Digital Trends in the Tourism Industry
Digital tourism trends encompass the growing integration of digital technologies in the tourism industry. These trends include virtual reality experiences, online booking and planning tools, personalized travel recommendations through AI, and the use of social media for destination marketing. They are important for enhancing the travel experience, making trip planning more convenient and personalized, and allowing destinations to reach a broader, more engaged audience. By leveraging these digital tools, the tourism industry can adapt to changing consumer behaviors and expectations, offering richer, more interactive, and convenient travel experiences.
Key Takeaways
- Virtual Reality: Enhances the booking experience with immersive previews.
- Augmented Reality: Offers interactive, enhanced real-world experiences.
- Artificial Intelligence: Improves customer service with intelligent interactions.
- Internet of Things (IoT): Enhances guest experiences through connected devices.
- Big Data: Drives personalized marketing and improved service quality.
- Mobile Applications: Offer convenient access to information and services.
- Contactless Technology: Gains prominence for safer transactions.
- Chatbots: Enhances customer support and information access.
- Blockchain: Emerges in secure booking processes.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
The tourism industry is constantly evolving as new digital technology emerges. In this article, we explore some of the digital trends that are going to be most significant in the industry throughout the next year: from virtual reality, which is changing the booking process, to augmented reality, which is enhancing the in-person experience, to artificial intelligence, which is fundamentally changing customer service.
5 Hot Digital Trends for the Tourism Industry
Every year, certain key trends emerge within the tourism industry, helping to improve the customer experience, change the way people book their travel or make internal processes quicker, more simple, or more accurate. For 2018, the prediction is that the following three trends will come to define the year:
1. Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Artificial intelligence is another key trend that will continue to emerge in the travel and tourism industry throughout 2024. In simple terms, this means utilizing computers to carry out what was traditionally seen as a human task because they require intelligent interactions or the ability to learn.
This is now possible because technological advances, combined with the increased amount of data companies keep, mean that computer technology can now adapt to individual customers and situations. In the business world, AI has been especially prevalent in delivering front-facing customer service, which will continue to grow.
Customer service is of the utmost importance within hotels, which is one reason AI is so appealing. When utilized effectively, it allows companies to deliver quick response times at any time of the day because it does not depend on staff being physically present.
To date, the main usage of artificial intelligence within the tourism industry has been with chatbots and direct messaging. When used this way, AI can respond to simple questions and queries from customers almost instantaneously. Chatbot technology improves over time, as it essentially learns from interactions.
However, artificial intelligence’s role does not end there. We are already seeing the technology used to quickly analyze large amounts of data. At the same time, companies like Hilton have already begun experimenting with artificially intelligent robots, which can provide directions and other tourist information in response to human speech. The possibilities with AI are almost limitless, and we can expect to see more of it.
Video: Meet Connie, Hilton Hotels’ First Robot Concierge
Find more detailed information and examples about how artificial intelligence can benefit your business in the article “How Artificial Intelligence is Changing the Travel Industry”.
Table: Artificial Intelligence Application Examples in the Tourism Industry
2. Internet of Things (IoT) in Tourism
The Internet of Things, or IoT for short, can be briefly described as a network of ordinary physical objects and devices that are equipped with capabilities that allow them to connect and share data over the Internet. Examples of IoT devices include smart speakers, home control devices, wearable devices, smart meters, and smart health monitors. According to the Internet of Things (IoT) in Travel and Tourism – Thematic Intelligence by Research and Markets, enterprise spending on IoT is set to reach $28 billion by 2027.
The tourism industry has been a keen adopter of IoT technology and is now present in many different areas. A growing number of hotels now include smart devices within hotel rooms, providing guests with a greater sense of control. Airports use mobile apps to allow customers to access up-to-date flight information via their smartphones.
Many of the major digital trends tourism industry figures are experimenting with include significant IoT elements. For example, cloud-based ordering systems in restaurants allow data to be communicated between devices, enabling finance and stock data to be automatically updated. Contactless check-in services in hotels also use IoT technology.
Another key development in this area has been the rise of driverless vehicles. Driverless taxis and trains use the internet to access real-time data, respond intelligently to the latest information, and provide customers with automated services that reduce costs for travel industry businesses.
For more information about the Internet of Things in tourism, read “How the Internet of Things (IoT) can Benefit the Travel Industry.”
Video: Innovation with the Internet of Things (IoT)
3. Virtual Reality (VR)
Virtual reality has been one of the dominant technology trends in general throughout the past few years, with VR headsets emerging as a mainstream consumer product. Although the benefits of virtual reality are already being explored in the tourism industry, this trend will likely continue into 2018.
Essentially, virtual reality is a technology that serves to make users feel as though they are physically present in a digitally created environment. This means that it has the potential to change the environment a person is in for all intents and purposes, allowing them to experience different sights and sounds.
It is easy to see how this digital trend could appeal to the hotel industry because customers tend to require a lot of information before booking a holiday or hotel room. Through VR, travel companies can help potential customers experience the hotel environment or nearby attractions before committing.
We are already increasingly seeing the adoption of VR capabilities within the travel industry. For example, some travel companies are already using virtual reality travel experiences to allow people to experience aspects of a holiday, such as a trip to a famous attraction, using VR headsets and 360 videos.
Meanwhile, other hotel booking websites are harnessing the potential of allowing people to use VR technology to explore virtual recreations of hotel rooms. This means that rather than simply reading descriptions, customers will increasingly be able to experience hotel rooms for themselves before they even book them.
More recently, hotels have offered entire booking processes through virtual reality headsets. This could allow guests to experience hotel rooms seamlessly, experience local attractions, and then book a room, all from the same basic set of menus.
Video: Atlantis Dubai Virtual Tour VR 360
Best viewed with VR glasses or a Google Cardboard
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Find more detailed information and examples about how virtual reality can benefit your business in the articles “How Virtual Reality is Transforming the Travel Industry” and “10 Amazing Examples of Virtual Reality Hotel Tours”.
4. Augmented Reality (AR)
Another emerging trend in tourism management, closely related to virtual reality, is augmented reality. Unlike VR, the basic concept behind AR is to use digital technology to alter the experience of real-life surroundings, meaning that they are enhanced in some way when viewed through an AR-compatible device. The AR market is rapidly growing – according to the Augmented Reality (AR) in Travel and Tourism Research by GlobalData, the AR in Tourism is expected to grow at a CAGR of 38% in the period of 2021-2030.
One of the best-known examples of augmented reality is the game Pokemon Go, which allows people to explore real locations and see and collect Pokemon characters in those locations through their smartphones. Travel companies are increasingly utilizing This same technology, enhancing the travel experience.
Augmented reality is especially appealing to those in the tourism industry because it provides the potential to enhance real-life environments through technology. This means that, for example, environments can become interactive, and information can be presented when it is most relevant.
Those within the tourism industry are already putting the technology to good use. Among the existing examples of AR in hotels are wall maps, which, when viewed through a smartphone app, provide users with more information about local attractions and how to get there. Others are using AR games to enhance guests’ stay in their hotel.
Indeed, gamification is one of the key benefits of augmented reality, and there is huge potential within the tourism industry. For example, AR may allow hotel guests to take photographs of themselves with virtual recreations of famous people or characters. It could also allow guests to redecorate a hotel room virtually.
Moreover, augmented reality can enhance surroundings outside of the hotel, too. This could allow visitors to point their phones at the restaurant to find reviews or point their phones at an old building and see it as it would have appeared many years ago, which can be especially valuable when looking at ruins or older attractions.
Video: Augmented Reality Quest at the Best Western Kelowna
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Find more detailed information and examples about how augmented reality can benefit your business in the article “How Augmented Reality is Revolutionising the Travel Industry”.
5. Metaverse As a New Type of Travel
The idea of the metaverse is sometimes misunderstood, so beginning with a basic metaverse meaning or definition is important. The metaverse refers to creating a virtual environment or digital world that people can explore and use to interact with other users meaningfully. Often, it is compared to virtual reality technology.
However, the metaverse goes beyond simple VR and includes augmented reality, social media functionality, and blockchain technology elements. A user could visit a metaverse environment through a VR headset or a digital device, such as a smartphone, tablet, computer, or gaming console.
This opens up the potential for users to enjoy completely new travel experiences. Such experiences could be as simple as a virtual experience, where users gain inspiration for their next trip. However, the metaverse could also be used to interact with travel agents or hotel reception staff. For example, a user might be able to explore a digital recreation of a hotel, travel around this environment, and book a hotel room they visit.
There is also the potential for this technology to replace some forms of travel. In the future, it may be possible to experience what it is like to be at the top of the Eiffel Tower without ever traveling to Paris. This is why the metaverse is one of the digital trends the tourism industry needs to understand and capitalize on as quickly as possible.
Hotels and travel agents may use the metaverse to enhance the booking experience and to provide a clear idea of what travelers can expect. However, businesses may also need to contend with metaverse experiences replacing some forms of travel, including business meetings that would otherwise require people to travel from different locations.
Check out the “Metaverse Tourism: Overview, Benefits, Examples and More” article for a more comprehensive exploration of what the metaverse means, how it can be used in tourism, and its main benefits.
Digital Trends in the Travel Industry
With digital technology continuously evolving, it should come as little surprise that its applications within the tourism industry evolve too. In the articles “Key Technology Trends Emerging in the Travel Industry” and “Tourism Marketing: Brand New Marketing Tips to Boost Your Results” you can explore more digital technologies which can benefit your business.
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