Travel Bookings Changing Thanks To Technology

With technology consuming the world at the moment, it’s no surprise that it’s changed the way we make our hotel reservations, book flights or even arrange car hire. Gone are the days of phoning around hotels or popping into a travel agent to find out hotel prices, now everything is done online and the trend is increasing.

At the moment a third of all travel bookings are done online, this is mainly due to the fact that it’s easy and quick. Most people who book accommodation online are looking for the best deal and you find those deals on the internet. This may be due to the fact that you are cancelling out the middleman and going directly to the source.

The ability to book last minute hotels with the click of a mouse is perfect from business people that are always travelling. Their entire itenery can be booked online from their flight, their hotel and then their car hire when they arrive. This makes it easier for their personal assistants and saves a lot of time on telephone calls.

Online Tourism is Constantly Growing

Online tourism is constantly growing and it’s only expected to get bigger, currently only nine per cent of all travel is booked offline, while this is probably bad news for travel agents who work from shop fronts around the country, its good news for the traveller.

But of course it’s been taken one step further since the release of the smartphone with three out of four business people owning smartphones.  There is a wide selection of mobile apps available where you can make your travel bookings on the move, these bookings are expected to triple by the end of 2013.

When you think about it you always have your mobile with you and with our busy lifestyles we don’t always have time to stop, sit back and do online searches or visit a travel agency, so being able to do the bookings via your phone is one of the best technological ideas to date.

Mobile Marketing The Way Forward

Ninety two per cent of all hotel owners believe that mobile marketing is the way forward for their business, combined with online marketing. Most travellers only book their accommodation five days before arrival, very few book far in advance, this is often because hotels and guest houses offer reduced prices for last minute bookings to increase their capacity percentage each month.

Due to this trend, travel agencies that handle online bookings are enjoying sixty two per cent of the market while supplier sites enjoy forty six per cent of the market. Direct bookings are also on the increase with more enquiries coming through online than via the telephone.

Hotels around the world handle thousands of booking enquiries online daily, the phone has stopped ringing as people find it more convenient to just pop online, send out an enquiry and receive a confirmation. These can be handled while on the move thanks to 3G technology and a mobile phone, where travellers can constantly check their emails and receive confirmations to show on arrival.

From hotel bookings to bus travel can be booked online with online tickets becoming increasingly popular. You show your smartphone on arrival with your booking reference number and you are set to go, it really doesn’t get any easier than this.

When you look at the way technology has changed the way businesses operate and how we now go about making travel arrangements, it’s easy to see why online and smartphone apps are essential for hotels and accommodation companies worldwide.

Thirty eight per cent of all tourism bookings were made either via the internet or via a smartphone app in Western Europe last year, we can now see this is the way of the future.

Belfast Accommodation is available online for those who want a taste of picturesque scenery and a holiday to remember.

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