How to Use Twitter to Get Travel Deals
For wired travelers everywhere, this social-media mammoth, which has seen its number of unique visitors grow nearly 600% in the past year—is increasingly becoming the go-to site for everything from getting hotel recommendations to sniffing out midtrip dinner companions.
To prepare for his latest business trip, Hickson Chen went through the usual routine: packed, checked his itinerary, confirmed his flight—and sent his hotel a Twitter message about chicken-fried steak.
No, that last one isn't a mistake. During a recent stay at the Sheraton Austin, Mr. Chen, who uses Twitter for everything from looking for hotel deals to requesting upgrades, discovered a new use for the social-networking Web site. Upon learning that the hotel had axed his favorite steak, the Los Angeles hedge fund employee sent a sad note about the dish's demise to his Twitter followers. When one of the hotel employees saw the message, a few strings were pulled, and by dinnertime Mr. Chen was tucking into a custom-prepared plate of chicken-fried goodness. Now every time he visits the Sheraton, he sends them a heads-up and they have the steak waiting.
By now most people know using Twitter can be a good way to track down travel deals, but who knew the site could also be your ticket to personalized room service? For wired travelers everywhere, this social-media mammoth—which has seen its number of unique visitors grow nearly 600% in the past year—is increasingly becoming the go-to site for everything from getting hotel recommendations to sniffing out midtrip dinner companions. And not surprisingly, many in the travel industry are not only poring over vacationers' every "tweet" (that's a "message," to you Luddites) but also busily cranking out plenty of bite-size missives of their own.
