Technological trends in tourism is a reality that creates new business models and solutions that benefit both stakeholders and consumers. The reversal of these trends will allow the tourism sector to rebound after the effects of the health contingency.
According to figures from the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), travel in 2020 decreased between 60% to 80% after travel restrictions along with less economic dynamism.
Technological advances are the result of increased digitization of consumers, in particular generations such as millennials and zillennials. It also responds to the need to implement health and safety measures after the pandemic.
From tailor-made travel to digital tourism
For millennial and Gen Z travelers, technology plays an essential role when traveling. The use of the smartphone in recent years has grown to such a degree that it is an extension of the consumer. One of the main technological trends in tourism.
In such a way that the cell phone is now a tourist guide, a tool to plan your trips, personalize them and have a locator of new places to visit.
In a travel study conducted by Google, 74% of travelers admitted that their trips are planned online. As for the rest (13%) prefer to use travel agencies to prepare them.
Consumers’ preference to stay connected through their devices is one of the main factors transforming the industry.
For the new generations, they enjoy technology in their day to day. For them, it is important to stay connected through social networks, applications, blogs and other tools that enhance their experience as travelers.
This context causes more actors in the sector to invest in technological trends and services that allow travelers to interact through devices.
Technological trends that impact tourism
The increased use of mobile devices transforms the way consumers interact with their brands. With the incursion of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, they will facilitate better care and service for their consumers.
In this new context, for players in the tourism sector, investment in technology to win consumer loyalty is an alternative to offer personalized trips.
According to the Grow Turismo agency, these are the most important technological trends in tourism for the sector:
Virtual assistants
The increased use of artificial intelligence applications has allowed consumers to interact in a digital environment. Currently, devices such as Alexa or Siri will facilitate an interactive and personalized experience when traveling. With programs like Watson from IBM, you can create an itinerary with the best places to visit according to your preferences.
Big Data
Data science and the opportunity it offers to players in this sector to learn about new consumer preferences and behaviors will be gold. The application of the data as frequent expenses, reasons for the trip, will improve the segmentation of the types of travelers that will allow increased efficiency in the services and products of the sector.
5G connection
Technology in tourism becomes the protagonist. For travelers, it will be vital in their experience to be omnipresent and have a connection to multiple smart devices in a fast, secure and stable way to share their trips. Additionally, with 5G connectivity, they can choose alternatives such as augmented reality when traveling.
Facial recognition
Easy recognition technology will be one of the main consumer security tools. Biometric identification will be part of the routine when checking in, taking a flight or even paying for a service in a tourist destination. Today, there are applications that take fingerprint recognition or facial recognition to enter an app from a financial institution.
Blockchain
This technology associated with financial services and security seeks to enter sectors such as tourism to provide a better consumer experience. The blockchain application will be useful to provide greater data security and when identifying travelers at points such as airports, hotels, tourist centers, among others.
Trends that facilitate consumer interaction, communication channels and security will be crucial to gain ground in this sector. Thus, the actors that invest in these trends will be those that manage to differentiate themselves in a sector with a growing supply.
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