Anyone with a few Facebook friends knows what a magnet the site is for vacation photos, updates gushing about newly discovered restaurants and gripes about poor service. It turns out that all of that sharing is much more than gloating—it is becoming a trusted trove of tips for other travelers, according to recent research by trip-insurance provider Mondial Assistance.

When it comes to deciding where to go and what to do, 60 percent of consumers rely on online word of mouth from travel review and social media sites, say results from Mondial’s Access America Vacation Confidence Index. Not surprisingly, the young and affluent are the most likely to look to the social web before booking. Three in four travelers under 35 use social media in their trip planning, compared to 44 percent in the over-55 demographic. And 79 percent of travelers with household income above $75,000 factor in online reviews, while just 46 percent of travelers making less than $25,000 do the same.

Uptake.com's Travel Q&A: using social media for travel planning

Lack of accountability on the web remains a turn-off for some, especially travelers over 35—just 54 percent say they trust other travelers’ reviews. And even among the under-35 set, there is room for improvement—70 percent say they find others’ online reviews trustworthy.

As for who is sharing about their travel experiences online, the Mondial survey says that about one in four travelers do so, with 18 percent favoring social networks and 8 percent posting on travel-review sites. And again, affluence and age are strong indicators of someone’s likelihood to take to the web when they take off on a trip. Thirty-five percent of under-35 travelers share their travel experiences online, compared to 20 percent of those 35 and older, while those with a household income over $75,000 are more than twice as likely to share as those making under $25,000 (36 percent vs. 15 percent).

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Leading a healthier lifestyle is something most people aspire to, with losing weight, quitting smoking, drinking less and exercising more often included on millions of people’s New Year’s resolutions lists. While “travel more” also is a popular desire, should it too be considered good for one’s health?

New Year's Eve, Times Square, NYC

In the American Travel Behavior Survey, conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of travel discount site Hotwire.com, results found that 81 percent of travelers feel energized and productive after returning from a leisure trip. While this isn’t surprising news—vacations are supposed to be for relaxing and reenergizing—there may be evidence to suggest that leisure travel also is medically beneficial.

“Travel stimulates the brain and promotes the growth of new synapses, heightens creativity and may even resist Alzheimer’s disease,” says Dr. Matthew Edlund, director of the Center for Circadian Medicine and author of The Power of Rest. “Your brain, like the rest of your body, rebuilds itself constantly, but it needs to be given the regular opportunity to do so. Taking frequent leisure trips at regular intervals continually rests and rejuvenates you, increasing your productivity and sense of satisfaction.”

The Hotwire survey also found that the average American employee has 6.2 paid vacation days left unused at the end each year, so for those vowing to travel more in 2012, they have a good reason to get started with a New Year’s vacation. The discount site has listed its 10 most popular New Year’s travel destinations, based on Hotwire hotel bookings made from Nov. 1 to Dec. 5, 2011 for stays over Dec. 31, 2011 to Jan. 3, 2012.

Do you have plans to travel on New Year’s? How often have you vowed to travel more in the new year and then actually followed through on it, or not?

Photo: Times Square Alliance/Countdown Entertainment LLC

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Following through on its announcement earlier this year, Expedia is planning to spin off TripAdvisor later this month and began filing presentations today with the Securities & Exchange Commission that outline its growth prospects sans the popular hotel review site. So what’s in store for Expedia going forward? Read more: AllThingsD, Tnooz

Just in time for the holidays—and holiday travel—TripIt is now available for download on the Kindle Fire from the Amazon Appstore for Android. A recent survey conducted by the travel-planning company found that more than 40 percent of its users owned a Kindle. In additional TripIt news, the company now recognizes Global Videoconferenceing Network appointments. Read more: Tnooz

Social travel site Gogobot today unveiled a new app that integrates Flipboard, a social magazine application, enabling users to take a real-time stream of travel photos and experiences from across the globe and turn them into postcards that can be culled into a sort of DIY digital travel magazine. The app is available for iPhone, iPad and iTouch. Users can find Gogobot in the “Travel” section of Flipboard. Read more: Sacramento Bee (press release)

If you missed the news about Alec Baldwin being escorted off an American Airlines plane on Dec. 6 for bad passenger behavior—namely not abandoning his Words With Friends game and shutting down his electronic device when told and storming into the lavatory—then, well, you missed it. Good for you that you spend time on more important things besides celebrity gossip. But if you need a recap or want to know an update on the situation, check out The Washington Post. Seems Baldwin has ticked off Greyhound too (from CNN).

Other travel news/roundups of note:

Air Ticket Sales by U.S. Travel Agents are 6 Percent Ahead of Year-Over-Year (MarketWatch/press release)
Merger Planned Between Travel-Focused Ad Agencies: MMG Worldwide and Y Partnership (New York Times)
Free Airport Wi-Fi for Nintendo 3DS Users From Boingo Wireless (Gadling)
Top Travel News of 2011 (Budget Travel)
9 Essentials for Traveling With Tots (Today Travel)

Photo: Expedia

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Today marks the 70th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the entrance of the United States into World War II. In honor of this historic event, the National WWII Museum in New Orleans and the Pearl Harbor Visitors Center in Honolulu have introduced a new exhibit and ticket option for their respective visitors.

The National WWII Museum is hosting a day full of special events today, which also is when its newest exhibit, “Infamy: December 1941” opens. The exhibit recounts the strike in Hawaii as well as the lesser-known but nearly simultaneous attacks on American territories in the Pacific, including Wake Island, Guam and the Philippines. Oral histories from witnesses and an assortment of artifacts and images convey the losses, disrupted lives and reactions of military service members and ordinary Americans as they realized the nation was at war.

Artifacts displayed in the exhibition include a wristwatch that stopped minutes into the attack when its owner, R.S. “Swede” Boreen, jumped from the burning USS Oklahoma, and actual pieces of the USS Arizona, a battleship sunk during the Japanese attack resulting in the loss of 1,177 lives. The exhibition is open seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is free with museum admission. It will remain on display through February 19, 2012. Visit www.nationalww2museum.org for more information.

In Honolulu, a partnership of Pearl Harbor memorials and museums has launched a new, two-day ticket option that will help visitors fully experience several distinct historic sites. Currently available exclusively at the Pearl Harbor Visitors Center ticket window, “Passport to Pearl Harbor” provides two-day access to all primary Pearl Harbor historic sites—a $115 value—for $65 per adult and $35 per child. Passport holders can return to Pearl Harbor within seven days of their initial visit at no additional charge. A photo ID must be presented with the non-transferrable voucher.

The Passport to Pearl Harbor includes:

• The Official Pearl Harbor Audio Tour;
• USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and Park museum admission and submarine audio tour;
• Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor admission; and
• Battleship Missouri Memorial admission and the choice between four tours.

The Official Pearl Harbor Audio Tour takes visitors through 28 locations at the new Pearl Harbor Visitor Center, its two museums and the USS Arizona Memorial. Visit pacifichistoricparks.org for more information.

Photo: Battleship Missouri Memorial

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