With a turnover of over five trillion dollars and still growing, the travel and tourism industry is being heavily supported by mobile apps and web globalization. Mobile applications have completely changed the way travelers plan their vacation. With rapid advancements in technology, people no more rely on maps, compasses, and guidebooks for traveling. A good travel application does it all for you, including research of new places, booking of hotel and tickets, finding good restaurants and other travel related assistance. In short, the increasing involvement of mobile apps has strengthened the kinship between travel industry and the mobile app industry. And, this is the reason why travel companies are rushing to invest in mobile applications. Recent surveys say that search-related assistance in travel through mobile devices is increasing in multiple digits and people are keen on making bookings through mobile apps for travel.
Image via Expedia [Expedia Mobile]
Some statistics will strengthen this argument:
- Travel related apps ranked as the 7th most downloaded category of mobile applications
- 85% of leisure travelers make use of their Smartphone while travelling abroad
- 72% people upload photos of their vacation on a social network
- 30% travelers make use of mobile apps to find hotel deals
- 46% check in to a location while on holiday
- 15% downloaded mobile apps specifically for the forth coming vacations/holidays
- 29% of travelers have used mobile apps to find flight deals
Image via Yelp [Yelp Mobile]
The above data shows that in this world of digitalization and globalization, mobile apps are working as service layers for the travel industry. Leading travel companies such as TripAdvisor, Expedia, Booking.com etc. all have launched their mobile apps for the ease of customers. Developing Top Mobile Applications for Travelers have become an important piece of their strategy that has revolutionized the travel industry. Let’s see how mobile apps are helping travelers:
- To check weather
- In map routes
- In search of restaurants
- To find directions via GPS
- For searching and comparing hotels
- For searching activities and places of attractions
- For checking-in
- In getting safety information
- In overseas baking
- For buying flight tickets
- For finding shopping sites
Image via TripAdvisor [TripAdvisor Offline City Guide]
Mobile applications are also helping travel companies in delivering excellent serviceround the clock to enhance their travel experience. The most important factor that helps travel companies is that mobile applications help them in getting repeated business. People who have experienced good holidays with the help of a particular app will reconsider the same app while planning their next holiday.
The Big Picture
Looking at recent statistics, it is clear that mobile apps have become a critical component for travel companies and 53% OTA (online travel agencies) and 47% travel suppliers are looking for venturing more into mobile apps in near future. The younger generation who is getting more exposure to smartphones, tablets and phablets hardly know about brick and mortar model of travel agencies. The wiser travel companies have accepted this fact and have ventured into mobile apps to enjoy high ROI.
Image via Viator [Viator Tours & Activities for iPad®]
The Final Word
With the rapid adoption of Smartphone’s and tablets by people around the world, the travel industry is leaving no stone unturned to make the best out of this opportunity. What is important for travel companies is to select a good mobile application developer that can help them in developing a site with aneasy user interface. We are expecting to see more sophisticated and convenient mobile apps for travelers that will make the holidaying experience exceptional for them.
Image via GateGuru [GateGuru, Airport Info & Flight Status]
