Hire a local: a review of my Tripbod experience

San Cristobal de las CasasI don’t often write reviews of products or services, but having followed the Tripbod team for a while online and then met up with the CEO Sally Broom and her colleague Liz Sutcliffe at World Travel Market last year I was tempted to try out their service on our recent trip to Central America. It’s a novel take on a very well versed principle of travel – that for the best up to date knowledge about a destination it’s best to talk to a person who actually lives there.

What is Tripbod?

Tripbod‘s strapline is ‘your friend at the other end’, and it neatly sums up what you get when you sign up to their site. Once you register and select your destination you are provided a list of Tripbods based in or near that place. You can then choose one who best matches your interests and intended trip activities. The Tripbods on the list have signed up to act as local knowledge sources to visitors (and get paid for providing their service).

As a user you pay according to the length of the trip for which you want advice – the longer the trip the more you pay. Your Tripbod might help you with local restaurant tips, suggestions on where to find the bar that plays your favourite music or which buses to catch to get around town. Some will offer to provide a guided tour of their city. It’s up to you to agree between yourselves where you would like their help.

Our experience

I was paired with Allan, and we soon exchanged email messages. You are expected to communicate within the Tripbod private message forum, which can be a bit of a pain when you’re travelling and you have to log in to yet another account to access. On the other hand it was very handy to have every piece of information that I had received from Allan on one web-based platform. The Tripbod interface also allows easy sharing of maps, which in our case was very handy.

I spoke with Allan on Skype for around 20 mins about our plans to visit San Cristobal de las Cases, his home town. He asked me about our plans and offered valuable advice that helped shape our overall travel itinerary for travelling onwards from San Cristobal. He then followed up our chat with extensive written information, including his recommended restaurants (with suggested dishes) and cafes to visit. When I told him that we are keen hikers he also connected us with a couple of local guides who could take us for day hikes from the city.

It was a shame that Allan was out of town when we came to San Cristobal as it would have been great to buy him a beer and chat a little more once we had arrived.

My thoughts on Tripbod

Overall, Allan was courteous, helpful and pointed us in the direction of some good eating spots, as well as introducing us to our hiking guide. It was reassuring to know that his information was current and that it was tailored to us according to my questions.

His information on restaurants and local food was particularly useful. We did stay in one of the hotels that was recommended and didn’t have a great time there, but I can’t be harsh on Allan for this (and it was highly rated elsewhere too). After all, why would a local know about the best hotels in town? I never stay in the hotels in my town; I might know the bars, cafes and restaurants well but for hotels it’s probably better to seek advice of other travellers.

Which travellers benefit most from Tripbod?

I can see Tripbod being an excellent resource for people who are short of planning and preparation time and who want to see the best of a place in a very short time. If we were staying in a city for a weekend break for example, we might invest in a Tripbod as an alternative to a guide book in order to get a small amount of highly relevant and tailored content. Having a local person to meet up with and get an insight into life in that city is also a bonus.

In our particular case we were at the back end of a six week trip and were in that stage of travelling where we were no longer anxious to see everything. Having visited many cities already and become familiar with our own way of exploring a place, the service provided was not as valuable as it might have been. That’s no criticism of our Tripbod or of the model; it’s just perhaps less likely to be used by backpackers and more by those who are short on time (in planning and travel).

Another valuable aspect of a Tripbod is for those travellers (or parents of young travellers) who are nervous about spending time in a big city with a dangerous reputation. It can be hugely reassuring to know that you have a expert resource to help you know where to go and where to avoid. A local guide can make a place seem a big bad place seem a lot less scary.

Overall, I am glad to have tried the Tripbod model and very grateful to Sally and Liz for offering me free access to the site and to Allan’s expertise. In bringing together travellers and local individuals who are proud to show off their neighbourhoods, Tripbod is a business idea that deserves to be a success.

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Freelance travel writer

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