Trust

This page outlines the principles, practices, and safeguards that protect the trustworthiness of We Are Guests. It is also the hub of our policy pages — short summaries here, with the full treatment on the pages they link to.

Core Editorial Values

We Are Guests operates according to five foundational values:

1. Honesty above all

We tell you what a place is actually like — the good and the disappointing. A hotel that didn't live up to its photos gets reported that way. When we get something wrong, we correct it promptly and openly, as set out on the corrections page.

2. Independence from influence

Our editorial decisions serve readers, not commercial pressure. A free stay, a press trip, or an affiliate relationship never buys a better review, a higher score, or a recommendation.

3. Fairness in coverage

We give the context a reader needs to make a decision, not just the highlights a marketing team would choose. We don't manufacture false drama, and we don't bury real problems.

4. Transparency in methods

We explain how we work — including how we use automation for travel news, and how we label first-hand reviews against research-based ones. The full detail is on the Authenticity and Technology & AI Policy pages.

5. Accountability for what we publish

Real people take real responsibility for everything published under the We Are Guests name. Readers can reach us, expect a genuine response, and trust that we answer for our work. The team is introduced on the About page.

Independence and Conflicts of Interest

Commercial independence

We Are Guests keeps a clear separation between editorial judgement and commercial considerations.

We never:

• Accept payment for a favourable review or a higher score
• Let advertisers or partners influence editorial decisions
• Sell placement on a recommendation list or comparison
• Change or suppress coverage because of a commercial relationship

When conflicts arise:

• Relevant relationships are disclosed in the coverage itself
• Editorial decisions default to reader interest over revenue
• When in doubt, we choose disclosure

Affiliate and booking-partner relationships

This is the central conflict of a travel publisher, and we name it directly. We Are Guests earns commission when readers book hotels, cruises, attraction tickets, and other travel through links on our site — and we also review and cover those same hotels, cruise lines, and attractions. We could not run the publication without affiliate revenue, and that revenue is tied to the things we write about.

Our safeguards:

• Commission rates never affect a review score, a ranking, or whether something is recommended
• We recommend places we would book ourselves — not the ones that pay the most
• A poor experience is reported honestly even where we earn commission on bookings for it
• Affiliate links and commercial content are clearly labelled with an Ad badge
• Commissions cost the reader nothing extra — the price is the same as booking direct

If we ever recommended places because of commission rather than merit, the publication would be worthless to the families who rely on it. That is the plainest reason the safeguard holds.

Personal conflicts and gifted stays

Where a stay, sailing, meal, or experience was complimentary, hosted, or discounted by an operator, we disclose it in the review. A hosted visit never changes our verdict, and we say plainly when one took place. Family or personal connections to a business we cover are disclosed or recused.

Editorial Structure and Accountability

We Are Guests is a small, independent operation. The founders carry final authority on editorial decisions, responsibility for these standards and policies, and accountability for everything published. There is a named human accountable for every article — nothing hides behind a brand.

We maintain a clear separation between:

• Editorial and commercial: coverage decisions are made on merit; commercial operations do not pressure them.
• Reviews and news: first-hand reviews are clearly distinguished from automation-assisted news coverage.
• Content and advertising: no commercial content is disguised as editorial; affiliate links and partnerships are labelled.

Source Standards

Our travel news rests on verifiable source material — operator announcements, official park and cruise-line information, tourism bodies, and established travel-news outlets with their own editorial standards. Our reviews rest on first-hand experience and our own photography. We treat operator PR as source material, not as publish-ready content.

Reader Relationship

Readers deserve:

• Honest advice — the full picture as we best understand it
• Prompt, transparent corrections when we get something wrong
• Respectful responses to questions
• Clear explanations of how we work
• Accountability for our coverage

Substantive questions get thoughtful answers. A correction reported by a reader triggers immediate review. Reader privacy is protected by collecting as little as possible — the full posture is on the privacy policy page.

Ownership and Funding

We Are Guests is published by Creamery Media Ltd, registered in Dublin, and is founded and run by Steph and Jamie Ashcroft. It has no outside investors and no obligation to external shareholders, which lets us prioritise long-term reader trust over short-term revenue.

Revenue comes from affiliate commissions on travel bookings and from advertising. We Are Guests does not depend on any single operator or partner for its income, and editorial operations are protected from funding pressure. How affiliate revenue is managed is set out under Affiliate and Booking-Partner Relationships above.

Contact and Accountability

Questions, concerns, or complaints about the trustworthiness of We Are Guests can be sent to editorial@weareguests.net. To report an error, see the corrections page. We commit to reading every substantive message, responding to genuine inquiries, taking feedback seriously, and acting on valid criticism.

Our Promise

We Are Guests promises to:

1. Tell the truth about the places we cover, including the parts an operator would rather we didn't
2. Correct errors promptly and openly, without waiting to be pushed
3. Resist pressure from any commercial interest seeking to shape coverage
4. Explain our work, including how we use automation and how we label content
5. Take responsibility for everything published under our name
6. Serve readers first in every editorial decision
7. Stay independent of the operators we cover

Trust is earned with every trip we help you plan. We work to deserve yours.

See Also

This Trust page sits at the centre of our policy framework. The pages that carry the detail: Authenticity, Editorial Standards, Technology & AI Policy, Corrections, Collaborate, Privacy Policy, and About.