We're happy to report that effects of the gingko binge have lingered and the Itinerator's dupe-savvy is expanding. It now handles exact dupes for lodging, rental car, rail, cruise, restaurant, and activity reservations without skipping a beat. It's also coping with an even broader array of subtle and tricky flight cases too.

This may seem like inside baseball, but for the connoisseurs of computer-assisted/hands-free/instant travel organization it's good news. That's all for now. Game 2 of the World Series is just starting. GO GIANTS!

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For those of you in a similar predicament, we are happy to say that more help has arrived.

Over the last few weeks we’ve released updated versions of TripIt’s apps for BlackBerry, Android, and iPhone. Sharing plans and coordinating with the people who matter most to you is a common thread in each of the updates. Here are the highlights of each release:

TripIt for iPhone

Our iPhone app now has a shiny, new Network tab that shows where your TripIt connections and fellow group members are and when their plans overlap with yours.

You can also see this information in the context of a trip, by clicking the People tab at the top of any itinerary on your iPhone. If your plans overlap with any of your friends’, TripIt will let you know. Lastly, the UI for sharing trips got a subtle but important improvement. Get the app now to see it in action.

TripIt for Android

The recent refresh features the following highlights:

• Faster performance
• Trip sharing: easily share your itinerary with anyone
• Points tab: TripIt Pro members on Android can now track all their frequent traveler accounts
• Search nearby restaurants easily from your hotel reservations in the app
• Support for high resolution, tablet-sized screens

Scan this code with your Android phone to go straight to the app in Android Market:

TripIt for BlackBerry

Last but not least, our BlackBerry app also got some valuable new goodies:

• Trip sharing: easily share your itinerary with anyone
• Who’s close: see which connections’ plans overlap with your from within each of your trips
• Improved integration with the BlackBerry calendar
• Customizable fonts, colors, and date formats

We can’t wait for you to try out the updated apps and let us know what you think.

Happy Travels!

-Will

The post TripIt Mobile Update Trifecta: More Sharing appeared first on TripIt Blog.

The big news is that TripIt Pro now alerts you if the price you paid for an airline ticket drops enough that you could get a refund or a credit. Refund tracking works for most domestic flights in the US. After a few weeks in beta, we’ve seen about 1 in 15 eligible air reservations get a refund alert. People have been reporting credits ranging from $10 to $600 or more, net of airline change fees. Here’s what one person had to say:

“I’ve had TripIt Pro for about two days. The fare-monitoring feature has already earned me a total of $340 in a refund that I never would have sought without the TripIt notification. At the current annual cost of TripIt Pro, I’ve paid for almost seven years of service. Not bad, huh?”
Gary H., Minneapolis, MN

Not bad at all.

In addition to refund tracking, TripIt Pro subscribers now enjoy two additional exclusive benefits:

1. Complimentary one-year Hertz #1 Club Gold membership (value $60)
   #1 Club Gold lets busy travelers take advantage of greater speed and expedited service when renting a car from Hertz at over 1,100 locations. Hertz is also providing special members-only discounted rates to TripIt Pro members.
2. Complimentary one-year Regus Businessworld Gold membership (value $600)
   Membership provides access to over 1,100 business lounges in 500 cities worldwide, featuring office space, free wifi, and support services to stay productive while on the road.

Last but not least, we’re thrilled to announce that all of the benefits of TripIt Pro (refund tracking, flight alerts, alternate flights, point tracking, inner circle, Hertz #1 Club Gold, and Regus Businessworld Gold) are now more affordable than ever at a new, lower price of $49 per year. Even more than ever, TripIt Pro pays for itself.

Don’t take my word for it, See for yourself! Start your 30 day free trial at http://tripit.com/pro.

The post TripIt Pro Now Tackles Flight Refunds appeared first on TripIt Blog.

When people tell us about Itinerator improvements they want most, detecting duplicate flights (aka handling changes to existing air reservations) has been near the top of the list for a while.

As such, we’re happy to report that the Itinerator just got a double-shot of gingko biloba: it now detects duplicate flight information and handles it like a champ. Here’s what it does:

• Eliminates exact duplicate flights from being added to a trip
• Identifies when you send in a changed/updated flight reservation
• Identifies and displays the flights that are most likely the most recent version of the updated schedule
• Cleans up the “messy” itinerary by hiding older versions of the flight schedule
• Allows you to revert back to a different version if our “best guess” was incorrect

So send in (or let Auto Import send in) your updated flight reservations and please let us know what you think.

Happy travels!

The post Flight Duplicates: Conflict Resolved appeared first on TripIt Blog.

While forwarding emails to plans@tripit.com is great for lots of people, it can be hard to remember to do it for all your plans. Many TripIt travelers have set up email filters to automatically forward all their travel booking emails to plans@tripit.com. That works okay, but setting up the filters you'd need is complicated. And once you have them set up, important plans still fall through the cracks. We've always thought there's got to be a better way.

Well, now there is.

We're thrilled to announce the beta of auto-import for Gmail and Google Apps. It’s a true "set it and forget it" experience that benefits travelers no matter how they access TripIt: via our free apps for iPhone, Android and BlackBerry; the dozens of partner apps built on our API; our mobile site (m.tripit.com); calendar feeds; or www.tripit.com. 

How does it work?

First, you establish a link between TripIt and Gmail. That link is built on OAuth, a secure protocol that lets you grant services like TripIt access to your Gmail without ever revealing your Gmail password to us. It also means that you can turn it off easily, either from TripIt or Gmail's account settings.

Once the link between TripIt and your inbox is set up, TripIt automatically imports travel plans, no matter where you booked them. (We only import and parse travel plans from your inbox. We don't import anything else.) It bears mentioning that TripIt is proud to be TrustE certified. We built auto-import using the same best practices with which we've built the rest of TripIt.

You can choose to be very hands-on with your plans as they flow from your inbox to TripIt. You can have TripIt put the plans it imports into your Unfiled Items folder on TripIt, where you can assign plans to trips manually. (Of course, you can also turn auto-import off at any time and resume forwarding confirmation emails to plans@tripit.com, too.) Either way, you're in control.

Now, you can think of TripIt with auto-import as the Internet's smartest travel email filter. It's always working to make sure your plans don't get lost in your inbox, and DO get into your calendar, onto your phone, and shared with your key people. You don't need to lift a finger–it all just works.

At this point, auto-import works with Gmail and Google Apps email accounts. We will be adding support for other email services soon.

We think this is a game-changer for travelers and for developers who build apps that work with TripIt. More data with less work: what's not to love?

We can't wait to hear what you think of it! You can set it up here.

Thanks and Happy Travels.

The post Automatic for the people appeared first on TripIt Blog.

 To begin with, we gave the app a major face lift so you'll have easier access to important trip information. Flight times are larger and clickable, so you can go directly to flight details if needed. We replaced small hyperlinks with big buttons for flight check-in and airport info, and added new navigation that lets you move quickly between different items in your trip. And, maps and directions now load inside the app instead of kicking you over to the Google Maps app.

We've overhauled the way time zones are handled, especially outside the US. (Please note that you may need to refresh your data in the app after upgrading to see the improved time zone logic at work.)

TripIt Pro members will see flight delays and cancellations highlighted in red, bold text, and alternate flights are easier to access when you need a "Plan B." Of course, if you have TripIt Pro you won't see any advertisements in the app, too. 

TripIt for iPhone 1.5 is only the first in a series of upgrades we're working on this year. We hope you enjoy it. Keep the feedback coming, and happy travels!

Will Aldrich

The post TripIt for iPhone gets a face lift appeared first on TripIt Blog.

Google users learned about the new TripIt gadget as part of a bundle of travel goodies that has been appearing on Google.com all day today. (Check out the "Travel the world…" link in the screenshot below). 

We'd like to offer a warm welcome all the new folks joining TripIt through iGoogle. And to everyone using it, we hope the new gadget helps make life a little easier. 

Happy travels! 

The post Travel goodness for iGoogle appeared first on TripIt Blog.

See your connections on the map

Inspired by TripIt Groups, you now have a map that shows you where all your TripIt connections are, and whether they're home or traveling, now or in the future. Heading to Chicago? Look at your connections map to see who's there (or will be there) when you're planning to go. Check out your new Network page and behold the cartographic goodness.

Who's Close: now 17% smarter

Ok, I pulled that number out of the air, but it feels about right. The engine working behind the scenes to tell you when your connections' plans overlap with yours has been fine-tuned quite a bit. Long-time users will see fewer false positives, and your list of Who's Close alerts is now easier to find on your updated TripIt Network page. (If you don't have any connections on TripIt yet, why not add some so you can see when your plans will overlap?)

Location auto-complete: a rough edge, smoothed

We took the sander to a "rough edge" that we've heard about from several of you. Before last night, if TripIt didn't recognize the name of the place you chose for your trip destination or home location, the system got confused and prevented you from proceeding. Our location forms are officially a lot smarter now! Test 'em out by adding a trip.

Get into your group

People have been joining their companies' TripIt groups in droves since the launch a few weeks ago. If you're just setting up a new TripIt account, we'll tell you if you're eligible to join a group based on the email address you’re using (i.e. if you join as bob@acme.com, you'll be able to easily join the Acme, Inc. Group).

There are several other smaller improvements you might notice as you go along, too. Enjoy! As always, let us know how we can help you have a smoother ride.

Will

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