How To Post Your Trip Report (Tips, Guidelines, and Photos) About This Page:

[Jennifer Marx]

So you want to share your adventure with the world?

GREAT! We'd all love to read your trip report and glean tips and tricks from it. Here are some helpful tips and guidelines to keep in mind while writing/posting your trip report at PassPorter.com

1. Write Offline. Write your trip report in Microsoft Word, WordPad, SimpleText, or any other text editor. Do not compose it in the message box of this message board. Why? Because if you lose your connection suddenly, or there's a posting problem, you'll lose all your hard work! Write it, save it, then post it.

2. Stick to One Topic. Please keep your trip report to just one topic (thread) -- you can post additional days of your trip as replies to the topic. If you make a new topic for each day, the sequence of days will get scattered throughout the board and it will be hard for people to follow your trip report. Please note that if you create more than one topic for a single trip report, you may be contacted by the Message Board Guide and asked to repost your report into a single topic.

3. Choose a Good Name. Give your trip report a good subject -- include the dates, where you stayed, and (optionally) a distinctive title. Here are some examples:

- October 18-27, 1999 (BoardWalk/Disney Cruise/Wilderness Lodge)
- Jan. 20-23, 2001 (Disney Institute) - Jennifer's Dad & Chad Trip Report
- Our Inaugural W. Caribbean Cruise: 5/10-5/21

4. Provide Introductions. Include an introduction at the start of your trip report with the following information:

- Our Party (who went, ages, experience)
- Our Journey (departure date, return date, method of travel)
- Our Cruise (if you went on a cruise, indicate the number of nights and if it was a special cruise)
- Our Lodging/Stateroom (where you stayed, special requests)
- Our Special Plans (special things you planned to do or that happened during your trip -- the highlights)

5. Picture It! Include photos of your trip, if you have them. It makes the trip report more interesting and informative. Please note that images in the body of a post cannot exceed 640x480 pixels EACH. Additionally, you are limited to five (5) images per post if they are uploaded directly to the boards. If you are linking images from an outside site, there is no limit to the number of images in a post. There is no limit to how many posts can be in a thread. If you need help resizing pictures, please post your need/question in the Garage Forum. There is also a sticky thread at the top of this forum to help guide you along.

Note: There is a limit of 5 MB for all your photo (and other file) uploads. If you reach this limit and have completed at least one trip report, you may apply for a higher upload limit -- see details here.

6. Keep Days Together. Post new days of your trip report as replies to your introduction post. Type the date and day at the top of the reply to make it easy for folks to follow your report. Your readers will want to know what day you did things on whenever possible.

7. Spotlight the Good Stuff. Highlight your hints and tips throughout your report. You can also include a Trip Highlight section at the end of your report with your best experiences and tips for other vacationers.

8. Update the Title. If you post your trip report over a span of time rather than all at once, let folks know your trip report is updated or completed. You may request that your report's topic (thread) title be modified by requesting help from a forum Guide (see details here).

Need more help? Here are more helpful tips on keeping notes, remembering details, and writing your report.

We hope this has been helpful, and we look forward to your trip report!

[DyanKJ130]

Quote:
Originally Posted by statelady01
Helpful Hints for Writing a Trip Report


Writing a trip report is not as hard as it might seem. Here are some guidelines to help you whether you are a first time or old pro author!

Suggestions on keeping notes and remembering the details:

Use the Passpockets and jot down special things each night.

Use your camera or pictures as a guide to take you through the day’s events.

Save receipts – most are time-stamped and are helpful for remembering the day.

Watch your video if you shot footage that day.

Bring a blank journal or notebook along- jot notes poolside or whenever you have some down time.

When writing your trip report and posting it here on Passporter:

Don’t type your report in all caps- it makes it pretty tough to read.

Use paragraphs as much as possible so that your trip report installment is not run on- this also can make it hard for others to read.

Post your report and subsequent installments as replies to your original post. If your trip report reaches 200 or more replies, then it is acceptable to begin a new thread - but for new readers, be sure to provide a link for the original thread so they can read in order, if they wish.

Photos are welcome and certainly add a lot of “magic” to any trip report. Use the guidelines for photos.

Sometimes folks may ask questions in response to an installment-it’s a good idea to read responses to your report so you can answer them.

Please feel free to PM any of our Sharing the Adventure Guides if you need any help or if you have tips to add to our list.

[MosyBliss]

Thanks!

[TuffyCO]

If I am linking to pictures on flickr do the 5 images per post on a first PTR or TR still apply? I'm wanting to do my first PTR and want to make sure before I start posting.

[Colexis Mom]

Originally Posted by TuffyCO

If I am linking to pictures on flickr do the 5 images per post on a first PTR or TR still apply? I'm wanting to do my first PTR and want to make sure before I start posting.

No, 5 pictures only applies when uploading directly to the board. But make sure that flickr resizes them properly to the 640x480 limit (board guidelines).

[TuffyCO]

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

No, 5 pictures only applies when uploading directly to the board. But make sure that flickr resizes them properly to the 640x480 limit (board guidelines).

Awesome! Thank you, I thought I had read that somewhere but couldn't find it. And I will make sure to resize them.

[Chancho]

How can I reply to several comments and post them all together. Right now I can only do them each individually.

[Colexis Mom]

Originally Posted by Chancho

How can I reply to several comments and post them all together. Right now I can only do them each individually.

You click the " button down in the bottom right of the post on all the posts you want to quote, and then click a "quote" button on any one of them, and it should bring them all into the text box!

[Chancho]

Yeah.....it worked. thanks for getting back to me so soon. Just that little tip will make things so much easier.

[JenniferLynneRose521]

How far out do most start a Pre Trip Report? Please and Thanks

[Cam22]

Originally Posted by JenniferLynneRose521

How far out do most start a Pre Trip Report? Please and Thanks

We have folks who have started as early as a year before a trip, but most start around 2 or 3 months at the most before a trip.