Spotted by Locals – Loved by Travelers
Success stories start with a sentence, for example this one: “We are searching for people who love their city and want to write about it”. This was the message I received in the Viennese CouchSurfing group 2008. And this was the start of my story with Spotted by Locals.
Not only cafés, but bars, restaurants, parks – as a Spotter you can recommend anything you love in your city. As long as it is “local”. Pic: spottedbylocals
A few weeks after this email, I sat face-to-face with Sanne and Bart in the Viennese restaurant Salzberg and got in touch with their passion: The Dutch couple founded a platform, where locals recommended restaurants, bars, cafés – their favorite spots – in their city. An idea I immediately liked. And to no ones surprise, another couple of weeks later I wrote about my first spots – among them, of course, my “living room” Salzberg. I became a Spotter.For two years – until I left Vienna in December 2010 – I was part of Spotted by Locals and could experience how the idea of the two city-travel-addicts from Amsterdam turned into a success story. More cities, iPhone-Apps, partnerships, meetings and articles on- and offline were proof of it. And me, I was very fortunate not only to be member of the Spotted by Locals-group but also because I love to see life dreams become reality. And Sanne and Bart are making their dream come true – together with Spotters all around Europe.
Read how a small platform turned into a series of blogs, PDF city guides and apps of 202 spotters in 41 European cities, which is “bigger” than Lonely Planet, Rough Guide, Frommer´s & Co.
Two who turned their passion into living: Bart & Sanne in Amsterdam. Pic: spottedbylocals
How did you get the idea of Spotted by Locals and how did you start?
Sanne: Travel & city life are a big passion for both of us. Ever since we’ve known each other, we’ve done at least a couple of city trips around Europe a year. Bart has been fortunate to have lived in various cities around the world.
When we visited a city for a shorter or longer period, we always found it difficult to find up-to-date information. The paper travel guides we carried were always out of date, even when they were brand new! Also, they were always written for tourists looking for tourist highlights.
Bart: We have never been interested in standing in line with other foreigners to visit a tourist highlight, but always wanted to experience the local culture. The problem was that it was impossible to find out where locals go, without having a friend in a city. Sometimes we resorted to following a group of locals to – what we hoped would be – a local bar. Not a very reliable method: we often ended up in front of somebody’s house in the middle of nowhere.
We always wondered why there were no reliable online travel guides where locals write about their favorite spots, and keep these up-to-date. Very frustrating! So in 2008 we quit our jobs, and started our dream job & life! A perfect combination between our passions for city life, travel and meeting interesting people.
As a Spotter, you´re not alone: Meet up of Spotters in Copenhagen. Pic: spottedbylocals
How do you choose your Spotters and the cities you are featuring?
Sanne: We have a selection procedure to be sure the Spotters we work with are really locals: speak the local language, have been living in the city for a period long enough and truly love their city. We meet all our Spotters in person in their city. The essence of the “recruitment” procedure has not changed. We have become a little more strict though, and now do a more thorough check on the writing and photography skills and passions of potential Spotters.
What was the biggest challenge and which one came by surprise?
Bart: When we started, the iPhone was just introduced. Nobody had any idea how much this would change the world, and neither did we. We never expected to be distributing our content via mobile applications would become so popular. We now offer an app for iPhone, and in June 2012 for Android and Windows Phone as well.
My interview with Sanne & Bart did not look as professional as this one. Pic: spottedbylocals
What are your next projects?
Bart: We will continue to expand to new cities. Even though we’re already “bigger” than Lonely Planet, Rough Guide, Frommers and other huge travel guide publishers in Europe, there are still so many cool cities to add to our list. We’re now working on expanding to Bratislava, Skopje and St. Petersburg. Next up will probably be Moscow and Porto!
Is there something you´re especially proud of, what is it?
Sanne: When we started Spotted by Locals we had one big dream of one day organizing a meeting for all Spotters, and inviting them to our city Amsterdam. In November this year our dream will come true. About 60% of all Spotters are joining us, which we think is amazing! It’s also a sign that there really is a very close Spotted by Locals community feeling. We are super proud of this!
Vienna and its spots was one of the first cities on Spotted by Locals. Pic: spottedbylocals
What keeps you going?
Bart: Our life of 15 city trips a year sounds glamorous, and it’s a lot of fun. It gives us a lot of energy meeting our local writers in their city, and checking out their local culture. But the reality is that we spend many many hours behind a computer screen, much more than we’ve ever done in our previous – not exactly easygoing – jobs. What keeps us going is the amazing writing of our Spotters, and the true passion they show when they write about their spots. Also we receive many compliments from visitors who absolutely love what we’re doing. It feels so good we have the coolest travel guides for travelers who really want to experience cities like a local!
Thank you Sanne & Bart for living your dream and sharing your passion!
City trip planned? Insider-tip wanted? - Spotted by Locals
