Hotels, Tripadvisor | featured news

It is something every restaurateur and hotel owner knows: good reviews boost takings while terrible ones can close you down. And, in an age when everyone can be an online critic, ratings have never been more important. But until now no one could be sure just how important the online star ratings system employed by sites such as Toptable and Tripadvisor could be for a business's fortunes.

While many see it as a ploy to generate attention, TripAdvisor has received a thumbs-up from hotel and hygiene experts for its recently unveiled list of 10 dirtiest U.S. hotels.