago to come here)

Berlin (pronounced BUR-l'n) and Amish country, Ohio - - pretty good.

Cincinnati Zoo - - despite the heresy that this represents in Columbus, it's as good as Columbus, if not better. Just different (a hundred years older, for one thing).

Ski Paoli (Indiana) - - okay laugh about skiing in Indiana, but a good cheap fix on a (rare) blue-sky January Sunday here. Only 40 miles from my home, which is not true of Aspen.

Bloomington and Brown County - - I am probably nostalgic about this combo, but the favorite destination in (southern) Indiana for every Hoosier.

Shaker Village (Kentucky) - - Excellent. Awesome. Did I say excellent?

Berea Center (Kentucky) - - best short interstate stop in three states. Tamarack, in West Virginia, is better, but not 100% better.

Places that (I think) are good, but I have never been:

St. Meinrad (Indiana)
Keeneland Race Track (Kentucky)
Hocking Hills (Ohio)

Maybe I know more than I thought I knew.

Best wishes,

Rex

Hey tedgale...if you think it's hard to find someone who wants to know about Ottawa try finding someone who wants to come to Winnipeg. We are having a mini snow storm today.

Actually, I was thinking about Winnipeg at some point. (It's on my long list --though not necessarily my short list.) There is some kind of a cultural festival up there in the summer that sounds like fun and I always see the picture of the Fort Garry hotel when I go through Minneapolis (it looks very elegant). So feel free to give a pitch, didl_maus.

Flyboy must be referring to the Winnipeg Folk Festival which has been held in a huge park just outside of Winnipeg. Entertainers gather for a 4 day concert in the beautiful park.

www.winnipegfolkfestival.ca