Kennedy Space Center tops the list of favorite U.S. family summer attractions researched on the Web

TripAdvisor study reveals national parks and aquariums dominate the list of favorite "Things to Do" on family vacations this summer

NEEDHAM, MA - June 24, 2003 - TripAdvisor (www.tripadvisor.com), the leading travel research site, announced today the results of its study on favorite familyÐoriented summer attractions for 2003 researched by travel consumers online. With families planning more trips within the United States this summer, TripAdvisor compiled a list of the favorite national family summer attractions, based on the quantity and quality of information found on the web about these attractions.

Dominating the list of family favorites were all types of national parks from well-known attractions such as The Grand Canyon, Walt Disney World and Busch Gardens to interesting children-oriented theme parks such as Hershey Park and Legoland. The Kennedy Space Center, known among science enthusiasts as a highly informative, educational place to learn more about the space program and witness shuttle launches, was the favorite family attraction in the United States.

"Our web site is a resource for people who need quick, easy access to research the best places to stay and things to do on their vacations," said Steve Kaufer, CEO of TripAdvisor. "Through our automated search technology, we have gathered and sorted information from the entire Web on favorite attractions, hotels, and destinations throughout the seasons. While these spots may not always be the largest, or most well-known, they are the favorites based on what is being written about them on the Web by actual travelers. The latest data on national attractions demonstrates that parks and aquariums as well as educational/historical activities are the family favorites for U.S. based summer vacations."

Methodology and Results

The study ranked favorite family attractions in the United States based on the quantity and quality of information written about these attractions on the Web over the last three years and then sorted those attractions by family-oriented summer activities.

The complete rankings are:

Top 15 Most Favorite U.S. Family Summer Attractions Researched Online 1. Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, FL 2. Hershey Park, Hershey, PA 3. Grand Canyon National Park, AZ 4. Legoland, Carlsbad, CA 5. Tennessee Aquarium, Chattanooga, TN 6. Olympic National Park, WA 7. Walt Disney World, Orlando, FL 8. Busch Gardens, Tampa, FL 9. Boston Duck Tours, Boston, MA 10. Graceland, Memphis, TN 11. Sea World Adventure Park, Orlando, FL 12. San Diego Wild Animal Park, Escondido, CA 13. Arches National Park, UT 14. Statue of Liberty, New York City, NY 15. Rocky Mountain National Park, CO

About TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor, Inc. provides a comprehensive travel search engine and directory that helps consumers research their travel plans via the web. With more than 4.8 million unique visitors a month, TripAdvisor.com is the 8th most popular travel site worldwide on the web, according to comScore Networks, and has won dozens of awards including PC Magazine's Top 100 Web Sites and Forbes Best of the Web. The company also offers travel suppliers a performance-based marketing medium that generates average click-through rates of over 10% per page. Partners include leading travel companies such as Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz, and Places To Stay. TripAdvisor, Inc. is a privately held, venture-backed company based in Needham, Massachusetts. For more information, visit http://www.tripadvisor.com/.