Forum proposal: Spas

[tcook052]

Originally Posted by NickB

It seems to me that "traveling with" type topics are different from "traveling for" type topics: there are only a few sensible "traveling with" topics and they are necessarily and inherently closely linked to the act of traveling itself. There are virtually no limits to "Traveling for" type topics and the risk of hyper-fragmentation for the latter is particularly severe.

"traveling with" or "traveling for" regardless forum proliferation winds up creating the same thing though I see your distinction.

[nsx]

Please keep the excellent discussion coming.

I'm wondering whether a future software build with tagging capability could solve this. At fatwallet you can tag a thread with keywords and the user can filter on keyword to narrow the scope to the subject of interest. In effect, each user can see a different subset of the same forum.

[l'etoile]

1) Whether some one wants to raise this with TB or not, it's not a burning issue for me. I would like to see it here, but if it doesn't get past here, I'm fine with that. Lots of travel magazines that I would say compete with FT are taking spas on in a bigger and bigger way, recognizing that they are becoming a large part of the travel market (and no, birding and the like is not the same). While I believe FT can do it better due to the reviews we can provide and the photos, I'm fine to turn more of my attention to magazines.

2) There is often a big difference in how some individuals and TalkBoard members *want* members to use forums and how they actually use those forums. I too would like it somewhat more streamlined. Currently, with spas, the few who've posted here seem to think those should all appear in regional forums. But the reality is that seldom happens. I've gotten my best information on dining and spas buried in Trip Reports, second would be those I happened upon in hotel forums, hidden in hotel review threads. I seldom see spa reports in destination forums. That's where some TB members and a few other FT members may like to see them; but the reality is that's not where you're most likely to find them. So do you stick to what exists or modify and change when the results don't conform to what you want to see?

3) Is FT's goal to grow and adapt with changing trends and conditions or to remain stagnant? The board grows with new members daily and changes are often needed. We have some forums where if you don't look at the front page every hour, you will miss the latest news. Getting topics that are specific to a certain market out of those forums (Travel with Pets, for example) helps the majority of the readers of those busy forums by leaving the general-interest topics, while giving a forum to those who have more specific needs and questions. Ditto for Travel with Children and others. I don't check Travel with Pets, but by the threads I see pop up from there when I read "new posts" it seems to have done well.

FlyerTalk's a large board. I agree organization is a huge issue, especially as the board continues to grow. Meeting changing needs, I would hope, does not mean refusing to change and sticking to something that may or may not work either now or in the future.

Thanks to those who work to try and keep things in balance and tackle these questions. And thanks to those of you who sent me spa suggestions and deals. This thread has been worthwhile to me if just for that.

[yosithezet]

I don't see a lot of mention of the spas in trip reports for hotels on FT. Some of the hotels have fabulous spas. Since there isn't much talk about the spas that people are, or are not, frequenting already at the hotel level, I doubt there is enough interest to warrant a forum for spas.

[tcook052]

Originally Posted by l'etoile

3) Is FT's goal to grow and adapt with changing trends and conditions or to remain stagnant?

Is that entirely fair? I'm sorry but I don't see refusing to cater to every single niche, demographic or interest as embracing stagnancy at all though the beauty of FT is we can have differing opinions and debate them civilly. FT has grown and changed with the times but it shouldn't mean IMHO that we stray so far from the core purpose that the place becomes almost unrecognizable and of less interest to the core users.

[l'etoile]

Originally Posted by yosithezet

I don't see a lot of mention of the spas in trip reports for hotels on FT. Some of the hotels have fabulous spas. Since there isn't much talk about the spas that people are, or are not, frequenting already at the hotel level, I doubt there is enough interest to warrant a forum for spas.

Actually, there is talk in individual hotel trip reports. Usually, it's just a sentence or two ... "and the hotel has a lovely spa" ...but search the word "spa" and you will find much mention in hotel and trip reports. I suspect a spa forum would get more detail than what we now see, but do FTers use spas, yes.

[l'etoile]

Originally Posted by tcook052

Is that entirely fair?

I was speaking in the broad sense, as I believe you had a bit of a general resistance to new forums and mentioned the Travel with Pets forum, in particular, as one you did not wish to see. I was simply pointing out that as FT grows, some niche forums help us all by getting what some of us might consider to be "clutter" out of forums and into one where those with that interest can easily find what they are looking for.

[uva185]

Originally Posted by l'etoile

some niche forums help us all by getting what some of us might consider to be "clutter" out of forums and into one where those with that interest can easily find what they are looking for.

I don't see very many (if any) spa threads "cluttering up" the forums that would warrant the creation of its own forum.

Creating new forums for each niche interest might make it easier to know where a thread should be posted but it does not mean many members will visit or post in that forum.

[yosithezet]

Originally Posted by l'etoile

Actually, there is talk in individual hotel trip reports. Usually, it's just a sentence or two ... "and the hotel has a lovely spa" ...but search the word "spa" and you will find much mention in hotel and trip reports. I suspect a spa forum would get more detail than what we now see, but do FTers use spas, yes.

So you would agree there isn't much discussion about it. A sentence or two, here and there. I imagine that if people don't feel it is relevant to include as much information about the spa as the do about breakfast that there isn't much of an unanswered need. Perhaps those who enjoy spas, myself included, can put more detail in Trip Reports and see if it generates discussion.

What about a "Best SPG Spa in X" thread to get things started?

[l'etoile]

Originally Posted by yosithezet

So you would agree there isn't much discussion about it.

Not exactly, but nonetheless were there much in the way of trip reports before there was a trip reports forum? Were there many dining questions before there was a dining forum? Was there nearly as much talk about photography before there was a photography forum? Your premise overlooks the fact that sometimes there is an interest (and the search would show spas are popular among members), but without a place to put it that interest is not obvious or is easily overlooked. I write very little, if anything, about the spas I go to because I simply feel there's really no place for it.

[Spiff]

Originally Posted by l'etoile

Not exactly, but nonetheless were there much in the way of trip reports before there was a trip reports forum? Were there many dining questions before there was a dining forum? Was there nearly as much talk about photography before there was a photography forum?

I'd say all of those things did exist, but they were scattered about in other forums. That was the demonstrated need that was shown when the decision to recommend the creation of those forums was made, at least on my part. I believe that some of my fellow TalkBoard representatives felt the same way or similarly, but I do not presume to speak for them.

[yosithezet]

Originally Posted by l'etoile

Were there many dining questions before there was a dining forum?

Until this thread I was unaware of the Dining forum. When I am interested in discussing dining I turn to the forum for the region/country and ask the questions there.

Two examples:
Bangkok Eating

Great deal gourmet lunches

I'll check out the Dining Forum but it seems to me that it would be inconvenient to look for Bangkok dining options in a general forum where it is less likely to be seen than it would be in the Thailand forum.

The same goes for spas that are in hotels. If I want to know something about the spa in the Le Meridien Khao Lak I'd first head to the hotel master thread. If I wanted to discuss spas in Sydney I'd go to the ANZ forum and ask.

[l'etoile]

Originally Posted by Spiff

I'd say all of those things did exist, but they were scattered about in other forums. That was the demonstrated need that was shown when the decision to recommend the creation of those forums was made, at least on my part. I believe that some of my fellow TalkBoard representatives felt the same way or similarly, but I do not presume to speak for them.

I guess that's what I'm saying now ...spas are presently discussed, but scattered about in various forums so they are difficult to locate (mainly they come up in trip reports and individual hotel reports). And they are probably not discussed to the degree they would be in a specific forum, much as the other topics I mentioned were not discussed to the degree they are now that they have their own forums.

Perhaps some day if I've got a lot of free time, I will "demonstrate the need" by digging up and posting links to endless threads with spa discussions in them. Unfortunately, I don't see that day ahead.

[BiziBB]

l'etoile, if FT Search works properly, you could create an index thread (in TravelBuzz, in a similar way to the Duty Free Index I created in DiningBuzz) and ask people who have posted questions or noticed Spa threads, to put a link into a post in your index.

It's then just a matter of checking the index thread and linking the recent posts into an update of the Index.

This way, you can encourage people to check in and post links to threads in TrawvelBuzz, the Hotel program & Luxury Hotel forums, country forums, Women Travelers, GLBT forum etc.

Then put a link to the index in your signature.

Cheers,
BB

[Needless to say, this is as an interim measure, to gauge interest and as a way for you to aggregate threads, if you need to demonstrate the level of interest. In the case of Duty Free, the thread gets a lot of hits but not too many updates. ]

[l'etoile]

Thanks BiziBB. I appreciate the helpful post.