http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/...y-9948546.html

I liked the one about glass getting in the way of the view

Lovely!

It is not just Trip Advisor, it is the whole review system. Be a review on Booking Trip Advisor or in the case of goods say Amazon, you never get the whole picture of the reviewer. You will never meet them and get to know them. You never know what they were expecting and never know what they like and dislike.
So why trust those reviews? Articles like this only point out the weakness of the review system, all be it with some entertainment.

Totally agree with ribeirasacra.
I just had a quick look at some TA reviews of places here in Rome and we learn that the Colosseum is the "worst attraction in the world".

Do you not have a brain? Are you not capable of recognising hysterical reactions rather than reasonable criticism with examples cited as evidence? Can you not read other reviewers viewpoints and form an overall impression of a hotel based on a larger body of data? If there aren't any other reviews are you not capable finding a different hotel? I honestly wonder how some of you manage to dress yourselves in the morning.

I have no problem with the "review system." You just have to use some analytical skills when looking at reviews.

What if a bunch of reviews of a restaurant say objective something like, "We had to wait 30 minutes before a server even brought us our menus"? Can I then not safely assume that the service is slow there?

Of course there are ridiculous and subjective reviews, and of course you have to filter through them. That doesn't mean all reviews are useless.

My personal experience in staying at places reviewed in TA has been that the reviews have been helpful and on the mark, overall.

I have no problem with the "review system." You just have to use some analytical skills when looking at reviews.
I don't have a problem with it Vinvenzo. It the person is brand new and has two reviews you skip them. More than likely it is a grudge. I did love reading about the women that made herself an attraction and got many reviews.

I think, just as on Amazon, that many of these one star reviews are placed as humour. They are not intended to be taken seriously.
I am always suspicious of anything people find too good or too awful, but generally TA reviews are helpful.

This will mean nothing to foreigners or to Britons who don't follow the radio soap opera "The Archers".
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_R...s_England.html

I wonder when some spoilsport will draw TripAdvisor's attention to it

I disagree. If you have BEEN to some of those places and then read some of these reviews IMO it becomes pretty evident that you already <B>know</B> everything you need to know about these reviewers.

Just one example: when people say "all hotel rooms are small in Paris" and you know they aren't.

I think the problem with London, it has too many names. It is England, Great Britain, the United Kingdom, and the UK. Then you add in that Ireland, Scotland, Wales thing, and it is like getting extra credit on a test without doing the work. I know when I respond on TA, I get credit for visiting four, sometimes eight places. The Queen also has a lot of names. Maybe if you simplified things, people would know where they are going, and like it more. Just saying.
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I honestly wonder how some of you manage to dress yourselves in the morning.
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I see you are in Cambridge, so you must be smart, do you put on your socks first or your shoes?
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@RM67: I think this is supposed to be a humourous thread. Tongue in cheek. There's no need for a rant.

Appia do not clue him in, he might stop.

Yes I know it is a humorous link. I was responding to the people who replied seriously saying they don't trust TA or similar review sites. I am perfectly entitled to point out that it is not unreasonable to expect grown adults to be able to apply a bit of common sense and discrimination. What is the point of using any resource - including Fodors - if not.

Imdonehere - oh if only you were.

This thread is.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNr-UYRFPws

Thankyou for that link MissPrism. What a hoot (as the late Nigel might have said)