Oyster visits hotels in person, takes hundreds of photos of each, and posts them so our visitors know exactly what they're booking into. There's a huge difference between the photos we take and the ones on other travel sites. So if that pool, which looks so sparkling blue on their shot isn't exactly azure, we'll show you.
Jamaica Photo Fakeout: Sexy lady phenomenon
See if you can spy the difference between these photos. Don't think too hard -- it's pretty obvious. Did you get it? The answer is: humans! That's right -- real, live hotel guests. Read More »
D.R. Photo Fakeout: The myth of mega resort serenity
In the spirit of pointing out misleading promotional hotel photos, we felt the need to call out some of the beaches that, in real life, don't quite look like they do on the hotel's website. All too often, mega resorts market their beaches as pristine… Read More »
Miami Photo Fakeout: Model Man goes surfing in a hot tub
South Beach's Aqua Hotel isn't a horrible place to stay, but it's definitely not all its website makes it out to be. Even granting that the hotel can't be expected to have the hotty model around all the time, the "pool" -- which in fact… Read More »
Hawaii Photo Fakeout: The magical art of the teensy pool crop
This Oahu hotel may be named the Aqua Aloha Surf, but it certainly doesn't have a whole lot of aqua in its lima bean pool. Just like the The Equus, the hotel shows a zoomed-in, cropped section of the pool on its website to give… Read More »
L.A. Photo Fakeout: The magic of framing hides the magic of Macy's
Listen, Sofitel L.A. We understand that you'd probably rather not advertise for Macy's on your own website -- and we understand you'd rather not advertise the fact that Macy's is right there, bumpin' up against your pool. Read More »
Wedding Photo Fakeout: A classy, intimate beach wedding for everybody!
Imagine setting a date to say your vows -- notifiying only your nearest and dearest; a handful of your most cherished family members and pals -- and running off to the Dominican Republic with your spouse-to-be, dizzy with excitement and drunk on love. And imagine… Read More »
Jamaica Photo Fakeout: Riu Negril Club
Hotels can be good at hiding things under the covers. The Riu Negril Club website photo would be pretty accurate, if it didn't camouflage one very important fact: The "king bed" is really two double beds pushed together. Not a vacation ruiner, but certainly a… Read More »
D.R. Photo Fakeout: This buffet looked more delicious in 1988
The following is a dream sequence, inspired by the buffet on the left (as shown on the Grand Palladium Bavaro Resort and Spa's website): Read More »
L.A. Photo Fakeout: Can you spot the differences between these two images?
Looks like someone got all dressed up for picture day! On the left is the image of a Deluxe King room displayed on Ayres Hotel's website. On the right is a picture we snapped during our stay. Can you spot the differences between these two… Read More »
D.C. Photo Fakeout: The U.S. Capitol is close, but not this close
Proximity to power is valuable currency in Washington, D.C. So it won’t surprise folks inside the Beltway that the city’s prominent players occasionally exaggerate their standing. But we’re from New York City, and we couldn’t help but notice that this photo, which appears on the… Read More »
Miami Photo Fakeout: Oops! Read the fine print before booking at The Four Seasons
Ah, to be a guest at The Four Seasons Miami. The carpet is a lovely, subtle beige hue, the curtains are understated and elegant, and the city (and your troubles) are far, far away... Read More »
Jamaica Photo Fakeout: Breezes Montego Bay
The beautiful sunset, lush foliage, cushioned lounge chairs and decorative Jacuzzi tiles in the Breezes Montego Bay hotel website photo above look lovely and romantic -- but, as our reporter found, they don't actually exist! Add enough air brushing and any hotel will look like… Read More »
Miami Photo Fakeout: The Essex House Hotel
We think The Essex House Hotel in South Beach, Miami is a great value -- but we're not big fans of their Photoshopped marketing photos. On the left is a marketing photo we found on Expedia.com, which conveniently leaves out a street lamp and traffic… Read More »
Hawaii Photo Fakeout: The magical art of the teensy pool crop, part 2
Take a gander at the images above; the picture on the left was pulled from each hotel's website, the one on the right was snapped by Oyster reporters. Yes, The Equus on Oahu appears to have slyly attempted the ol' crop trick -- which we… Read More »
New York Photo Fakeout: The Soho Grand and the case of the bedraggled bed
Something tells us that Lindsay Lohan and her handlers would not be impressed with this: check out the rumpled bed linens we encountered at the luxe NYC celebrity haunt The Soho Grand. Our reporter assures us that she did not, in fact, sleep in this… Read More »
Las Vegas Photo Fakeout: Color me sad
On the left is the image used by the California Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas to promote their Deluxe King rooms. On the right is a photo of the same type of room, um, in real life. Read More »
Jamaica Photo Fakeout: Smiling gym-goers are questionable
Listen, hotel marketers: nobody smiles at the gym. The gym is a No-Fun Zone. People don't go to the hotel fitness center to chitty-chat like that; they go to the hotel bar. You're practically begging us to expose a Photo Fakeout with this kind of… Read More »
Miami Photo Fakeout: The Townhouse gets by with a little help from its photo-editor friends
Well, we can think of one person in this great country that deserved yesterday's holiday -- it seems like someone certainly labored long and hard in Photoshop to produce the image on the left. Read More »
Jamaica Photo Fakeout: Another reason to be suspicious of people who smile in gyms
Alright: it has been established that Montego Bay has to be seen to be believed. That is, the photos on some Montego Bay hotels' websites are not to be believed. *Ahem* Read More »
Miami Photo Fakeout: The smiling gym-goer strikes again
Oh, look. A photo pulled off of a hotel website featuring people smiling and laughing in a gym, a place where people are (typically) neither smiling nor laughing. Read More »
Miami Photo Fakeout: When hotel decor goes missing
We know what to expect when we check into a hotel, because we always take the time to view a hotel's website before we visit. But sometimes when we arrive, we're dismayed to find that something is missing! The website promises beautiful blankets or a… Read More »
L.A. Photo Fakeout: The Incredible Shrinking Pool
Dear Hotel Oceana, We really like you. Your little boutique in Santa Monica has a quiet vibe and bright, enormous rooms, and you're only 15 minutes from the beach on foot. And that heart-shaped pool in the courtyard is cute. So it just seems so… Read More »
L.A. Photo Fakeout: When flora goes missing
We've already brought you countless examples of sly cropping, elaborate camerawork, and conspicuously missing hotel decor. For today's Photo Fakeout: the case of the mysteriously disappearing plants at The London West Hollywood. Often, hotel websites show off guest rooms that include everything from purple orchids… Read More »
Hawaii Photo Fakeout: A hotel gym that really looks like your parents' basement
We've previously shown you photos of people suspiciously smiling in gyms that are anything but smile-worthy. First there were the overly happy ladies at Jamaica's Runaway Bay Heart Hotel; then there was this deceptive backdrop at the Holiday Inn Resort (also in Jamaica), and finally… Read More »
New York Photo Fakeout: NYC Hotel Hides Its 'Hood
"Hotel 91 is a new 70 room smoke free hotel located in Manhattan's vibrant Lower East Side. Chinatown, Little Italy, SoHo, Wall Street, and other major NYC attractions are only steps away." Read More »
Las Vegas Photo Fakeout: Good luck finding a lounge chair
Aaah, the sand squishes between your toes, the calm water laps at the shore, and the sun beats on your shoulders. You must be in... Las Vegas?! That's right. There's no amenity too crazy for Las Vegas hotels (rollercoaster anyone?), and "beaches" are no exception… Read More »
Miami Photo Fakeout: Blue Moon shows off a too-blue pool
Sometimes a photo's water is a little bit too blue, its trees are a little bit too green, and its cocktails are just a little bit too... yellow. In addition to some glaring color enhancement, the marketing photo of Miami's Blue Moon Hotel shown above… Read More »
D.R. Photo Fakeout: The vanishing building at Don Juan Beach Resort
Ahh, the Dominican Republic. The sun shines, the breeze lightly blows, and the palm trees sway. And, at least at the Don Juan Beach Resort, buildings disappear. While the marketing photo on the left would have you think that the pool has an unobstructed view… Read More »
L.A. Photo Fakeout: This pool was ready for (only) its close-up
As we've seen before with the pools at Aqua Aloha Surf and The Equus, photographers like to get and down dirty with hotel pools. By crouching low and pushing right up against a pool, a photographer can get a wide-angle shot that makes the pool… Read More »
L.A. Photo Fakeout: A pool shows off only its good side
Like we just saw in our previous Photo Fakeout at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Beverly Hills, by showing only a small part of the pool, a hotel can lead consumers to believe that the pool is larger than it is. It's only when you can… Read More »
D.R. Photo Fakeout: Seaweed on the beach
We all know that the way a beach looks can change greatly depending on the time of day, and even time of year. Tides shift, and with changing tides comes a changing landscape. So we have no doubt that the beach at the Barcelo Capella… Read More »
New York Photo Fakeout: Hello, wall!
Both of the above photos are of a Deluxe Room with One King Bed. And this room at the Holiday Inn New York City -- Wall Street is pretty nice -- a big bed, a window that lets in plenty of natural light, a small… Read More »
New York Photo Fakeout: The skinny on a not-so-wide pool
The Empire Hotel in New York City is a great hotel with a rooftop bar, swanky decor, a seafood restaurant, and a great location. Plus, it's been immortalized for an entire generation by Gossip Girl as the hotel that boy-billionare Chuck Bass owns and lives… Read More »
Jamaica Photo Fakeout: You might run away from this hot tub
There's no denying that the hot tub at Breezes Runaway Bay Resort, Jamaica is bright and colorful, but there's something just a little too pristine and perfect about this hotel photo (on the left) that we found on Orbitz.com. The reality -- our photo on… Read More »
Los Angeles Photo Fakeout: Shiny, Pretty (Traffic) Lights
By now, after finding so many Photo Fakeouts, we're used to the basics of hotel marketing images. Take, for example, the perfect (ahem, perfectly airbrushed) blue sky seen in the above photo (the left one, that is). It cascades so nicely from midnight blue down… Read More »
Miami Photo Fakeout: An Indoor Kiddie Pool Turned Adult
What you don't see may really be what you get. Looking for the classic, Olympic-sized indoor pool experience? Well, unfortunately you'll have to look further than the Claridge in Miami. You won't be able to do your morning laps here. The magical art of the… Read More »
Groupon Photo Fakeout: A Not-So-Shiny Pool
Groupon's deals may not be as trustworthy as you've previously believed. Currently, the ever-popular deals site is offering a package at the Clinton Hotel & Spa South Beach in Miami Beach, Florida. Groupon and Expedia have teamed up to offer their consumers great deals, but… Read More »
Costa Rica Photo Fakeout: The missing panoramic view
Hotel La Mariposa only shows one photo of a Full Ocean View Room on its website (seen above, left). When we checked into that same room type, we sadly only found one of the three windows shown in the hotel's photo. Read More »
New York Photo Fakeout: The Two By Four Room
We know New York has small rooms. And since we've really seen it all, we know when something looks too good to be true. The Hudson Hotel in New York cropped its marketing photo just before the wall (seen left) so the viewer can't see… Read More »
