Wiki Strategy: Promoting your Travel, Tourism or Lodging Website

A wiki is a website which allows users to add and edit content collectively. “Wiki wiki” means “rapidly” in the Hawaiian language.cnn.com

A public wiki can be visited and edited by anyone using a browser. This creates a powerful online collaboration environment that is self-managed by its users. Wikis are considered part of the social internet, and a category of Web 2.0. There are many wikis that provide opportunities for hotels, inns, resorts and other tourism and hospitality businesses to post their own listings.
How big are Wikis? The most famous and, frankly, awe-inspiring wiki is Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org). According to Alexa, it is the 9th most popular website in the United states.
A private wiki can be password protected so only users can view and edit the information. This makes an excellent collaboration tool for your hotel’s work-team. We have tested over a dozen wikis for this purpose, and currently use several within our offices and manage hundreds of pages of collaboratively edited information.
From a hospitality and tourism marketing strategy perspective, a Wiki offers you the opportunity to copywrite about your own area and business. The results will send your website qualified traffic, let you manage your hospitality brand, and most likely send you qualified traffic and online revenue. These are entirely free marketing resources, but you must make the time to utilize them.
Before you start exploring and entering your own copy, take 20 or 30 minutes and learn how to edit a page.
Etiquette: many wikis let you make updates anonymously. Ideally, you should log-in and create an identity. Don’t be self-serving or self-promoting — while you want your business added, it is better to build out complementary and appropriate information as part of adding your business (depends on the wiki what that info is. It is OK to correct mistakes, it is not OK to remove competitors. When you add a new page, make sure you start with the template that is appropriate. If you make mistakes, other people will fix them, and if you “spam” with inappropriate content, other people will remove you.
Wikipedia is a powerful resource that many hospitality businesses should be added to. Also check out its sister site, Wikitravel (www.wikitravel.org) for a website that is definitely appropriate for any hotel, inn, resort, hospitality or tourism website. Taking a few hours to create an information rich page about your area, your niche and/or your business is worth your time.
Wikicompany is a business focused resource that lets you add your company for free in just a few moments. See the listing I made for a hotel website marketing company.
There is a growing number of niche wikis, an example being SingleTrackwiki for mountain bikers. Keep your eye out for these and add to them if appropriate. They always appreciate quality content.
RoaringForkWiki. is an example of a wiki about an geographic area, the Roaring Fork Valley. That is the home of Blizzard Internet Marketing, and is a wiki produced and managed by Blizzard.
Many people want to set up their own wikis about topics they are passsionate about, or about their area. Mediawiki is a professional level version for real geeks. I would generally recommend you try an easy online versions try wetpaint, seedwiki, jotspot or stikipad which are easy to setup and get going.
We recommend you take a few hours and implement an online marketing strategy to promote your Travel, Tourism or Hotel website in wikis.
Resources:
Qwika is a wiki search engine if you want to search over 1000 wikis at once. Its results are dominated by wikipedia.
Check out the html to wiki tool if you plan on migrating web-based content to a wiki.
Mashable Blog on Stikipad
More about WikiCompany
New York Times on wikis in businessgoogle.com

Understanding Medical Tourism and Its Affordability in India

Every human in this earth has a dream to excel and earn a better and comfortable livelihood. To achieve this people works so hard and often lead hectic schedules in life. They hardly get proper time to eat and sleep and merely forget how important their health is if they are to stay fit and keep working and earning.

Someone has rightly said that “health is wealth” – if you are in good health, you can earn in a variety of ways but ill health deteriorates your plan and your dreams can not be fulfilled. Now the treatment cost skyrocketing, it is better if you stay healthy otherwise be informed beforehand where to seek medical assistance to get healed from your ailments.

The concept of traveling to distant places for health check-up is a talked-about issue today as this process has significantly aided people in earning good health in considerably reduced cost. This concept has given the term “Medical Tourism” and many Asian counties like Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, countries like South Africa and Australia are popularly known for medical tourism but the strong competent with these countries is India, and the industry related is the India Medical Tourism Industry.

Yes! You read it right. Today India has become a preferred medical tourism destination for the people around the globe. Reasons behind this popularity are varied, which are discussed below in detail.

Affordable Cost – Treatment cost in India is far cheaper in comparison to cost needed for the treatment in the US, the UK and other European and Asian Countries. For an example, bone marrow transplant in the US cost $250,000 and £150,000 in the UK whereas the procedure with same compatibility and success rate is done at $26,000 in India. Heart surgery and cardiac care cost around $200,000 in the US which is done in India at as low as $30,000. Gastric bypass cost $65,000 in the US and £34,800 in the UK but the process in done in $9,500 in India. In addition to this, mostly the health care packages include airfare, hotel charges and a package to famous tourist destinations in India. Is not this a good idea?

World Class Health Care Centers – India has many corporate hospitals that are highly compatible to the hospitals in the US and other developed nations. Hospitals are well equipped sophisticated instruments, machines and laboratories that can deliver quick and accurate diagnosis and health care solutions. One health care official in Delhi has once said that once the door is closed, you will find yourself in the US.

Qualified Health-Care Professionals– Indian doctors are well qualified, highly trained and most of them have working experience in western counties hospitals. Hence, they know how to care and deliver quality medical treatments to international patients.

Quick Treatment Availability – People in countries like Canada and the UK has to encounter long waiting list that last more than a year if they want hip replacement surgery and this could be really painful and tiresome for the patients. But the case is something different in India as the patients would be in operating room the next morning they reach India for the process.

Availability of Linguistic Expert – Just imagine you landed in a foreign land and there is no one to understand your problem and needs and it is a dreaded nightmare for many people. But nothing as such will happen if you are traveling to India because you will find widely English speaking people in India or you can easily hire linguistic experts in case you need people knowing languages other than English.

Despite these major factors, medical tourism company in India can manage budget fitting tour packages and luxury to affordable hotels to stay. To make your trip more memorable one, you are cordially received at the airport and taken to hotels or directly to the hospital in case of emergency. Medical tourism agencies in India [http://www.india-medical–tourism.info] can manage a touring guide, avail car rental facility to give a comfortable ride during your health care cum touring vacation to India.

If you are looking for health check-up, think on visiting to India for the same. Due to thorough standardization and capability of delivering competitive health care, most Indian hospitals have been consecutively accredited by Joint Commission International. Medical treatments are highly affordable and you can strengthen yourself post-treatment by visiting most desired locations in India at a same go. Many has been benefited, they have wisely saved their hard-earned money, so be smart by making wise selections.

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

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Medical tourists have been widely popular in India for years now. People from all over the world visit India and not only for its beautiful scenery and to immerse in the unique culture, but also to embrace their medical expertise that are in the same caliber as those in the United States, Canada and Europe. If you are planning to go to India as a medical tourist, here are a few of the to hospitals you should consider:
1. Artemis Health Institute
Artemis Health Institute offers international patients exclusive services that are both cheaper as compared to other countries and are with excellent quality. They have advanced services that include cardiology and cardiovascular surgery, orthopedics and joint replacement surgery, Bariatric & Minimally Invasive Surgery, Cosmetology, Oncology and Neurology, to name a few. For international patients, they offer services such as tele-consulting, travel arrangements, airport pick-up and hotel transfers, arranging lodging, etc
2. Fortis Hospital
Fortis Hospital has alliances all over the world that can facilitate international patients for easy access of world-class services for cheaper prices. Fortis hospital is located in Shalimar Bagh, West Delhi, with plans of expansion in the near future. They specialize in cardiac care, orthopedics, neuro-sciences, renal sciences, mother and child care, and gastroenterology. They also have plans of having Fortis International Institute of Medical and Biosciences that will focus on trauma, oncology, mother and child care, cardiac care, orthopedics, organ transplants, and neuro-sciences.
3. Manipal Hospital
Manipal Hospital claims to provide healthcare, from the “smallest to the most complex medical problems.” It has been working its way up the medical ladder of India for over 40 years. Their super specialties include, but are not limited to the following: plastic and cosmetic surgery, accident and emergency critical care, bone marrow transplants, bariatric surgeries, comprehensive cancer care, dental implantology, eye surgeries and LASIK, heart interventions and surgeries, IVF and reproductive medicine, joint replacements, liver transplants, minimal access surgeries, neurological surgeries, ortho spine surgeries, and pediatric surgeries.
4. Metro Heart Institute
Metro Heart Institute was built on 3.5 acres of land in the center of Faridabad. It offers international patients another alternative to expensive treatments with the same quality of services through medical tourism. Other than the common problems, it also offers several expertise, including cardiology, neurology, general medicine and laparoscopy, gastroenterology and endoscopy, nephrology and dialysis, spine surgeries, dental care, laparoscopic prostate and stone surgeries, and radiology and pathology.
5. Columbia Asia Hospital
Columbia Asia hospital prides itself in having facilities located in neighborhoods. They are also planning to open 17 new hospitals by the end of 2011. Their specialties are the following: anesthesiology, cardiology, dermatology, ear, nose, and throat, general surgery, internal medicine, maxillofacial surgery, obstetrics, gynecology, ophthalmology, orthopedic surgery, pediatrics, psychiatry, and urology.
Medical Tourism is all over India throughout recent years, and it has helped a lot of international patients get the care they want at a much cheaper cost. For the best services, look for a medical tourism facilitator that is accredited by the Medical Tourism Association and has great relationships with leading JCI accredited hospitals in India and around the world.
Picking The Right Medical Tourism Facilitator

For a medical tourism company that has a huge amount of experience with India medical tourism we recommend Debson Medical Tourism. Debson has offices in USA and Canada that can help you save thousands on your medical procedure. They offer access to the leading hospitals, clinics, and health spas abroad as well as telehealth, telemedicine, second medical opinion and vacation services. You can contact Debson Medical Tourism at 1-877-900-3327 for a Free, No Obligation Consultation and Quote on your specific medical procedure or visit their website at http://www.debsonmedicaltourism.com.

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Medical Tourism is gaining popularity day by day for its better services at nominal charges. In ancient times, people used to travel to China, India and other parts of Asia to get treated for various diseases. However, with the introduction of modern scientific and information technology, things have changed for good. In fact, medical tourism is getting popular in New York and many international patients visit the city for getting rid of their ailments. However, earlier getting treated in New York was quite expensive and not many people could afford it, but now the case is all different.
The other reason for medical tourism in New York to gain attention is that many people visit the United States as a tourist and to increase the revenue of the country’s revenue, the US government is also offering tourists various medical facilities and services. Therefore, if you thought that being treated would hurt your finances, then think again. The hospitals and specialty clinics are well equipped and offer every amenity and facility that a patient requires for a healthy recuperation. You will find various hospitals that actually suit every ones pocket, including very high-tech to normal hospitals. Well, if you are thinking that the normal hospitals will not be able to offer you with what you desire as a patient, then you are wrong. You will be looked after very well before, during and post-treatment.
Medical tourism in New York offers a wide range of curing services for general medicine and surgical procedures like blood vessel system, cardiology, diagnostics, ear, nose and throat, fertility, female reproductive system, general surgery, kidney and urinary tract, stomach and bowel, bones, joints and tendons and many more. Well, you will be surprised to know that people are thronging New York to get cosmetic and dental treatments also. The hospitals are offering mastopexy, augmentation mammoplasty, thighplasty, and lipoplasty, skin refinishing, mentoplasty, pinnaplasty, blepharoplasty, rhytidectomy, chin, and cheek and jaw surgery, facial line filling and forehead and brow lift. Medical Tourism also provides hair replacement, nose surgery, sclerotherapy and abdominoplasty to its patients. In fact, there are designated officers who will assist you throughout your stay in New York City.
The patients will be provided with private transportation to the hotel and to-and-fro for consultation with their respective doctors. The hospitals will also arrange for interpretation assistance if needed; check on recuperating patient regularly is performed; and arrangement for airport medical assistance upon departure will also be given if necessary or requested by the patient. The other services and amenities offered include communication assistance, such as 24-hours dialing, assistance for local tour, including excursion arrangements. The health care manager will also offer assistance on information on local dining, shopping, local culture and customs of destination. The hospitals work in tandem with various other international hospitals and assist in arranging medical visa also for the patients. Therefore, do not worry and pack your bags for medical tourism and explore your healthy side without getting hassled or troubled.
Sarah Wilson is a tourism management expert with years of experience in overseas medical tourism management. If you want to know more about medical tourism, lasik eye surgery centre, gastric bypass surgery and more, you can visit www.surgeryunlimited.com

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Everyone in America is talking about healthcare reform, skyrocketing medical costs, and the increasing inability of average Americans to afford even the most fundamental medical and dental care due to unreasonably high costs. The news is full of statistics: 45 million people are without health insurance, and that figure is increasing every month as unemployment soars. Another 45 million are ‘under insured’ -that is, with out-of-pocket costs and deductibles so high that they are unable to afford doctor and hospital fees when the need arises. More than 110 million are currently without dental insurance and unable to get the care they need. Yet even the uninsured have another option. In response to rising healthcare costs at home, more U.S. citizens have gone abroad to take advantage of the excellent doctors and dentists available through medical tourism to Mexico.
Convenient, significantly less expensive, and featuring the same or a better quality of care, sophistication of treatment, and breadth of medical services as the U.S., Mexico’s state-of-the-art private hospitals make medical tourism to Mexico an ideal solution for anyone struggling with the high cost of medical expenses in America. Medical travel connects patients with new, modern facilities located in upscale residential and international business districts. There are a number of prominent Mexican hospitals in cities such as Tijuana, Monterrey, Juarez, Mexicali, Guadalajara, and Mexico City regularly working with medical travelers from all parts of the globe to treat all types of medical issues. For example, Mexico hospitals host American and Canadian patients for orthopedic, spinal, cardiology, cosmetic, and weight loss surgery and dental procedures on a daily basis.
Cost Is The Major Issue
Medical travel to Mexico is more popular than ever before, but traveling to Mexico for treatment is not a new idea. Residents of the southern states have long taken advantage of the inexpensive health care across the border, with many taking advantage of medical travel on a monthly basis. Currently, nearly one million Californians make regular use of the Mexican health care system, crossing the border for check-ups, prescriptions, family dentistry, and surgeries of all types. Some 1.5 million Americans have taken the further step of retiring to Mexico, taking advantage of the lower cost of living, temperate climate, and access to affordable health care. For as little as $250 a year, Americans who move to Mexico are able to receive medical care with no deductibles, low cost x-rays, eyeglasses, dental work, and free prescription medicines.
In its report, “Medical Tourism: Consumers In Search of Value,” the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions estimates about 5 million Americans traveled abroad for medical care in 2009. Researchers expect this number to grow substantially, rising to over 20 million within ten years. Medical tourism destinations vary, but for Americans Mexico is the ideal solution. In Mexico, Americans can get the same quality and standards of care for less than half the cost of the same procedure stateside – often working with surgeons who have train and practice in the US, and work closely with American medical device manufacturers. For some procedures, the difference in cost is even greater, costing only a third of the American price in Mexico. The tens of thousands of patients who come to Mexico each year know how significant those savings are, even after factoring in travel costs.
Lack Of Insurance Increases The Demand For Low-Cost Healthcare
Sadly, many Americans do not have adequate health insurance to cover the high costs of necessary medical care. With record job losses and a continuing economic recession, Americans continue to lose employer-sponsored medical insurance at an unprecedented rate, forcing them into expensive COBRA payments of up to $12,000 per year, and declaring medical bankruptcies at a rate of 2 million per year. Frustrated with the broken American health care system, more Americans than ever before are discovering that they can receive the same high quality medical care and identical prescription drugs at a much lower cost in Mexico than they can get domestically. According to research by the U.S. Medical Tourism Association, the vast majority of U.S. patients who have taken advantage of medical travel to Mexico rate their experience as equivalent and even superior to U.S. hospitals and doctors.
Savvy employers in Texas, California, and South Carolina are joining this trend, taking the step of investing in Mexican health care programs for their employees frequently at one-fifth the cost of American health coverage. These plans are significantly less expensive for employers as compared to traditional American medical insurance programs. Employees also save on deductibles and out-of-pocket costs as well as on prescription medication costs. The fact that most hospital medical travel packages include such extras as travel coordination services, lab work, and hotel stay makes medical tourism to Mexico, even more appealing.
Convenience And Travel Options
Residents of Arizona, California, and Texas have long crossed the border to major Mexico cities such as Tijuana, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Mexico City, and Juarez for sophisticated medical care in state-of-the-art hospitals, most less than five years old. Nearly half of all American citizens live within driving distance of the major Mexico hospitals regularly serving medical travelers. For everyone else, there are frequent and inexpensive flights to the major destinations for medical tourism in Mexico, making it easy to get quality, affordable health care just a short car ride or flight away.
Without doubt, medical tourism to Mexico has done more than any other industry to put high quality medical care within financial reach for all American citizens. Mexico hospitals are responding by teaming with experienced medical tourism facilitators, hotels, resorts, and airlines to create discounted travel and lodging options for Americans coming to Mexico for their medical care. These complete packages ensure that American patients get access to the best possible medical teams, but are also able to enjoy a stress-free recovery period. A good medical tourism facilitator will handle everything, allowing the patient to focus on the most important part of treatment: your recovery. With a comprehensive company and the right hospital, medical tourism to Mexico, is a great choice for any American.
Paulo Yberri writes for Angeles Health International, a medical travel agency specializing in medical tourism, Mexico. AHI is your passport to best in class Mexico hospitals.

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Art Riley lives in San Francisco. Art is a retired computer analyst and needs a root canal, but he cannot afford the high cost of the procedure on his retirement and medicare. So what does Art do? In this case, Art and his wife pack their bags and board a plane for San Miguel de Allende in the state of Guanajuato in Mexico. The Rileys stay at four star hotel and enjoy top notch services. Art and his wife dine at fine restaurants and during the day visit the museums or take in all the sights of this 16th century city. In all, Art spends less than half on his vacation and root canal combined when compared to what he’d spend on his root canal back in San Francisco.
There was a time when wealthy people traveled to more developed countries in search of superior medical care. Such was the case in America. Up until the late 1980s, foreigners came to the United States to visit the big cities and have a medical procedure with superior doctors in modern facilities. Americans also enjoyed traveling domestically to save money on medical work while staying in beautiful cities where the cost of care was far less than where they lived. Yet this phenomenon can be traced far back into history. Combining a medical treatment with a vacation is not a new phenomenon. For thousands of years people with the need for inexpensive medical care have sought to save money and travel at the same time.
Ancient Times
As early as 4000 BC, travelers came from far away countries to the temples of Gula in Mesopotamia. In the temples they obtained diagnoses for their diseases. These travelers then fared further to the Sumerian region of the country to health centers built around hot springs where they obtained treatments. The cities housing these temples were said to be the cradles of Mesopotamian culture.
Over time the Greek civilization took on the same tradition with their Asclepiad temples. Asclepius was a gifted healer who over time was elevated to the God of Medicine. Greeks traveled to these and other temples like the one at Delphi to find healing and comfort. The medical tourists of the time usually found care in the form of hot baths, healthy food, and red wine. Basing health centers around hot springs was the trend throughout ancient history until the middle ages. This was seen in Japan, Switzerland, and ancient Rome. The only notable exception was in India where Ayurvedic medicine and Yoga drew ailing travelers from the ancient world in search of relief.
Middle Ages
Advances in medicine emerged to such a degree that in the 9th century, the vizier of Baghdad, founded the first hospitals. These institutions were later eclipsed in the 12th century in the city of Cairo, Egypt. The Nasiri and the much larger Mansuri Hospitals were the most modern facilities of their kind. The centers provided care for any person who traveled in need of medicine.
Renaissance and Post Renaissance Periods
While hospitals focused on elevating the medical practice, healing centers based around hot springs continued to thrive. In the 1500’s, several ancient Roman baths were rehabilitated in England, France, and Switzerland. One of the most notable was in Bath, England and the center attract travelers from all over Europe.
Post Revolution America
Health centers spawned over time throughout the countryside in America. Some of these were based in Catskill Mountains of New York, where visitors could stay in a luxurious hotel while enjoying the health benefits of clean air and alternative medicines.
The 20th and 21st Centuries
Seeking medical care while traveling continues to draw visitors to far away places. These days the practice is drawing medical tourists to Asian, Central and South American countries. Thailand is known for its low costs of care and extremely inexpensive living prices. Spas and hot springs are no longer considered medical treatments, but most health care travelers might seek the relaxing benefits obtainable at a spa in order to complement their medical treatment.
History shows that medical tourism has existed as long as inexpensive care was located in or around cities with cultural attractions or exotic panoramas. As long as medical care is expensive in developed countries developing nations will have a steady stream of tourists seeking care. Like Art Riley, travelers can get the benefits of good medical care at low prices while enjoying themselves abroad at the same time.

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There was a time, not that long ago, when if someone was asked what the natural industry of a certain country was, the term ‘medical tourism‘ barely existed and was not likely to be a part of the answer. However, the answer to that same question has changed drastically. With more and more people seeking plastic surgery and other medical procedures, going international to have these needs met has become increasingly popular.
This global healthcare, which is also widely known as health tourism, medical tourism and medical travel, has become a booming, multibillion-dollar industry. With more than 44 countries offering medical procedures to international clients, medical tourism has become a well-known national industry.
If this concept of healthcare is new to you or it is something you’re considering, it may help to be clear on what it is. Medical tourism is exactly as it sounds. It is the practice of going to another country for a specific medical need, generally surgeries.
Procedures involving plastic surgeries, liposuctions, facelifts, gastric bypasses, dental work, hernia surgery, joint (such as hip and knee) replacements and in vetro fertilization are available as part of the medical tourism experience. However, traveling for other medical options such as alternative (herbal) treatments, psychiatry and convalescent care are becoming increasingly popular as well.
As the nation’s healthcare system goes through its ups and downs, many people have opted for international medical travel for several reasons. Not only are some surgical procedures much less expensive, even with the cost of travel factored in, it eliminates long wait-times. Also, some other countries are more technically advanced than our own, so depending on the aliment, traveling can prove beneficial in many aspects.
There are dozens upon dozens of companies that offer package deals for medical tourism. They will include everything that one would expect when thinking about a travel package, such as transportation, hotel, meals and personal services. The only difference is these particular packages include a medical surgery.
With millions of people around the world exercising the option of medical travel, it’s no wonder it has become a national industry for so many countries. If this is something you have considered in the past, you may want to check into your healthcare plan as some of these procedures could be fully or partially covered. Looking into government subsidies is also worth the time as they too may offer help to pay for some of the more common medical procedures.