Travel sites report that traffic doubled in the year running up to January 2007, a trend that is expected to continue as more people use the Internet to plan their holidays. Moreover, 17 million people now book their holidays online in UK alone.
World Travel Market
These are just some of the preliminary findings released by the World Travel Market, gleaned from a study on the impact of technology on the tourist industry, which will be explored in depth in the "Travel Online/Technology" section – already sold out – of the WTM conference to be held this coming November at London ExCeL
Virtual Travel
Other trends that are catching on fast include virtual travel, in which users visit hotel and destination sights offering 360º tours and streaming video, and Web 2.0 social networking sites, blogs and comment pages where holidaymakers share travel experiences, all of which are now flourishing.
In short, the global tourist industry has all to gain from new developments and continuous innovation in the technology sector. The industry is already benefiting from staff savings as increasingly more people – 55% according to the findings of a study conducted earlier this year by Nielsen//Netratings – choose the Internet instead of a traditional travel agency to research and book their holidays and getaways.
Travel 3.0: the future of online travel
After Web 2.0, Travel 3.0 is now being hailed as the future of online travel. According to Tim Wright, managing director of dynamic packaging specialist HyperTech Solutions UK, Travel 3.0 sites will “harness the proven capability of dynamic packaging to enrich buyer choice and so build sales, value and margin”, making it possible to create and update travel itineraries and to post suggestions that can actually be booked. Travellers will be able to access predefined itineraries – previously created, posted and ranked by social network or community users, as well as in-depth information on destination and activities.
