In today’s world, people come across many transitions in climatic conditions, eating habits, dressing sense, etc. When this is on one side, even in this 21st Century, people’s enthusiasm and craze for traveling are not altered at any cause.
Therefore, the global travel and tourism industries are bringing many facilities and technologies to give the best experience for travelers. There are chances for travel agencies to begin the year 2021 successfully by making the travel experience a comfortable one for tourists and travelers.
Our ColorWhistle team strives hard to keep our clients aware of the current developing industry – travel and tourism. On that note, we researched and collected some of the travel trends that will come to life in 2021 and beyond.
Let’s take a look at some of the travel trends that are going to dominate in 2021.
A Trip to the 2021 Travel Trends
1. Traveling with Virtual Cash
Usually, travelers before taking a trip had to search for currency exchange centers or post offices or other financial centers to exchange their currency with the foreign currency. These traditional money concepts will come to a complete end by 2021, where everything is paid and bought with paperless cash!
- According to AmericanExpress, the total value of noncash payments rose to US$174.4 trillion and grew at a rate of 4.2 percent per year.
- The Statista Research Department published a fact that cash transactions are going to decline from 56% to 60% in 2021.
- According to Visa 88% of travelers prefer online payment at present.
At present, you could have come across mobile apps such as PayPal, GooglePay, Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp that act as a platform for cashless transactions. Adding to it, travel websites like Google Flights, Priceline and Expedia are already offering online booking facilities for travelers
2. Biometrics & Facial Recognition
- SITA, an airline technology company analyzed that around 77% of airports and 71% of airlines plan to invest heavily in biometric identification in the next three years.
- Countries such as Britain, Singapore, Japan, China, and America are already using biometric technology in their airports.
- British Airways has implemented a facial-recognition assisted boarding process at its hub in London.
- Heathrow Airport in London has partnered with Yoti to allow travelers to use their smartphones for the facial identification process.
Why have these airports turned to biometrics technology? What are the benefits for a traveler in adopting the technology?
Biometric technology is rich in security. So, airport companies want to use it in their airport checking hubs. Plus, biometric technology consumes less time to spend on verifications.
A traveler has many benefits in experiencing the biometric technology in airports during his/her travel, some of them are listed below,
- Automated recognition and verification – Automated Border Control [ABC] gates are kept for verification which lets out seamless entry and exit of passengers.
- Accurate identification of documents – As biometrics technology is used during both check-in and check-out of a traveler, there are no opportunities for fraud activities.
- Handing over the documents – The tourists can rest from the risks of handing over their passport and boarding pass at all verification centers. Instead, the cameras will be ready to capture the tourist for recognition, and it is enough that he/she poses for the click.
3. Mobile Apps for Filling Visa
The mobile applications will go trending in 2021. An international traveler who is planning for a vacation has to be aware of the process of taking a visa.
Usually, it takes hours together to fill a visa application, sometimes hours become days. This is because small typos in filling the visa applications will lead to blunder mistakes which might delay visa approval. What difficulties does a traveler face while applying for a visa?
- Requirements of documents asked in the visa applications vary from country to country.
- Lack of support for consultation.
- Gathering the appropriate documents.
- Struggles in linguistics.
- Time consumption.
These issues can be easily solved by building a mobile application. Companies such as VisaFast, ChinaVisaApp, VisaExplore already have apps. Here are some of the beneficial features that can be added to the app.
- Provide easy assistance in the traveler’s convenient language. This service should be available 24/7.
- Appropriate contact information should be mentioned about the consultancy services to prevent fraud occurrences.
- Assist traveler in the end-to-end process starting from filling the forms to the payment options. Submission of visa applications should also be carried out digitally instead of letting the traveler to physically submit the forms.
Some of the airports are already leading in the race by accepting mobile passport from the travelers. Here is a small list.
- John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)
- Boston Logan International Airport (BOS)
- Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
- Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
- Orlando International Airport (MCO)
4. Experiencing Virtual Reality in Real World
To get inspiration about a touring spot, travelers have started to use virtual reality technology. By this, the traveler gets a pre-mentioned idea of which places to travel? How will the place look like? The virtual reality apps capture more or less the exact view of the spot.
Here are some companies that are already using VR technologies.
- Everest VR – It is developed by Slfar Studios of Iceland and RVX using an advanced game engine, digital cartography, and hyper-realistic graphics. There are a few innovative ideas like God mode, Bird’s view and much more.
- Google Earth VR – In Google Earth VR, you can use zoom in and out option, the blend of aerial, satellite and 3D-mapped ‘Street View.’ It makes you feel like you are really traveling around the globe.
- Under the Canopy – It was introduced by Conservation International and Jaunt which shows the charming beauty of the Amazon Forests. You can examine the trees, wildlife, rivers, three-toed sloths 15 feet Anaconda, species of tropical butterflies and much more.
5. Canning & Screening
Economic Times has released an official document that states 84 airports are about to install body scanners replacing door frame metal detectors and hand-held scanners
Amsterdam-Schiphol, London Gatwick, London Heathrow, London Luton, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Paris-Orly, Rome-Leonardo da Vinci/Fiumicino, and Venice Marco Polo are some of the airports that already have modern scanner facilities.
Today, airports use technologies like
- Metal detector with electromagnetism – Metal detectors are either handheld devices or pass-through systems.
- Scanners passing X-rays – Based on the intensity of rays passed X-ray scanners are of two types the back-scatter x-ray scanner and the millimeter-wave scanner.
- Detectors for identifying explosives – Ion Mobility Spectrometry technology is used for identifying the explosives.
These modern scanners help travelers to spend their time without getting stressed about the scanning practices. This scanning and screening process will drastically grow in 2021.
6. Maximizing the Use of RFID Wristbands
CNET says that the monitoring team at the airports will give RFID Wristbands to the passengers to reduce human-traffic in the check-in and check-out areas.
Travelers have to carry their passport, visa, credit card, wallet, and much more. Many times, travelers lose these documents and get into unnecessary trouble. RFID Wristbands can reduce this risk as all these documents will be saved in that band.
According to the Statistica website, shipments of smart wristbands in 2019 are to exceed 40 million units worldwide.
Some of the benefits of using RFID Wristbands in airports
- Minimizes the wait time – Ticket information will be provided in the wristbands to reduce wait time
- Secures kids and elders – The RFID bands safeguard the kids and elder ones from the rush in the airport
- Payments without cash – The wristbands enable the feature of buying anything without the use of paper cash, card, mobile phones, and so on
7. Driverless Transport
Transport plays an essential part of travel. People will get frustrated if they face difficulties like waiting for the driver or rash driving. In 2021 these problems will slowely reduce via the enhancement of automated cars, buses, etc.
What are all the benefits enjoyed by a traveler while taking a driverless car?
- Increase in safety – The Lifehack website states that 1.2 million people died in traffic accidents. These accidents could decrease in the count when driverless cars brought into practice.
- Minimized emissions – According to the Lifehack website, emissions of greenhouses gases can be reduced to 94% from 87%.
Sensors, automated controls, power supplies, WiFi, GPS systems, testing, and maintenance are some of the facilities offered by such vehicles for a safe and smooth traveling experience.
8. Instagrammable Inspirations
At present, social media is turning the world upside down. It has become a part of each one’s daily life. According to the estimation of Statistica, by 2021 social media users count will increase to 3.1 billion. That’s a huge number!
Some Interesting Facts and Statistics
- According to a recent survey from Adweek, 52% of Facebook users dream about vacation even when they aren’t planning a specific trip. Among them, 69% of users refuse the proposals at the last minute because of FOMO (Fear of missing out)
- According to Olapic, 87% of Millennials on Facebook said they use social media sites for travel inspiration, while 20% use Twitter and Pinterest.
- According to WebpageFX, an estimated 72% of people post photos on social networks while traveling, and 70% of travelers update their Facebook status while vacationing.
- MDG Advertising agency has analyzed that 30% of U.S travelers turn to social media to fetch trip inspirations, 52% of Facebook users share that they are inspired by their travel stories and posts.
This is why social media is used by all age groups to get various travel inspirations. It has become the right choice for promoting the travel and tourism industry
9. Travel to Ancestral Places
Robin Hauck EF Tours says “As long as there’s been travel there’s been an appetite for visiting where our ancestors are from. What’s changed is DNA technology has become so much more accessible.”
- According to the HospitalityNet, 36% of people among the top getaway travelers are trying to take a trip to their ancestral places.
- Forbes has conveyed that 50% of Americans, 89% of Indian people, and 69% of French people have traveled at least to one country of their heritage sites.
Ancestry Tourism. That sounds strange! Soon, by 2021 it is going to become familiar among the travelers. Some of the websites and mobile apps are already providing this tourism.
- Online website Ancestry provides AncestryDNA options to take a DNA test at home with the aids and kits for knowing a person’s ethnic background.
- In countries like Ireland and Scotland, Brendan Vacations, a travel agency is ready to arrange meetings with Genealogical Experts to determine a person’s family history.
- The South African Airways gives opportunities for travelers to take a 12-day trip to advent the remote regions like Johannesburg, Drakensberg, and Umhlanga to learn about tribal influences.
- A traveler preferring for a DNA Trip might enjoy the benefits such as understanding their identity, reinforcing lost relationships and much more.
10. IoT Technologies in Accommodation
According to a survey conducted by Sita Airlines, 86% of the airline companies believe IoT will provide clear benefits over the next three years. As usual, IoT Technologies make things easier in the travel and tourism industry too.
How travelers are benefited from IoT technologies during trips?
- Status about Flights – Currently, Amazon Smart Speakers Alexa, Google Home Speakers, Fitbit Ionic Smartwatches are used in United Airlines through which a traveler can know the arrival & departure timings, the present position of the flight, and much more.
- Customized Control – Travelers can adjust room temperatures, operate T.V, utilize heaters and set alarm timing via apps. Plus, Electronic Key Cards and NFC readers’ smart locks will also make travelers stay at ease.
- Lost Baggage Tracker – The baggage claim service team will take a long time to find the stolen baggage. Optimizing the baggage tracker technology, the baggage could be found shortly.
- Robots for Maintenance – Robots are kept for room service 24/7 to maintain the rooms. They provide all the needed amenities for a traveler.
11. Personalized Travel Activity
Today, the advanced system of travel technologies has turned travelers to experience more personalized services.
Here are some of the statistics that show how personalized experiences have an impact on the travel industry.
- As per the trends report from WeAreMarketing, 69% of travelers will be more loyal to a provider that personalizes their experiences
- According to a stat from Travolution, 81% of travel respondents considered it very important for brands to provide personalized experiences to their customers
- According to Medium, ninety percent of travelers worldwide say they expect a personalized experience when they book their travel.
These are a few travel agency brands that are already ahead in the race of providing personalized and digital services to the travelers.
- EasyJet – Personalized individual package tours
- Hilton Hotels – Personalized mobile apps for iOS, Android, Microsoft devices
- Princess Cruises -Personalized wearables
- Delta Flights – Personalized account-specific messaging services with corporate clients
Therefore, to make an impression on travelers, start delivering the best-personalized travel experiences.
12. Online Booking
You might have wondered what impact does booking has on the travel industry but be vigilant to carry out the booking experiences as simple as possible.
Nowadays, travelers wish to carry everything in a simple way. Therefore, if you make the booking process a lengthy one, travelers may choose another service provider.
Phocuswright, the travel agency states that 67% of tour and activity suppliers use email or calendar to manage their traveler’s bookings. They do not have a third-party booking system.
If you make the booking experiences of the travelers simple, you can easily become the leading travel agencies. Click here to learn more about Rezdy, an online booking software.
13. Package Tours with Quality Services
For the past few decades, travel agencies are providing a service called ‘package tours’ which is highly recognized by travelers.
One of the main reasons for package tours to gain popularity within a short period is that package tours take away all the troubles that a traveler faces while planning for a trip.
You can provide the best package tours to your travelers with some of the awesome ideas listed below.
- Offer excellent transport facilities – Plane and car are preferred modes of transport for family travel, with 52% selecting their mode of transport by the fastest option, and 34% based on lowest cost (Expedia Group)
- Plan for providing many fitness package tours and trips to the travelers – One in five people plan to take health and well-being trips (Booking.com)
- Include luxurious accommodation – Roughly 35% of Millennial travelers prefer upscale and luxury hotels/resorts (Resonance Consultancy)
- Engage travelers in their preferred communication medium, channels, and platforms – 59% of families said travel websites (TripAdvisor, Expedia, etc.) were resources they used for information or inspirations for where to go and what to do, 10% said Instagram, 74% said search engines, 51% said travel review websites, 30% said social media, 12% said travel agents, and 8% said blogs (NYU)
Thus, it is clear from the above stats and facts that to become a highly advanced travel agency in 2020, you should include package tours in your marketing strategy.
Conclusion
In the travel and tourism industry, trends keep changing day by day. Therefore, one can enjoy the travel & trips only when he/she goes along with the trend. A travel agency should bring reformations depending on the trends and should also make it known to the travel aspirants via websites, mobile apps, social media, etc.
Have a look at our travel resources to get more inspiration to market your travel and tourism services. You can contact us to know more about how our web services work in promoting the travel and tourism industry.
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