In the last decade, the travel industry has experienced a dramatic shift. A slump in 2020 followed by an economic downturn and inflation had severe implications on travel businesses, but things started presuming to pre-pandemic levels in 2023. With technology advancements, increasing utilization of mobile phones, and growing spending power of people, research projects the online travel market size to reach $1915.6 million by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 9.08% from 2024 to 2030.
Booking.com, Skyscanner, WeTravel, and other travel apps found that people are now optimistic about travel and exploring new travelling destinations. However, travel businesses that leverage innovations in addition to mobile experiences will witness an increase in revenue, which is expected to show an annual growth rate of 4.42%.
That’s why travel businesses that want to be successful should connect with a reliable travel app development company that can help in rethink their priorities and develop a revolutionary tour and travel app that better suits their business needs.
Further, as a travel startup, if you want to enjoy a high conversion rate while willing to experiment with new technologies, the travel industry predictions for 2024 will help you plan accordingly.
Top 5 Predictions and trends that make your travel app future-proof
Travel apps have become necessary for travel businesses to enhance how travel services are delivered, improve user engagement, and increase sales and revenue while satisfying the users with high convenience and efficiency of planning and booking travel in a few taps.
However, more than building a simple travel app is required. It requires businesses to create a travel app that helps them stay ahead of the curve by anticipating industry changes. Here are five predictions and trends that will help you transform your travel business app:
Artificial intelligence will change the game
AI leverage in the travel industry is skyrocketing to meet the personalization needs of travellers. AI algorithms enhance users’ travel exploration experience by providing personalized suggestions based on the user’s past interactions with consultants, preferences for locations to visit, and interests in activities and events.
With NLP technology, we expect travel apps to understand better and analyze users’ reviews, feedback, and other content that provides rich insights into users’ expectations. It also helps eliminate language barriers with real-time language translation capability, allowing users to access content in a preferred language regardless of location.
Chatbot will hit the mainstream.
Chatbot integration has become common on every website and app to provide necessary assistance to users anytime, anywhere, ceaselessly. Nowadays, in addition to customer support, AI chatbots work brilliantly in conversational booking that gives a natural feel to travellers while booking travel. We expect to see chatbots guiding the users during the booking process by asking questions and suggesting options that provide a user-friendly experience.
Chatbots also assist users in navigating within the app to find specific features. Travelers can access all the app’s functionalities and avail of them. The faster response reduces waiting times and improves the operational efficiency of processes such as check-in and boarding.
VR for immersive previews
VR tech helps travelers take virtual tours of destinations, hotels, local culture, and attractions with 360-degree videos and photos even before booking, giving users a real feel for what they experience during their trip. Travelers can walk through hotel rooms before reservations, attend events or conferences, and explore local markets and shops without physically reaching the destination.
Travel apps take a step ahead in entertaining travelers with VR headsets during flights. Some travel apps partnered with airlines to use VR headsets wherein in-flight entertainment makes long-haul flights more enjoyable with immersive movies, games, and virtual experiences.
AR lets users explore more.
Augmented reality-powered travel apps help travel businesses enhance user experiences with unique features expected to become the norm. With AR capability to superimpose a virtual world over real-world objects, users can discover nearby restaurants, attractions, and shops as they point their device at different locations, receive on-screen directions for guided navigation to unfamiliar places, and access information about places in their local language.
In the years to come, we expect travel apps to allow users to walk through rooms before booking and request customization in rooms related to amenities and layout. AR-based interactive menus make dining choices easier as the menu comes to life with images, recipes, and recommendations per the travelers’ preferences for food.
Big data is making travel apps more user-centric.
The travel industry is sitting on the petabyte of data, continuously increasing with travel app development solutions. Leveraging big data technology in travel apps offers a range of benefits to travel businesses in improving the services and user experience. Big data provides insights into competitive intelligence that helps travel businesses make data-driven pricing decisions, offers, and loyalty programs.
As personalization becomes a cardinal aspect of travel app development, big data enables personalized recommendations that engage travelers. Pricing analysis in sync with demand forecasting using big data technology allows travel apps to provide users valuable insights into the best times to book flights, hotels, and other travel services, which helps them save money.
Closing Thoughts
Every year, the mobile landscape significantly transforms the diverse industry verticals with continuous technology innovations. The travel industry is no exception. Following the latest technology trends and predictions will help travel business apps meet the needs of modern travelers and improve operational efficiency.
So, as a travel entrepreneur, knowing the cost of building a travel app cutomized for your tour and travel business will be top priority. Especially for those who want to get a mobile app built for their travel business.
If you already have a travel app, an advanced mobile solution is important to stay relevant and stand out from the competition. So, embrace AI, ML, AR, VR, NLP, chatbot, and big data technologies and explore use cases to surpass users’ expectations and increase conversions. Don’t hang fire! Partner with us for required consultation and step up the travel app with emerging technologies and trends adoption.
