Travel review site TripAdvisor launches on the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York (December 21) with an expected value of around $4 billion. TripAdvisor shares are being traded under the name TRIP, The company, which has websites in 30 countries, is being spun off by  Expedia. After the spin-off, Expedia will no longer have any ownership interest in TripAdvisor.

More than 45 million consumers around the world use TripAdvisor each month to help them choose hotels and restaurants for their holidays. Many hotels chosen by Best Self Drive Routes also feature in these reviews.

Recently the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) in the UK launched an investigation into the popular review website, following growing criticism of its apparent failure to monitor fake comments posted on the site.

See our interview with hotel guru, Robert Cole.