Paper short abstract:

In the highly connected world of today, social networks led to the rise of the phenomenon of social travel, when a traveller is always connected to the other travellers, sharing the images, ideas and experiences. The implications of this new way of travelling are the topic of the paper.

Paper long abstract:

The ubiquity of social networks led to the rise of the phenomenon of social travel, when a traveller no matter how far he or she has gone is always connected to the other travellers, sharing the experiences and perspectives (primarily visual ones). This resulted in the transformation of travelling: rather than existing as a process with clear starting and end points (and destination), it has become a continuous process transcending the everyday activity of millions of people and resonating in the lives of their connected peers. It has become a competition, a mean of receiving gratification and acknowledgement from the public. The acknowledgements may take many forms: from badges, achievements and rewards on special travel sites to rewards for checking-in in different places on Foursquare or less direct encouragement of likes on Facebook, Instagram and reposts on Tumblr. The implications of this new way of travelling with a particular accent on the visual component of travel-sharing are the topic of the proposed paper.