Darn Good Digs Publicity
Darn Good Digs has been featured in these Travel Magazines, Websites, and Blogs:
Arthur Frommer Online: “Darn Good Digs Reveals Outstanding Accommodations With Budget Prices and Expands its Coverage” May 2011
“When I first reviewed Darn Good Digs (www.darngooddigs.net) several months ago, I was impressed by its good intentions, if not by size of its content. An amateur effort by two well-traveled staff of the New York City Board of Education, it set forth descriptions of what they, and several of their traveling friends, considered “all time favorite places.” But because they were seeking inexpensive digs in cities all over the world, their coverage was a bit spotty. Nevertheless, if they had a recommendation in a place to which you were headed, their information was impressive: they printed lengthy descriptions of the hotels and hostels they chose, and accompanied most write-up with several photographs of typical rooms in those establishments.
I returned to Darn Good Digs last week, and was now even more impressed by what they have achieved. In addition to increasing their number of constant contributors, travelers who are almost constantly on the road and therefore come up with a great many choices, Darn Good Digs can also draw on the occasional expertise of nearly 30 travel bloggers — people identified with particular travel blogs of some distinction (like the former “Frugal Traveler” of the New York Times, Matt Gross). And each one of those bloggers has contributed a recommendation of a single cheap hotel or hostel, a place which they consider to be one of their all-time favorites.
The result is that Darn Good Digs now has a sizable number of recommendations in a sizable number of cities. Click on its world map for the area in which you’re interested, and chances are now fairly good that your destination will have a recommendation of a “darn good digs” at budget-level prices.
To be fully comprehensive, Darn Good Digs will have to grow to incorporate at least 500 important cities of the world — and it’s not yet that big. But it covers enough destinations that you’d be well advised to search its listings when you next plan a trip.”
Golden Book Traveler: “The 20 Best Travel Websites on the Internet” March 2011
“Darn Good Digs is a unique travel site I stumbled upon that finds great places off the grid…. The reviews are much more in depth than most websites. Thus, the people who contribute often experience an extraordinary stay.”
Hipster Travel Guide: “Darn Good Site” September 2010
Arthur Frommer Online: “The Website Darn Good Digs Will Be of Major Assistance to Your Next Trip — Unless it’s too Successful” May 2010
“Darn Good Digs (www.darngooddigs.net) is the best kind of informational website: a labor of love with no commercial profit in mind, the product of a young couple (he’s a schoolteacher, she’s a social worker and educator) aided by four other volunteers who share their delight in travel. Its purpose is to unearth the world’s very best budget lodgings (“out-a-sight inns for in-the-know travelers”) charging under $150 a night for a room, and to “nominate” them for acclaim in lengthy, lively essays accompanied by a group of home-made photographs. The website is a riot of color, and each hotel, hostel or b-and-b is thoroughly examined from every angle.
No one pays to be in Darn Good Digs, and not a single ad appears on its pages.
Thus far, Darn Good Digs has nominated slightly over a hundred such lodgings scattered all over the world, in every possible location. A place like New York gets only one recommendation, and all of England has just two, the same number as the island of Jamaica. From the many photographs of each establishment, it’s obvious that they all are so outstanding that they will be eagerly sought out by smart travelers in the months to come. You yearn to stay in these picturesque places covered by flowers and foliage, filled with well-stuffed easy chairs, bright and attractive and yet modestly-priced.
But there’s the rub. I haven’t any idea how many travel-minded techies access Darn Good Digs, but it’s likely that each recommendation-they are basically small inns with just a few rooms apiece-will be sold out instantly and for much time to come. Darn Good Digs will be of use only as long as it is lightly read. Its staff is determined to carefully analyze all nominations, to print them only if they check out and are supported by facts and photographs (“meticulous research”, they claim), so it will be a long time before Darn Good Digs’ 100 worldwide suggestions become 200 in number.
Take a look. And when you do, you’ll be as enchanted as I was.”
Johnny Jet: “Website of the Day” December 2009
“DarnGoodDigs.com lists what they think are the best small hotels, hostels and B&Bs around the world. All the rooms cost under $150 USD (most of them are much less), are independently owned, have spectacular locations and great vibes.”
Johnny Jet Newsletter: “Bonus Travel Website of the Week” December 2009
J The Travel Authority: “Portugal’s Stylish Budget-Inn” December 2009
SoloFriendly: “Looking for Some Darn Good Digs?” December 2009
Galavanting: “A Darn Good Contest” November 2009
WanderMom: “Photo Friday: The Deuter Kid Comfort II In Action” November 2009
Words from the Watertower: “Product Perspective: The Lexington Tote” June 2009
Tripshake Magazine: “Find Good Digs and Win a Prize While You’re at It” May 2009
“We all know that word-of-mouth is one of the best ways to find decent accommodation. Without it, we can search the internet to our heart’s content, looking for deals. But if all we have to go on is a webpage or advert without any reviews, we could be very (unpleasantly) surprised when the time comes to check in. Darn Good Digs is a website featuring user-recommended accommodations around the world for under $150US/night.” Read more.
The Urban Rebellion: “Travelin’ Better: Sleep! ” May 2009
Brave New Traveler: “Best of the Week” September 2008
“Looking for an alternative to the regular hotel circuit? Check out DarnGoodDigs.com for unique, independently owned options. Oh yes, and the people behind the site are nice too.”
Travellious: “Try This Site: Darn Good Digs” October 2008
Tour Cochise County: “Darn Good Digs” October 2008
Travel Blissful: “Darn Good Digs: Reviews of the Best Budget Stays” September 2008
Europe a la Carte: “Guest Interview – Allison and Michael of Darn Good Digs” August 2008
