Travel advice with Twitter: 5 tips

Author: Matt Preston Become a contributor

Twitter is an amazing social networking tool on the Internet. If you’re not already familiar with Twitter then you’ve been living under a rock for the past couple of years! It’s a great way to meet people who enjoy the same topics as you, share information in just 140 characters and keep friends and family up to date with your life.

But how can Twitter help you on your travels? Here’s out top 5 tips for getting the most out of twitter and the most out of your travel adventure.

1. Download a mobile version of twitter

Twitter has a great website and loads of cool computer applications but Twitter really comes alive when you get it on your phone! There are loads of great mobile twitter applications for all types of smartphone

including the iPhone, Blackberry and Nokia phones. You can also use the mobile version of twitter’s website which has recently been updated. This means you can tweet from where-ever you are and also search for tweets when you need them!

We use Tweetie for the iPhone. It’s fantastic for when you just don’t want to carry a laptop around! If you don’t have a smartphone you can still tweet from your phone by text message. Check out www.twitter.com/devices for more info when you’re logged in.

2. Find people in the same countries as you

Twitter has some great search capabilities and with so many people tweeting on a daily basis you’ll always be able to find information on your chosen subject. If you’re about to embark on a trip or are already on one try searching for the country you’re in. You can do this with your mobile twitter application or using the twitter website. You can also search for particular cities, towns, landmarks or tourist locations and you’re more than likely going to find something about it. If you find people that are at those locations feel free to reply to one of their tweets and ask them for information. Twitter is a public system where everyone is willing to share experiences and support. Don’t be shy.

3. Use hashtags. Even start your own!

Hashtags are Twitter’s way of categorising tweets. They are completely free-form so anyone can start a hashtag and anyone can use one in their tweets. There’s loads of hashtags relating to travel. here’s a few we know of. If you know of more please comment and we’ll add them!

• #travel – A general tag for travel blog posts and travel information
• #rtwsoon – For round the world travellers who have yet to start their journey
• #rtwnow – For round the world travellers already on their journey
• #traveltheworld – An increasingly popular hashtag for travellers
• #hotels – Often has lots of spam but does contains some internet only deals on rooms
• #backpacking – Lots of advice from backpackers here. A great source
• #lp – Lonely Planets blog submission hashtag. Lots of great articles to read here!
• #matadorn – The Matador Network’s hashtag for Matador articles and discussions
• #globalnomads – Our very own hashtag for all our interviews with global nomads!

Can’t find a hashtag on your subject? Then start you own! It’s easy. Simply think of an original hashtag (make sure it doesn’t exist already) and add “#” in front of it. Then use it in all your tweets about that subject. Hashtags increase and decrease in popularity. It’s all about involving others and sharing advice so if you find others talking about the same subject, message them to tell them about the new hashtag and it’ll help categorize those tweets better!

4. Look for twitters near you

One great feature of Twitter is geotagging your tweets. Many mobile applications can do this automatically now. This marks your tweet with a specific location. This means if you’re out sightseeing or travelling you can search for nearby users who may have tweeted about the locations near you. There are a whole host of mobile applications especially for the iPhone that can display these tweets on maps and even in 3D. Do a search for “augmented reality” apps on iTunes and you’ll soon see how cool that can be! Geotagging your own tweets is also a cool way to remember where you have been as well as letting others know your location.

5. Want more advice? Give more!

Twitter’s real appeal is the fact that in order to get out of it you need to put into it. There’s millions of users willing to answer your questions about the places you’re visiting. You’ll often find that the more advice you can give on the places you know about the more you will get out of Twitter. You can build communities based around any subject you like, share experiences, ask questions, exchange advice. You can even meet up with twitters in your area which can sometimes be a great way to have a guided tour of a foreign country!

In conclusion

Twitter is an amazing service with loads of uses. It’s by far the quickest way to get good advice from the people with real experiences. Meeting so many travelling twitters also gives you motivation, confidence and knowledge to travel more. Now that can’t be a bad thing can it?!

We’d love to add to this blog about good travel tweeting advice. If you’ve got any tips, tricks or advice please post your comments below.

You can of course follow Travel with a Mate on Twitter. We tweet daily about our travels, our blogs and of course will give any advice we can. Don’t be shy!