'the Alternative Hot-list' – Trusted Places Reveals Uk’s Greatest Hidden Gems

- Poll shows Brits go on-line to find alternatives to celeb locations -
- Paris Hilton named as least trusted star for planning your night out -

London, 19th October 2007: The influence of celebrity lifestyle on our social lives is wearing thin according to a national poll by community reviews site TrustedPlaces.com. The website, which allows users to discover and share reviews of places to socialise, announced the survey results along with the perfect celebrity antidote: The Alternative Hot-List. The list, compiled by TrustedPlaces users’ nominations, reveals hidden gems – from clubs and bars to restaurants and shops – that are the UK’s favourite alternatives to celeb hang-outs like Mahiki, Cipriani and Indie haunt, The Hawley Arms.

Key results
* 34% of Brits would be less likely to visit a new location after reading about a celebrity party there – 60% said it wouldn’t change their choice, only 6% would be more likely – showing that we prefer to find our own favourite spots than rely on celebrities,

* Voters also picked their most and least trusted stars, George Clooney coming out on top as the celebrity we would most trust to plan a night out, gaining more votes than his two closest rivals combined. Tabloid favourite Paris Hilton was picked as the least trusted celeb to choose restaurants and bars on our behalf.

* When it comes to trusted sources of information, we are most likely to turn to our friends (71%) or Internet reviews (45%), rather than glossy magazines and regular paparazzi haunts (24%)

The Alternative Hotlist

Restaurants

Celebrity Spot: Cipriani, London - Who goes there: P Diddy, Victoria Beckham
The Alternative: Fabrizio, Clerkenwell, London

Celebrity Spot: Milgi, Cardiff - Who goes there: Charlotte Church & Gavin Henson
The Alternative: Troy Ocakbasi, Cardiff

Celebrity Spot: Bibis, Leeds - Who goes there: Chelsy Davy
The Alternative: The Reliance, Leeds

Celebrity Spot: The Corinthian, Glasgow - Who goes there: Ewan McGregor, Robbie Coltrane
The Alternative: Ubiquitous Chip, Glasgow

Bars, Pubs & Clubs

Celebrity Spot: The Hawley Arms, London - Who goes there: Sadie Frost, Amy Winehouse
The Alternative: The Charles Lamb, Angel, London

Celebrity Spot: Mahiki, London - Who goes there: William and Harry, Kate Middleton
The Alternative: Favela Chic, Old Street, London

Celebrity Spot: Cuckoo Club, London - Who goes there: Rihanna, Christina Aguilera
The Alternative: Shunt Vaults, London Bridge, London

Celebrity Spot: Lulu, Edinburgh - Who goes there: Vernon Kaye, Girls Aloud
The Alternative: Ecco Vino, Edinburgh

Celebrity Spot: Sugar Lounge, Manchester - Who goes there: Coronation Street cast, Premiership Footballers
The Alternative: Grinch, Manchester

Celebrity Spot: Sky Bar, Brighton - Who goes there: Jordan and Peter Andre
The Alternative: The Greys, Brighton

Hotels

Celebrity Spot: The St Martin’s Lane Hotel, London - Who goes there: Paris Hilton, Shakira
The Alternative: Dukes Hotel, St James, London

Shops

Celebrity Spot: Twenty8Twelve, London - Who goes there: Peaches Geldof, Rhys Ifans
The Alternative: Absolute Vintage, Brick Lane, London

TrustedPlaces, which has over 8000 global reviews, allows users to write and share reviews of their favourite hot spots and create lists of where they want to go next. Users can also take a TasteMatcher survey to receive personalised recommendations, find out which other users most suit their own preferences and will be most likely to recommend places they’ll like. Users who write great reviews on locations in a specific part of the country can become Local Experts and earn rewards for their contribution.

“We’re spoilt for choice when it comes to cool places to go out in London,” said Samantha Sigler a user of TrustedPlaces from London. “TrustedPlaces is great for finding new recommendations from my friends and from people who have similar tastes to my own. I’m really pleased that The Charles Lamb Pub is featured in the Alternative Hot-List, it’s just one example of some of the fantastic spots that haven’t been discovered by the celebrities just yet!”

“It’s really encouraging to see that people are placing their trust on friends and online reviews”, said Sokratis Papafloratos, CEO TrustedPlaces. “Some of the regular celebrity hang-outs are great, but there are so many more places that are equally good or better and word of mouth remains the best way to discover them. With TrustedPlaces we want to make sharing recommendations on where to go and what to do as easy and fun as possible.”

About TrustedPlaces
With reviews from over 450 cities in 40 countries, TrustedPlaces allows people to discover and share online all the latest information on where to go out, via reviews and recommendations, from the TrustedPlaces community of passionate individual reviewers.

With unique content continuously refreshed by its members, TrustedPlaces aims to become the UK’s largest online resource for independent reviews for local businesses. In July, The Guardian listed the company as one of the ‘Top 10 dotcoms to watch’ recognising the growth and potential of the location focused social network. Founded in 2006 by Sokratis Papafloratos and Walid Al Saqqaf in London, UK, the beta site launched in February 2007 when TrustedPlaces also secured £500k funding from HOWZAT Media.