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about Howard Hillman and his website |
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Q&A
Why did you create the Hillman Wonders? I created my 1,000-page website to inspire you to see as much of our wonderful world as you can in your lifetime.
What is your background? I am a world travel and food writer who has traveled more than a million miles to over 100 countries, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. My journeys have taken me from remote spots like Timbuktu and small villages in China to sophisticated cities like Paris and Tokyo. My mission is to research the best of the world in travel and food. I wrote the longest article ever to appear in the New York Times Travel Section. Travel Today featured my Top 100 Wonders of the World list as its cover story. Many other major publications have run my by-lined articles, including Newsweek, the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. I have written more than 25 books (major publishers include Penguin, Macmillan and Simon & Schuster). Leading reviewers have praised my books. My works have been published in different languages. I am a Harvard Business School graduate who loves to explore the cuisines and travel wonders of the world. My great grandparents were born in four different countries. I live in New York City.
How established is hillmanwonders.com? The 625-page website has been widely praised for its content, professionalism and editorial integrity. Today, Hillman Wonders list has grown into the world’s most comprehensive, best-researched wonder listing. It now embraces the world’s top 1000 wonders. Hillman Wonders is newsworthy. It is covered by the press around the globe. Stories about it have appeared in, for instance, USA Today, Aftonbladet (Scandinavia’s largest newspaper), O Estado de Sao Paulo (a leading Brazilian newspaper), and on wire services (including AP). Hillman Wonders is viewed by 2.1 million visitors per year, generating over 6 million page views. Statistics are documented by Google Analytics/Urchin, a highly trusted internet traffic measurement service owned and operated by Google.
When did you start ranking the wonders of the world? I made my first list when I was a child and dreamed of seeing the wonders of the world. My list changed from a personal to a consensus list after I showed it to some seasoned travelers I had met in Machu Picchu in 1968. They had a great time comparing their personal choices with my top 100 list - and said that it inspired them to want to travel more. Their reaction encouraged me to enrich my list by researching a consensus of knowledgeable travelers who could give unbiased, global-scoped opinions for the benefit of other travelers.
Are your wonder rankings based on an anyone-can-vote poll? No, because there would be no way to meaningfully determine the qualifications and impartiality of a voter. Consider: Most voters who participate in mass anyone-can-vote travel polls have not traveled sufficiently to make an informed global judgment. They tend to be regionally biased, which means that the countries with the most voters are going to have an unfair advantage. Also consider: A few tourism organizations skew the results by submitting mass votes under assumed names. It happens. I am committed to giving you rankings and ratings you can trust. See my Voting Guidelines section later on this page for some of my criteria for being a qualified voter.
How do you rank the wonders? Though I make the final decisions, the rankings are not a one man's opinion. They are greatly influenced by the consensus of my informal International Panel of Experts. It is composed of numerous globetrotters who have proven to me that they have extensively traveled and can make sound, impartial, world-view judgments on travel wonders. My International Panel of Experts are of all races, sexes, age groups and walks of life. They live in nations around the world. Collectively, they have been virtually everywhere and have logged billions of travel miles. My decisions also take into account the opinions of thousands of globetrotters I met and polled during my journeys over the past several decades. My decisions are also influenced by travelers who email insightful comments to me (and who kindly point out my typos, misstatements and other embarrassing errors).
Do you have voting guidelines? Yes. A consensus is meaningless without common voting criteria. That’s why I created these guidelines for my voters:
How selective are your Top 100 and Top 1000 rankings? Very selective. Our vast world has 100,000 legitimate travel attractions. Just 1% (1000) win a Hillman Wonders medal. The top 100 win my gold medal. The next 100 win my silver medal. The next 800 win my bronze medal.
Why do you expect people to disagree with some of your medal selections? It’s natural to disagree. The odds against your opinion coinciding exactly with a compilation of this size (100 gold, 100 silver and 800 bronze medal wonders) are a billion to one. Remember, a consensus is a collective rather than an individual opinion. Each person experiences wonders differently. Ask any two travelers their opinion and you’ll get three answers. Whatever your opinion, I respect it. I do not wish to change your views. Rather, I want to give you the opportunity to have fun comparing your personal opinion with a reliable, well-researched consensus.
Why is my favorite travel attraction missing? There is hardly a travel attraction on our planet that isn’t someone’s favorite. And, with over 100,000 travel attractions on earth, there are going to be a lot of pet choices that don’t even make my Top 1000 list. It’s not that the missing favorites are unworthy but that — in the judgment of the researched consensus — there are wonders that are even more compelling on a global perspective. As widely traveled people know, the competition is vast and keen. One of the essential criteria for ranking a travel wonder is how it compares with other wonders in its genre. Niagara Falls is a good example of what occurs when people are unaware of similar wonders. It’s understandable for individuals who have visited Niagara Falls but have not seen Iguazu Falls and Victoria Falls to think that Niagara Falls should rank near the top of the top 100 list. Although Niagara Falls is indeed a worthy gold medal winner, Iguazu Falls and Victoria Falls are significantly grander and mightier than Niagara Falls, to the point that they make Niagara Falls seem a bit pale in comparison. Consequently, from a global perspective, Niagara Falls ranks in the bottom half of the gold medal winners.
Why do you keep updating the lists? A travel wonder’s ranking can shift, for a number of reasons, including:
Will your website ever be finished? No. I will forever be adding new features and improving existing ones to better serve you. Hillman Wonders will eventually have over 2000 insightful web pages. Plans are underway for a pictorial travel book and a TV documentary series on the wonders. And, my website will be translated into a dozen other languages including Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Russian and Spanish. |
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©2008 HQP / Hillman Quality Publications
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Be
impartial
- You (or any organization you are affiliated with) may not have a vested
interest in promoting a specific travel destination. This means, for instance,
you can vote if you are a general travel agent but not if you work for a
government tourist board. 
