The novel coronavirus, COVID-19, has shaken economies around the world by disrupting people’s lives in unimaginable ways. At the same time, while the ongoing fight against the virus continues, companies and industries are trying to rebuild and recover from this crisis. Among others, the travel, tourism and hospitality industries are likely to be the worst affected by the effects of the pandemic. And it may be a difficult and lengthy road before tourism recovers.
As part of the current wave of change, we could witness automation with technologies taking a leading place within the optimization process. Even Gartner predicts that the combination of hyper-automated technologies with redesigned operational processes would allow organizations to reduce operational costs by 30%.
Travel agencies and physical bookings are now almost obsolete and will have a different outlook in the future. So much so that a survey by eMarketer shows that travel-based mobile apps are the 7th most downloaded category and that 60% of smartphone users prefer travel mobile apps to plan their leisure trips.
Tourism Mobile apps help users plan trips, book accommodation, book tickets, taxis, route mapping and more. However, these are only the basic uses of tourism mobile apps and more tourism services can be provided such as:
- Navigation – GPS services, route planning and maps
- Social Media – Travel updates, reviews, image galleries, free communications, etc.
- Mobile marketing – contests, discounts and offer alerts
- Safety – medical, emergency calls and information about local and international health agencies
- E-commerce – ticket booking, overseas banking, reservations, shopping
In fact, the tourism industry is using apps to reach the next level of user engagement and market penetration. Several emerging trends and technological factors will shape the future of travel mobile apps development. For example, taxi aggregation has captured the imagination of tourists. Ridesharing is a prevalent phenomenon. Tourists are also choosing cashless options as a safer way to travel.
Here are some of the innovations and trends that will influence the development of travel mobile apps in the new era:
Limited human intervention
While introduced in the past to reduce labor costs, it will enable tourism and travel mobile apps development departments to seamlessly manage front desk assistance, customer support troubleshooting and other aspects of service management using AI and chatbots. It comes with pre-trip health and safety advice, real-time travel disruption monitoring and automatic security check-in with real-time assistance.
Climate or weather recommendations
Real-time weather forecast with recommendations helps travelers better plan what to pack and what to watch out for, along with suggestions for early travel bookings.
One stop for all types of travel mobile apps
One of the most appealing features of travel mobile apps is that you can easily book your dream destination with one click while sitting at home. The entire booking process for all arrangements can be done under one roof, which is the main reason holiday lovers stick to mobile apps. It includes flight booking, hotel booking, taxi booking, destination selection, local spot discovery and more.
Real-time tracking
Real-time tracking travel mobile apps are increasingly becoming the norm. Most private modes of transport already offer this service as people can track the movement of their cars, buses, etc. Fortunately, this service is only getting better as in the future all transport will depend on live tracking. Public transport agencies have started using IoT technology and GPS devices to provide live information about buses, trains, etc. Developing a travel time tracking app is a great idea to capitalize on this wave.
Integration with taxi booking applications
While mobile apps allow users to seamlessly book flights, train and hotel reservations on the go, integration with a cab booking agency allows the user to get up-to-date information on the exact location and estimated time of arrival of the cab within the destination. . It also includes the necessary information about the car registration plate, driver contact information and more along with driver ratings to ensure safe travel.
Cashless travel
Theft and problems with cash are a big security concern for tourists visiting new countries and regions for the first time. The advantage of the digital economy is that there are now several apps that allow you to travel cashless and facilitate all kinds of payments with a click or a tap.
Visual tours to promote and attract travelers
With the use of Augmented Reality (AR) in practice, we could expect commented virtual tours of museums, amusement parks, theaters and recreation centers. With machine learning, it could even help target people who want to explore new places but are unable to do so in the current situation, or who would have visited those places a long time ago.
Planning social trips
It combines new technologies with user recommendations. These apps help users see suggestions and favorites from friends and family, expert tips and consumer reviews – all combined to make informed decisions about their travel and tourism choices – including destinations, retailers, bookings, etc. A review by Adweek shows that social is an important factor for mobile travelers, as more than 80 percent prefer recent reviews before taking a call. With social network integration (API) and vendor reviews, travel companies can offer apps that offer plenty of social proof to potential travelers.
Localization
Geo-targeted recommendations are very popular in many industries and travel is no different. Travel mobile apps can enhance the user experience by offering travelers localized suggestions and deals/offers – based on their location and preferences. For example Booking. com makes great use of mobile location information to deliver value to its users while optimizing planning efficiency and user experience. Using APIs to automatically populate user profiles, purchase history and location information – you can provide the next level of mobile travel.
Travel apps tailored to your needs
With big data and machine learning, tourism apps need to get smarter and smarter. More sophisticated travel mobile apps will now be tailored to your travel routes, time, budget and means of transport. Using your travel history, preferences and feedback, these apps will be able to recommend and plan better trips for you.
Conclusion
Flexibility combined with technology could be the future of the travel mobile apps industry, offering high potential for monetization and revenue generation. Along with implementing newer policies and procedures, it optimizes and improves the customer experience. Use the expertise of an experienced mobile app development company to make the most of this opportunity.
