Are Yelp Reviews Real? I want to buy a review.

As a publisher of San Francisco hotel reviews for many years, we found recent news stories pelting Yelp including San Francisco’s East Bay Express to be very interesting. News outlets including the New York Times and LA Times are considering whether there is any relationship between being a Yelp.com advertiser and getting great reviews on the site. We’ve generally found Yelp recommendations to be better than a “blind walk in”, but always view review sites with a jaunted eye. Several San Francisco businesses reported troubling incidents between the advertising sales staff of Yelp.com and what reviews they might / might not receive. Many reports of the connection of advertising sales with reviews continue in San Jose at this news link.

We’ll be clear – accurate, real reviews are what make the Internet so valuable. Whether the Yelp stories are true or not – it only emphasizes how important it is to separate editorial content and business sales operations for web publishers.

Led Zepplin San Francisco

A new company is offering amazing and unique zepplin rides over San Francisco. Yup, you heard right – the 1930’s type zepplins are now modernized and sailing over the San Francisco skyline for around $500 per ride (varies based on time / events). You can even fly the zepplin yourself with some basic training. What an amazing / unique idea and something we never would have expected. You can learn more about the San Francisco Zepplin airship here.

Traveling with Allergies? Avoid California.

Recent articles on travel trends indicate that travelers are looking for more personal customization in their room stays.   One company – Pure Rooms – is featuring rooms in specific major hotel chains – in specific cities – that are certified with the maximum cleanliness and allergy free state.  

Pure Rooms have the following special features:

• All surfaces are treated to avoid the allergy issues of conventional hotel rooms.
• Over 1,500 hotel rooms are currently available with the Pure Room system. 
• The company’s own techs handle the room cleaning and replacement of special filtration equipment for the air. 

It all sounds great – except in December 2007 - we were unable to find a single hotel room for San Francisco – or even anywhere in California. 

With our family’s allergies – this type of hotel room would be a welcome change – and we are hoping that it can be provided soon for the San Francisco area.  Kimpton Hotels operates many hotels around San Francisco – and does special cleaning after pets are in a room.  But this type of cleaning – post-pet – is a fraction of what Pure rooms would be. 

Consider this post to be an open invitation to the San Francisco hotel community to offer this level of allergy protection – for at least a fraction of rooms in San Francisco.  We’re sure it is coming soon, but we need it sooner.