You’re Not the Only One Who Posts Your Trip on Social Media

My friend Diane Quigley spent the past week in Paris. She enjoyed an amazing view of the Eiffel Tower from her mom’s Airbnb rental. On Tuesday she took a chilly boat tour on the Seine. On Wednesday her mom took a tumble and spent the morning in an emergency room. On Thursday Quigley ordered French onion soup for lunch and then visited Montmarte.

How do I know all this? Quigley posted on Facebook — and she’s not the only one. According to a new study, the majority of travelers share photos and vignettes about their adventures on social media.

Two-thirds of travelers say they post on social media while they’re away, according to a survey by TravelOnline.com, an Australia-based travel agency. (Survey results were sent in an email press release.) And 25 percent post daily.

“Whether it’s to share their special memories with family or to make their friends a little envious, it seems that social media does in fact play a large part in enhancing the holiday experience for most people,” Glenn Checkley, TravelOnline.com’s managing director, said.

Quigley said she enjoys posting during her travels so that she can share the experiences with her friends and family. “My husband’s grandmother, who will not likely make it to Paris given her age, thoroughly enjoyed all the posts, living vicariously through our trip,” she said.

For a variety of reasons, 44 percent of respondents said that how their vacation appears on social media is important to them, and 15 percent admitted that how their destination would appear to their friends and family on social media influenced their decision to go there.

Social media also serves to inspire others when considering where to travel. One-third of people say that the posts they see on social media influence their destination choices. Like her aging relative, I also lived vicariously through my friend’s photos of Paris, and I’m now more interested in visiting France after seeing her posts.

Do you post to social media during your vacations?