Get set to the new trend of travelling

Tourism trends are in for a huge change, heavily influenced by the concerns and mores of the customer base. Of course, the customer experience has always been central to the tourist industry.

With new technologies and an ever-broadening array of options for tourists, enhancing the customer experience has never been more vital. In the final analysis, customer experience is what will make or break your business. Everything from the web interface where your clients book their trips to the very last day of their journey needs to be as enjoyable as possible.

As a new generation becomes increasingly relevant in the marketplace, the ideals driving their purchasing decisions create new tourism trends. Eco travel is just one example of these tourism trends, reflecting a growing concern among today’s travellers for ethical and sustainable tourism options. Eco travel includes simple changes, such as the availability of carbon credits when booking a flight or the option to rent an electric instead of a conventional vehicle.

There are a variety of tourism trends that are based on more general changes in consumer behaviour, like the need for healthy and organic food and drinks, sustainability, personalised service, the rising demand for digitalisation and the use of technology. With home smart speakers growing in popularity, as well as mobile assistants like Siri, Google Assistant and Bixby, more and more tourism customers are turning to voice search.

Virtual reality is another of the major tourism trends disrupting the industry and capitalising on the technology can give you an edge over rivals who have not yet adopted it. Through online VR tours, customers can experience hotel interiors, restaurant interiors, outdoor tourist attractions and more, all from their home. Most modern VR tours are also web-based, meaning they can be viewed through any mainstream web browser.

Many customers now book their travel and accommodation with the help of Internet chatbots, specifically tailored AI who can handle queries and assist customers with useful information when human operators are unavailable.

You’re probably familiar with those ads that pop up on social media and certain other websites, ads related to things you’ve looked at or purchased online.

One of the more eye-catching examples of these particular tourism trends is Connie, the Hilton Hotel chain’s robot concierge. Other hotels have also got in on the robot-staff trends, installing interactive robots to handle certain reception duties or even having them serve food and drink to visitors.

This kind of novelty application, however, is far from the only one.

Artificial Intelligence is becoming increasingly important, with AI helping to personalise the experience of finding and booking tours and trips. AI is also increasingly valuable in contexts such as smart hotel rooms, identifying the likely needs of guests and fine-tuning the environment and services to fit the guest’s needs and preferences.

Artificial Intelligence is finding applications everywhere, from customer service to security. Future AI tourism trends to watch out for might include self-driving vehicles and virtual guides for tourism.

Get set to the new trend of travelling...

C K

The writer is an international adviser