Travel Planning
The latest eTravel Benchmark study from eDigitalResearch reveals that online travel websites are still failing to deliver adequate customer service. 43 out of the 47 websites reviewed have been affected by 'satisfactory', 'poor' or 'very poor' customer service scores, with the airlines sector failing to answer over 51% of all email queries.
More online travel sites are looking to reduce traffic through their customer service departments by increasing the amount of information they put on their websites. However, as holidays are the single biggest annual purchase for many, people tend to rely on customer service contact to give them confidence in the booking process. A poor experience here will ultimately result in customers retracting their business.
While it is fair to acknowledge that the recent ash cloud will have impacted results to an extent, the difference in ranking for those that scored well for customer service and those that didn't is massive, clearly indicating the potential for market differentiation. Industry best-practice came from Booking.com, who answered 100% of emails, 60% of which received a response within six hours.
Premier Inn beat Booking.com to claim the overall top spot, its second consecutive leading score. Scoring 82.8% (weighted average across all benchmark measures), Premier Inn was rated highly from good first impressions through to its easy to use search function, overall booking process and customer service.
However, its high score wasn't reflected across the hotel chains sector, with this sector being among the worst performers alongside online travel agents.
While the travel industry is marginally closing the gap with the retail sector, the best performer across multiple industry sectors, there is still a long way to go given the weaker customer service scores. There is more than 10% separating the retail and travel sectors overall with regards to customer service.
(Travelindustrywire.com, July 2010)
Experian Hitwise has revealed the most popular travel websites in the UK for the week ending June 19 2010 in the categories Agencies; Destinations and Accommodation; Airlines and travel search terms.
Top Agency websites in the UK for the week ending June 19 2010 by % of visits:
1. Thomson (www.thomson.co.uk): 8.53% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Expedia.co.uk (www.expedia.co.uk): 7.53% (2nd)
3. Thomas Cook (www.thomascook.com): 5.39% (3rd)
Top Destinations and Accommodation websites in the UK for the week ending June 19 2010 by % of visits:
1. Tripadvisor.co.uk (www.tripadvisor.co.uk): 8.03% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Booking.com (www.booking.com): 4.63% (2nd)
3. LateRooms.com (www.laterooms.com): 3.10% (3rd)
Top Airline websites in the UK for the week ending June 19 2010 by % of visits:
1. easyJet.com (www.easyjet.com): 20.57% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Ryanair (www.ryanair.com): 17.95% (2nd)
3. British Airways (www.britishairways.com): 8.87% (3rd)
Top travel search terms in the UK for the week ending June 19 2010 by % of clicks:
1. google maps: 0.96% (previously ranked 1st)
2. ryanair: 0.86% (2nd)
3. easyjet: 0.78% (3rd)
(tnooz - talking travel tech, June 2010)
VisitBritain, the national tourism agency, has launched a new website that gives customers from around the world a unique opportunity to be inspired to visit Britain. The site, in development for a year, is a key part of VisitBritain's digital strategy using social media, online content and mobile to enthuse potential visitors to Britain.
VisitBritain.com will be its main platform for communicating with its customers, focusing on serving up dynamic and personalised content tailored to the country the visitor comes from and written in their own language.
With 95% user generated image content throughout, the new version of visitbritain.com will provide an immersive, multilingual online experience, including the latest social media platforms and magazine-style travel features.
VisitBritain recognises that social media has become crucial in the way people decide which holiday to go on, and so syndication and aggregation are enabled within the site so that all content is available across a wide range of travel sites and blogs.
(eyefortravel, June 2010)
VisitBritain has launched a new British Film Location app across all smart phones, including the iPhone. This coincided with the gala screening of Robin Hood in Nottingham. The new app includes a Google maps and Facebook integration system so users can find their favourite film locations, take a picture, and then post it on their social networking sites.
The app can be downloaded at http://visitbritain.com/robinhood. (VisitBritain eNews - Issue 45, 12 May 2010, May 2010)
VisitBritain has also launched their corporate Twitter account, @VisitBritainBiz. VisitBritain will provide regular tweets on the latest research and statistics, press/PR activities, industry events and opportunities. (VisitBritain eNews - Issue 45, 12 May 2010 and VisitBritain eNews - Issue 46, 26 May 2010, May 2010)
People in the UK searched for nearly 60,000 distinct search terms containing the word ‘luxury' over the 12 weeks ending 15/05/2010, according to Hitwise Intelligence. The company was expecting the list to be dominated by fashion related terms, but was surprised to see that three quarters of the top 20 terms were actually travel related, with ‘luxury holidays', ‘luxury cottages', ‘luxury hotels uk' and ‘luxury hotels' taking the top four places.
Although many of the people searching for luxury travel products end up on mainstream travel sites, specialist luxury travel sites do exist. They only account for a tiny proportion of total UK internet visits to travel websites (less than 1%), but the proportion has been gradually increasing over the three years. (HOTELMARKETING.COM, May 2010)
Young people would rather sightsee from the comfort of their own homes than actually visiting other places, according to "The Future of Free Time" report commissioned by lastminute.com. The report says that young people are more likely to play computer games and indulge in social networking than enjoy leisure activities outside.
The report also indicates that perhaps worryingly, a new generation will reject travel altogether in favour of gaming, social networking and 'always on' media. The report worries that as in-home leisure is becoming more engaging, a group of young people will emerge who do not go out any more.
Futurologist Dr. Ian Yeoman reported that what they've seen in the last ten years is young people spending more time now on in-home entertainment and technology rather than travelling the world.
Patrick Hoffstetter, vice president at lastminute.com, believes that we all have a natural inclination to travel and explore, but the travel industry must remain innovative and embrace technology to remain exciting for a younger generation. In the future, in-home games will expand and compete more intensely with out-of-home free time.
The report concluded young people found out-of-home activity too "action poor". (travelmole, May 2010)
Online travel companies need to invest in consumer engagement to match retail expectations, according to the latest eTravel Benchmark Study from eDigitalResearch. The study featured online mystery shoppers to evaluate the end-to-end customer experience of 45 leading travel websites.
Customer service was the lowest performing category in the study. Low cost airlines were among the poorest performers, displaying basic booking sites supported by minimal human contact, while cruise operators and cross-channel ferries scored highly for customer service with customer queries dealt with quickly and effectively.
The highest rating was 80.1% (weighted average across all key customer journey measures) for Premier Inn, a new entrant into the Benchmark study with the inclusion of hotels. Premier Inn scored highly for first impressions, its easy and precise search function and overall booking process, but was weaker at initial research and telephone contact, with customers preferring more information and a quicker human response. Despite it being the best overall travel performer, its rating was still 7% below that of the highest scoring online retail brand, M&S.
Results of the study indicate that online travel organisations need to better engage with their customers in order to improve and match the performance of other sectors like the retail sector, according to Lloyd Viney, associate director of eDigitalResearch.
The biggest climbers from the last Benchmark study in November 2009 were Monarch and Eurotunnel, which both climbed 18 places. Monarch has made major improvements to its customer service with its telephone and email services rated 25% higher than the previous study. Eurotunnel has invested more in the front-end with large improvements noted for first impressions and initial research.
Online travel agents provided best practice in website performance, combining functionality with engaging content and using customer reviews to provide additional confidence in holiday selection. Virgin Holidays came second overall due to a good balance between informative content and inspirational imagery, backed up by a good customer star rating system.
Despite the overall improvements in website functionality, the online travel sector still has some way to go to catch the retail sector, which is the best cross-sector performer. While customer service is a key element that will help to close the gap, travel companies also need to better engage their customers.
The leading retailers are capturing and using consumer opinion to their advantage via online communities and product reviews. This is where online travel brands can gain ground, as this will dictate where further investment is needed, according to Viney. (eyefortravel, April 2010)
Holidaymakers are now booking trips based on online travel reviews rather than glossy publications, according to a survey conducted by TotalMedia, a UK-based media planning and buying agency.
Findings of the survey highlight that the traditional glossy brochure was expensive to produce and the travel industry has embraced e-commerce as a way of making the booking process far more cost effective.
Reviews written by strangers on independent websites such as TripAdvisor, search results on Google and word of mouth advice from family and colleagues are more influential than brochures, advertising, media reviews and advice from travel agents when it comes to booking holidays.
The survey of 1,375 consumers found that:
- About 25% now used online reviews by strangers to determine their travel plans
- 13% used travel programmes
- 11% used magazines and newspaper supplements.
The survey also found that almost half of travellers over 45 are using websites to recommend or warn fellow travellers by posting a review of their travel experiences online. Surprisingly, the age group least likely to use the internet to exchange views on holiday destinations were the "digital natives", 16 to 24 year olds, which means that middle age Britons, are shaping our views of the best hotels and holiday destinations at home and abroad. (See article on EyeForTravel and article on eTN eTurboNews Global Travel Industry News, March 2010)
The IMRG-Hitwise Hot Shops list provides a unique insight into the top 50 UK e-retailers. The sixteenth quarterly edition, based on February 2010 rankings, saw a number of travel sites move up the rankings.
It's steady again at the top of the latest Hot Shops List, with the leading four brands retaining their dominance of the UK online shopping scene: Amazon.co.uk (1), Argos (2), Play (3) & Apple Computer (4). Amazon.com (5), Tesco (6) & John Lewis (8) all moved up one place with Easyjet (10) entering the top 10 by moving up 2 places. Marks & Spencer (7) fell two places and Next (9) dropped a single place.
The biggest movers this quarter were: Thomas Cook (15) moving up 31 positions, British Airways (31) moved up eleven places, The Trainline (24) and Thomson Holidays (11) both climbed ten.
Robin Goad from Experian Hitwise comments that with Christmas and sales shopping mostly out of the way and snow covering much of the country, during January British consumers turned their attention to planning and booking their summer holidays. Seven travel companies moved up the rankings, and easyJet re-entered the top 10. The big travel agencies did particularly well, with Thomas Cook moving 31 positions to 15th and Thomson Holidays 10 positions to 11th, one ahead of Expedia. There was minimal movement elsewhere in the top 10 and the top four remain unchanged. (Hitwise United Kingdom Newsletter - March 2010, March 2010)
An interactive online movie has been created to encourage more visitors to Blackpool. Users can upload their favourite pictures to The Movie's microsite www.blackpoolthemovie.com and automatically share their virtual adventure with friends and family online.
Blackpool: The Movie has been designed by Lancashire and Blackpool Tourist Board to encourage potential holidaymakers to visit the resort and to maximize internet chatter on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and Youtube.
The trailer provides a tour of Blackpool's top attractions accompanied by a voiceover by the X Factor's Peter Dickson, allowing them to experience their family snaps transformed into a truly personal Blackpool trailer. By entering their family name and home town, users will see their personal details become an integral part of the trailer, appearing on billboards, posters and lighting up the sky alongside a pyrotechnic firework display. All entries will be entered into a prize draw and for one family to win annual passes to Blackpool attractions.
Mike Wilkinson of Lancashire Tourist Board said that Blackpool has made a name for itself as a destination which uses leading-edge technology to encourage tourists to visit Blackpool and Blackpool: The Movie marks an exciting venture into the new world of virtual tourism. (Travelmole, March 2010)
Britain's national tourism agency, VisitBritain has partnered with FindsYou.com, the UK-based online ‘find engine'. From April 2010, the FindsYou.com service will be available to VisitBritain users as part of the product search facility on the website www.visitbritain.com.
The new find engine allows accommodation seekers to post a ‘wanted' advert on the site, outlining exactly what they are looking for. FindsYou.com then matches the request with suitable accommodation providers who are then able to contact the user directly.
For the first six months, accommodation providers are being offered the service completely free of charge.
FindsYou.com CEO Guy Walker indiacted that their recent research shows that although the majority of people use the internet to source accommodation, they're increasingly disillusioned with faceless booking systems. The Findsyou.com service re-introduces the personal contact that most customers prefer. (EyeForTravel, February 2010)
Google UK has seen stronger growth in travel searches in January 2010 than in January 2009, according to the search engine reporting a 21% increase in queries and a 7% increase in clicks.
Google UK has also reported branded holiday queries such as ‘Thomas Cook holidays in Turkey' are growing at double the rate of non-branded. The trend demonstrates how consumers are looking for the reassurance and security of long-standing brands when looking to spend their holiday money.
Growth rates for luxury travel queries have caught up with budget travel terms in the past year, according to the figures. (HOTELMARKETING.COM, February 2010)
VisitBritain, the national tourism agency, announced a free British Film Location App for iPhone and iPod touch is now available from the App Store. The app allows iPhone and iPod touch users to discover and photograph the most iconic British film locations in cinematic history. It also shows the most famous film scenes on Google maps and allows users to search by film title.
Users can plan an entire British film tour from the app, whether they're looking for Harry Potter's Hogwarts or one of the Braveheart battlefields. Each film location is accompanied by a detailed synopsis and description of how to find it.
VisitBritain has harnessed the power of films to enthuse visitors from around the world to explore Britain for many years. The agency's research indicates that 40% of potential visitors would be very likely to visit places they have seen in films or on TV.
The Great British Film Location App is available for free from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at http://itunes.apple.com/app/british-film-locations/id341442910?mt=8.
The launch is part of VisitBritain's digital campaign around the forthcoming Sherlock Homes movie supported by a dedicated microsite. The Sherlock Holmes movie, starring Robert Downey Jr and directed by Guy Ritchie premiered in London on December 14 2009. (VisitBritain eNews - 6 January 2010, January 2010)
Building on their partnership, VisitBritain are working with mobiEXPLORE to develop a series of individual "Destination Guides" providing more in-depth information on all major UK destinations for the mobile phone carrying visitor.
The objective of mobiEXPLORE Mobile Destination Guides are to:
- Attract visitors to the UK by going mobile and taking a next step in digital marketing
- Stimulate visitor's expenditure by providing fingertip access on information on where they are, what can they see and do, and where can they spend money.
Features of the Mobile Destination Guides include:
- Free for the end-user, with rich content and useful features
- Content features: Interactive map of the destination, restaurant and accommodation listings, sights and attractions, updated local events and weather forecast
- The basic package is available in English, with optional add-on's for additional languages
- Includes the development of embedded application for Smartphones (iPhone, Symbian, Windows Mobile, Blackberry) and a WAP portal.
(VisitBritain eNews - 9 December 2009, December 2009)
The British national tourism agency, VisitBritain was awarded the accolade of World's Leading Tourism Authority Website at the World Travel Awards 2009. The prestigious award was voted for by travel agents worldwide.
Already three times winner of World's Leading Tourism Authority Internet Site, VisitBritain.com offers a seamless blend of web 2.0 technology, inspirational content and innovative social media integration. This international tourism website publishes a record 57 sites in 41 countries, translated into 21 languages and has an estimated 17 million visitors per year.
VisitBritain.com continues to set the benchmark for tourism websites by launching its next generation of the site due for release in April 2010. The new-look VisitBritain website will feature unique customised content, cutting-edge social media tools and will aim to attract over 20 million visits. Additionally, through developing innovative content syndication applications on the site, it is aiming to attract a further 20 million visits to its content via high-profile online portals such as Yahoo, Yell.com, Google, YouTube, and Facebook, and also through up-and-coming niche travel sites such as Joobili and Zoover. (VisitBritain eNews, November 2009)
Tourist destination VisitBrighton hopes to become the "First Photosynth City" as its use of Microsoft's cutting-edge technology gathers pace. New Mind, the destination management supplier for Brighton, has incorporated Photosynth, a new feature of Microsoft's Bing Maps for Enterprise, into its Destination Management System (DMS). Photosynth allows users to take a selection of photos depicting a scene or object and ‘automagically' ‘stitch' them all together to make an interactive 3D experience to share on the web.
With visitors to the VisitBrighton site already exploring synths of popular landmarks including Brighton Pier and the Royal Pavilion - tourism bosses are now encouraging local accommodation providers, restaurants and attractions to seize the opportunity to create their own synths and ‘bring their businesses to life'. (TravelDailyNews, July 2009)
The online travel industry is lagging behind other sectors when it comes to website engagement and customer service, according to the first eTravel Benchmark survey by eDigitalResearch. As part of this survey, eDigitalResearch compared 18 ferry, cruise and airline websites in seven key areas ranging from first impressions to the search and booking process.
When measured using the net promoter score to find out which are most likely to be recommended through word of mouth, travel companies achieved an average score of 5. In other recent eDigitalResearch benchmarking studies, the retail sector scored 27, finance 18 and car manufacturing 7.
The survey finds that the online travel sector is clearly lagging behind. Overall, ferry operators fared better in the survey with P&O Ferries emerging as the top performer and Stena Line second. Airlines, however, were let down by poor first impressions and disappointing customer service. When measured on telephone customer service, only British Airways made it into the top 10 rankings, rated seventh, and just two airlines (Virgin Atlantic and BA) scored highly enough to make the top 10 for email customer service.
The results indicate that online travel sites need to look beyond the ‘wow' factor and work harder at improving the entire end-to-end website experience, according to eDigitalResearch. The company indicated that although there are clear leaders in certain categories, there is not one operator who has managed to tick all the boxes consistently.
Based on overall performance, the 18 websites were ranked as follows, with their overall score indicated:
- P&O Ferries: 86.1%
- StenaLine: 84.9%
- Princess Cruises: 84.7%
- Thomson Flights: 84.3%
- P&O Cruises: 84.1%
- Brittany Ferries: 83.3%
- British Airways: 81.8%
- SeaFrance: 81.3%
- Virgin Atlantic: 79.6%
- Royal Caribbean Cruises: 79.4%
- easyJet: 78.0%
- Cunard: 77.3%
- Fred Olsen Cruises: 77.0%
- Ryanair: 76.9%
- bmibaby: 76.3%
- Celebrity Cruises: 75.0%
- Monarch: 74.0%
- Eurotunnel: 68.2%
The eTravel Benchmark survey will be repeated in September. (Travelmole, July 2009)
National tourism agency, VisitBritain, is backing an interactive tourism tour ‘Edge of Britain' that will use multimedia techniques and social media channels to bring to life destinations around the coastline of Britain.
South African Scott Ramsay began his tour of the ‘Edge of Britain' tour on Sunday 12 July 2009, heading ‘off the beaten track' until 14 August 2009 and showing other international visitors that there's more to Britain than just London and other city destinations.
Starting and finishing in Peacehaven on the south coast, Scott is visiting coastal resorts, some better known than others. His itinerary of nearly 30 locations includes Bournemouth, Penzance, Mousehole, Porthmadog, Blackpool, Kyle of Lochalsh, John O'Groats, Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Dover and finally back to Peacehaven five weeks later. As well as featuring excerpts from his tour on visitbritain.com/edgeofbritain, VisitBritain is encouraging people to recommend places and sights for Scott to enjoy on his trip via his blog edgeofbritain.blogspot.com.
His blog will highlight the secret spots, the best attractions, places to eat and drink, and activities that offer the best value for money using video, photographs, tweets and regular posts.
Justin Reid, head of online marketing for VisitBritain said that in many ways Scott is a first-time visitor to much of Britain and VisitBritain was only too happy to support Scott with tourist information and a platform for his ‘Edge of Britain' tour. The information that Scott posts on his blog will enable VisitBritain to showcase Britain's wonderful coastal destinations. Mr Reid believes that the rise of social media, user-generated content and peer-to-peer forums can turn undiscovered destinations into the latest getaway hotspot. (TravelDailyNews, July 2009)
Welcome to Yorkshire wins the TravelMole 2009 Web Awards for the tourist board category. Welcome to Yorkshire was this year's winner in the tourist board category. Other tourist boards shortlisted included VisitLancashire, Cumbria Golakes and VisitOxford.
TravelMole Web Awards 2009 - Winners:
- Tourist board category: Welcome to Yorkshire
- Accommodation category: Trivago
- Airline category: bmi
- Car rental category: Holiday autos trade
- Cruise-Ferry-Rail operator category: P&O Cruises
- Holiday add-ons category: IdeasForTheKids.com
- Hotel Group category: Warner Leisure Hotels
- Mobile Technology category: streamthru.com
- Recruitment and Training category: TravelUni
- Responsible tourism category: Go Ape
- Tour operator category: Selective Asia
- Travel agent category: Greenbee.com
- Travel blog category: www.SpottedbyLocals.com
- Video category: The Egerton House Hotel
- Web 2.0 category: World Reviewer
(Travelmole, June 2009)
Travel Social Media specialist Digital Visitor is VisitBritain's official social media solution. The two organisations are working in partnership to roll out the platform to regional and destination tourist boards all across the country.
Digital Visitor has been shortlisted for an online travel award alongside industry giants such as Air France, Lastminute.com and Kuoni in the ‘Best Online Application' category at this year's Travolution Awards. Since its launch a year ago, Visitor Review has gained valuable recognition within the leisure and tourism industry and is used by numerous visitor attractions, hotels and tourism agencies. (EyeForTravel, June 2009)
Travel companies are sliding down the Hitwise list of the top 100 performing websites in the UK, with Thomson the exception. According to May 2009 figures, based on the number of visits to a company's website, travel companies all came lower in the list than they did three years ago.
Hitwise indicated that Thomson was the only travel company to increase its position. Budget hotel chain Travelodge and rail booking website, The Trainline, have also moved up the list.
Hitwise indicates that the one thing that they are seeing in search behaviour is that people are a lot more price conscious and are looking for package holidays, rather than putting together the components themselves. Hitwise said travel companies are also performing worse in the list because they are being over taken by other sectors. The travel sector was an early adopter of the internet and for a while travel companies were punching above their weight, but now other retailers, particularly high street retailers, are over taking them.
British Airways fell most dramatically in the latest list, falling from 11th position in 2007, to 19th in 2008 and then to 43rd in 2009. In general, airlines have seen visits drop by 20% while coach and train companies are up 4%. Budget airlines are holding up the best, with Easyjet and Ryanair hovering around the same levels as in previous years. Easyjet has moved from 8th to 10th then to 11th in the last three years, while Ryanair has gone from 9th to 14th to 12th this year. Thomas Cook has also dropped down the list, from 18th three years ago to 30th today. (Travelmole, May 2009)
Times Online recommend its top 100 travel websites in 2009 on the basis of their content, design, ease of use, navigability and fulfilment, and split them into categories for easy accessibility. The categories include:
Best websites for holiday inspiration:
- www.straightuptraveler.com
- www.101holidays.co.uk
- www.worldreviewer.com
- www.aito.co.uk
- www.flickr.com
- www.whatsonwhen.com
- www.stanfords.co.uk
- www.timeout.com
- www.visitbritain.co.uk
- www.economist.co.uk/businesstravel
- www.goodbeachguide.co.uk
Websites giving info on where not to go: www.fco.gov.uk/travel; www.comebackalive.com; www.travelwatchdog.com.
Best websites for booking flights:
- www.kayak.co.uk
- www.cheapflights.co.uk
- www.skyscanner.net
- www.travelsupermarket.com
- www.dohop.com
- www.alternativeairlines.com
- www.moneysavingexpert.com/flightchecker
- www.netflights.com
Flight essentials: www.flightstats.co.uk; www.oag.com; www.airlinequality.com; www.airlinemeals.net; www.seatguru.com; www.seatplans.com; www.flymycase.com; www.firstluggage.com.
Best travel blogs and communities:
- Cities: www.gridskipper.com; www.spottedbylocals.com
- Rants: www.travel-rants.com
- Food: www.seriousseats.com; www.chowhound.com
- Communities: www.dopplr.com; www.pprune.org; http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com; www.wayn.com; www.travelblog.org; www.travelpod.com; www.igougo.com; www.gumtree.co.uk; www.carshare.com; www.car-pool.co.uk.
Best websites for booking places to stay:
- Find your perfect room: www.tripadvisor.co.uk; www.goodhotelguide.com; www.i-escape.com; www.travelintelligence.com; www.mrandmrssmith.com; www.sawdays.co.uk; www.tablethotels.com; www.chicretreats.com; www.holiday-rentals.co.uk; www.english-country-cottages.co.uk.
- Specialists: www.bienvenue-a-la-ferme.com/en; www.rarebits.co.uk; www.japaneseguesthouses.com; www.boutiquesrilanka.com; www.parador.es; www.rusticae.es; www.agriturismo.com/englisch.htm.
- Bargain rooms: www.hostelbookers.com; www.hostelworld.com; www.europefamoushostels.com; www.hostelz.com; www.hostels.com; www.couchsurfing.com; www.sleepinginairports.net; www.roomauction.com; www.laterooms.com; www.priceline.co.uk; www.homebase-hols.com; www.homelink.org.uk.
Best websites for holiday bargains:
- www.travelsupermarket.co.uk
- www.travelzoo.co.uk
- www.expedia.co.uk
- www.codes.co.uk
- www.vouchercodes.co.uk.
Best websites for holiday essentials:
- Maps: http://masp.google.com; www.googleearth.com
- Weather: www.metcheck.com; www.weather2travel.com
- Flying with kids: www.babygoes2.com; www.family-travel.co.uk; www.mumsnet.com.
- Disabled travellers: www.holidayaccessdirect.com; www.tourismforall.org.uk.
- Staying in touch: www.pc2paper.co.uk; www.ppme.co.uk
- Red tape and essentials: www.biba.org.uk; www.ehic.org.uk; www.climatecare.org
- Health: www.who.int/en/; www.travelturtle.com.
Best road, rail, ferry and cruise websites:
- Road: www.carrentals.co.uk; http://insurance4carhire.com; www.nationalexpress.com; www.gotobus.com/ www.transportdirect.info.
- Rail: www.seat61.com; www.nationalrail.co.uk; www.thetrainline.com; www.deutsche-bahn.co.uk; www.raileurope.co.uk.
- Cruise: www.cruisecritic.co.uk
- Ferry: www.sailanddrive.com
Best websites for specialist travel:
- www.ramblers.org.uk
- www.nationaltrail.co.uk
- www.factivities.co.uk
- www.companions2travel.co.uk
- www.singulartravel.co.uk
- www.friendshiptravel.com
- www.solosholidays.co.uk
- www.blacktomato.co.uk
- www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure
- www.skiclub.co.uk
- www.natives.co.uk
- www.welove2ski.com
- www.snowboardclub.co.uk
- www.gapyear.com
- www.yearoutgroup.org
- www.wwoof.org
- www.bootsnall.com
- www.greentraveller.co.uk
- http://gogreentravelgreen.com.
(HOTELMARKETING.COM, March 2009)
The deepening recession is significantly changing when, how and where the British are booking their summer holidays, according to a poll by online travel search site Kayak.co.uk of 1,000 UK users.
The study found that 85% still expect to travel abroad this year. The majority (92%) plan to go online to find the best prices for air fares, hotels and car rental, believing the best deals are found on the web. But fewer than 1% of respondents (0.8%) will turn to high street travel agents for advice on stretching summer budgets.
Almost three-quarters of respondents (73%) plan to take two or less holidays this year. Staying in budget (32%) is a bigger concern than having fun (24%) or protecting the environment (1.5%).
Some of the most popular ways people aim to save cash include:
- Choosing a destination in off-season to take advantage of lower prices (66%)
- Swapping European strongholds like Spain for better value alternative destinations such as South Africa, Iceland, Thailand and Malaysia (65%)
- Staying with friends or relatives (46%)
- Trading down the number of stars on the hotel (42%)
But more than half (59.7%) of respondents would happily pay an additional £50 in order to catch a flight from their closest airport. (TravelMole , March 2009)
VisitBritain have launched a dedicated visitor review website where visitors can read and view comments, photos and videos of Britain destinations, attractions, events etc submitted by other travellers. Currently linked from the homepage of visitbritain.com, the site is being further developed to integrate more seamlessly with the VisitBritain website, gather content placed on regional tourist board review websites, and distribute the reviews to destination guides. (VisitBritain News - Issue 14, February 2009)
Online searches for flights during the week after Christmas dropped by 42% compared to the previous year. According to Hitwise, a division of Experian, the week ending January 3 saw a 42% decline in web searches by UK internet users for flights compared with the same week last year. Traffic to travel websites fell by 16% in the same period. (EyeforTravel, January 2009)
UK internet searches for flights have plunged by 42% over the last 12 months, according to latest Hitwise figures. The economic downturn means that consumers are being more cautious when booking flights abroad this year, according to the organisation.
As a result of the weak pound, people are switching from holidays in the eurozone or US and considering cheaper destinations such as Turkey and North Africa, or considering taking their holidays at home.
Online searches for flights increased by 58% between the weeks ending December 27 and January 3. But they were down by 42.4% when compared with the equivalent post-Christmas week last year - the week ending January 5, 2008. Hitwise said. Flights to the US suffered the biggest annual fall in searches of 52.2%.
Searches for flights to countries that use the euro fell by 44.8%. Meanwhile searches for flights to the UK and the rest of the world also fell, but at a smaller rate. There have been big falls in searches for flights to all of the most popular European holiday destinations over the last 12 months: France is down 45.4%, Spain 42.8%, Portugal 41.7% and Italy 41.2%.
Australia remains the most popular non-euro/dollar destination, accounting for almost a quarter of all searches for flights to destinations outside of the UK, US and eurozone.
Searches for flights to Australia have fallen by 32.85% over the last 12 months, but this is at a lower rate than for many other destinations.
Only five destinations saw an increase in flight searches over the last 12 months: Norway, Denmark, Brazil, Morocco and Cuba.
Turkey saw the smallest decline in flight searches over the last 12 months - a fall of 24.6% compared with an average of 42.4% for all destinations. Turkey also overtook Canada and Thailand to become the second most popular non-euro/dollar destination for British tourists.
Change in UK internet searches for flights to popular destinations between 05/01/08 and 03/01/09:
- Turkey: -24.6%
- Dubai: -27.1%
- Thailand: -32.2%
- Australia: -32.8%
- South Africa: -32.9%
- Caribbean: -34.6%
- Italy: -41.2%
- Portugal: -41.7%
- Spain: -42.8%
- France: -45.4%
Destinations with the biggest increase (or smallest decrease) in flight searches between 05/01/08 and 03/01/09:
1. Norway +30.9%
2. Denmark +20.3%
3. Brazil +19.5%
4. Morocco +2.1%
5. Cuba +1.2%
6. Kenya -7.8%
7. India -12.7%
8. China -12.8%
9. Hungary -13.7%
10. Singapore -14.6%
(Travelmole January 2009)
Travel Booking
Over a third (36%) of UK adults now prefer to book holidays online or by email, making it now as popular as booking in person, according to Ofcom's Media Literacy reports, which reveal the UK's media consumption habits and attitudes. (Ofcom, May 2010)
Online travel sales dropped by 9% in the UK during the month of April 2010, according to the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index. While sales increased year-on-year by 5%, this growth is lower than the market average (13%). After recording yearly growth in double figures during February and March, this may be an early indication of the impact of the volcanic ash cloud on the travel industry, according to the Sales Index.
The recession cost the UK travel industry £3.7 billion in 2009 and it looks like the sector will face further difficulties in 2010. (HOTELMARKETING.COM, May 2010)
Following the disruption caused by an Icelandic volcano eruption in April 2010, the UK travel industry's marginal recovery could be in jeopardy, according t o a report, commissioned by Kelkoo and conducted by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), covering 12 countries in Europe with important markets, comprising the UK, France, Germany, Benelux, Italy, Spain, Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Finland and Poland.
Nonetheless, the online travel sector is thought to be better equipped to deal with the financial impact of the disruption and will continue to buck industry growth trends this year, according to the European Travel Index. According to the study, the UK has the highest online travel expenditure in Europe and the sector is solidly on course to sustain its recession-busting performance throughout 2010, with spending projected to rise by £2 billion this year from £15.6 billion to £17.6 billion compared to £13.2 billion in 2008 - a 33% increase over the past two years.
Over the same period, overall travel sales will have decreased by -6.4% from £43.9 billion in 2008 to an estimated £41.1 billion by the end of 2010.
UK online spending will account for 42.8% of total UK travel sales or 25% of the European online travel market by the end of 2010 - the largest share of any EU member country. British consumers are among the most web-savvy in terms of holiday planning, with 69% using the internet to research and buy holidays compared to the European average of 54%. (EyeForTravel, April 2010)
A survey of 1,375 consumers conducted by TotalMedia, a UK-based media planning and buying agency, found that almost 70% of consumers use the internet to book their holidays, compared to 23% by phone and just 8% who chose travel agents.
Consumers aged 35-44 were found to be most likely (74%) to book online. Price (80%) was cited as the main reason for using the internet along with information (53%) and convenience (50%). (See article on EyeForTravel and article on eTN eTurboNews Global Travel Industry News, March 2010)
Despite the recession, the UK will retain its current position as the largest online travel market in Europe for some time to come, according to PhoCusWright's UK Online Travel Overview Fifth Edition. Growth will be driven by increased efforts by the major tour operators to drive customers to book through online channels, as well as by OTAs' continued efforts to grow revenues. Despite this growth, the relative prominence of the UK online travel market will eventually wane as other European markets narrow the gap and increase online adoption levels.
UK share of European total and online travel market (%) 2008 vs. 2011:
- 2008: total (21.8%) / online (30.9%)
- 2011: total (20.0%) / online (26.4%)
(PhoCusWright, December 2009)
Even as the UK travel market struggles under the weight of global economic pressure, online travel bookings are projected to increase by 3% in 2009, according to PhoCusWright's European Online Travel Overview Fifth Edition report. With online leisure and unmanaged business sales of nearly £17.1 billion, nearly half of the UK travel market is booked online. UK online leisure and unmanaged business travel penetration grew by five percentage points to reach 45% of all bookings in 2009.
The overall UK travel market is expected to contract by 8.9% in 2009. Gross bookings will fall to approximately £37.6 billion for the year. Nearly all segments of the market have been affected, although traditional carriers and hotels are bearing the brunt of the slowdown. The short-term outlook remains bleak, with a return to 2007 booking levels not expected until 2012.
Although approaching maturity, UK online travel penetration continues to grow in 2009 as online channels outperform other booking methods. Airline Web sites dominate other suppliers online, representing over half of online direct sales in the UK. Hotel company Web sites are expected to grow in line with the market, and tour operators are projected to make the greatest gains online among suppliers.
Selling a combination of pre-packaged, dynamically packaged and decoupled travel components, UK tour operators' share of UK online direct travel is expected to increase through 2011. Despite the strides tour operators have made, online travel agencies (OTAs) will lead growth for all online channels in 2009 and help the UK online travel market continue to mature and retain its current position as the largest online travel market in Europe. (PhoCusWright FYI, November 2009).
More than ¾ of people (79%) who conducted an online transaction on a travel site in the past year experienced problems when doing so, according to a survey of online consumer behaviour conducted by Harris Interactive and commissioned by Tealeaf Technology. The survey was conducted among 2,223 British adults. Almost half (47%) of these said they would abandon the transaction as a result, with 43% saying they would switch to an online or offline competitor.
The most common problem on travel sites was found to be receiving error messages (43%), followed by difficulty navigating (34%) and being stuck in an endless loop (29%). Travel customer service teams are still unable to efficiently deal with website enquiries. 49% of British adults who contacted a call centre after encountering a website problem were unable to have their issue resolved, and 76% reported that the agent was not knowledgeable about the website or about their particular online problem.
Nonetheless, the results from the survey also show that 60% say they are now conducting more transactions online than they did in the past. This is due to the current economic climate, with the ability to compare products and prices cited by 80% of these as the main reason.
With problems on travel sites still existing, consumers, empowered by social media, are increasingly likely to share experiences and opinions about companies, rather than with them. 14% of those who encountered problems conducting online transactions said they shared those experiences on a blog or social networking site, twice as many as in 2008 (7%).
And direct communication with a company declined, with a quarter (26%) of people experiencing problems conducting online transactions then posting a complaint on a company website (down from 30% in 2008) and 42% contacting a company's call centre (down from 45% in 2008).
The research reveals that social networking sites can be highly influential, with 55% saying social media content had directly influenced how they conduct online transactions and 79% of those saying it had affected their choice of vendor. The survey also found that people whose transactions have been influenced by social media content actually respond to positive reviews (37%) more so than negative ones (28%). This means that good online transaction experiences are amplified online just as much, if not more, than bad, according to Tealeaf. (Travelmole, October 2009)
A 9.5% growth in the UK online travel market is estimated for 2009, according to EyeForTravel's research estimates. EyeForTravel added that online travel sales are growing as customers flock to the web to get the best deals and that the growth rate they predict is an incredible growth for a recession. (EyeForTravel, May 2009)
The UK remained the largest online travel market in Europe in 2008, accounting for 30% of the European online travel market, according to the study (updated in March 2009) "Trends in European internet Distribution - of Travel and Tourism Services" by Carl H. Marcussen of the Centre for Regional and Tourism Research.
In 2008, the two leading European markets, the UK and Germany accounted for 48% of the EUR 58.4 billion European online travel market. (Full material updated 23rd March 2009 is available at http://www.crt.dk/uk/staff/chm/trends.htm, March 2009)
More than half (62%) of consumers in the UK fear their security is at risk when purchasing travel over the internet, according to a study by payment solutions brand RBS WorldPay. The poll was based on the opinions of 110 decision makers and 1,000 consumers. The research also found that 55% rank security as the most important factor when making an online purchase.
While people are happy with purchasing small ticket products online, nearly a third (30%) feel more comfortable making a booking offline due to the large amount of money involved in the transaction.
In addition to security issues, the research also shows that technology failure halfway through the transaction process is a further bugbear of online travel bookers - cited as an issue by more than a quarter (26%) of those surveyed. Furthermore, whilst travel businesses may not regard payments as an obvious contributor to customer service, nearly a quarter (22%) of consumers specifically says they want faster payment solutions when paying for travel.
When it comes to purchasing products offline, travellers are even more demanding. Four in ten said they would like to see a future where we have just one piece of technology (e.g. a mobile phone) or one card to handle all payment transactions and four in ten (42%) said their lives would be much easier if they could pay for everything with cards rather than cash. Half of those interviewed said they expect the UK to become a near cashless society by 2030.
The research also covered the future of payments within the travel industry, showing that consumers are already ‘future gazing'. A third (29%) expect to soon pay for goods and services with automated face recognition and a quarter (24%) believe microdots will be inserted into hands to enable ‘wave and pay'.
RBS WorldPay indicated that this study clearly shows that consumers buying travel services and packages want to see changes in the way they pay - be it in speed or security, on or offline. Security fears could deter transactions, which often involve large sums of money. They believe that travel companies that consider new types of technology and adopt them where relevant will be among those that secure a competitive edge in the future. (Travelmole, February 2009)
A record number of consumers booked a holiday online at the beginning of January to escape the New Year blues, with cottages4you taking its highest number of internet bookings ever in one day on Sunday 4th January 2009. And it looks like the British break is the most sought after holiday for the first half of this year.
cottages4you, the UK's leading provider of holiday cottages with over 10,000 individually owned cottages throughout Britain has already seen a 30% increase on bookings for Easter, with the February half term holiday also up by 5% on last year. (TravelDailyNews, January 2009)
Travel Industry Online Developments
Lastminute.com Topsee app initially available on iPhone has now been made available on the Apple iPad, taking advantage of the larger screen for multi-person use.
The original Topsee system was created at the online travel agency's Labs department and is a way of bringing in travel content and other product feeds for London onto a mobile handset, matched to the user's location. What Lastminute has done with the iPad version of the app is try to make it less about on-location services and more about trip planning.
Users can select the destination and browse through the agency's chosen top attractions for a given city. The size of the screen means the iPad can be used almost like a Microsoft Surface table, with more than one person browsing through the items. Once a product is selected the user can see prices, availability, more information as normal, with a click through to the Lastminute.com for booking. (tnooz - talking travel tech, June 2010)
Microsoft is looking to introduce Bing Travel in the UK after a successful launch in the US. The technology giant is conducting focus groups with customers to find out how to adapt its travel search engine for the UK market. A launch date has not been set, but is likely to be months rather than years.
Launched exactly a year ago in the US, Bing Travel provides price comparisons for air fares and hotel rates. It also predicts airfare and hotel rates based on the time of year, telling travellers when it's the best time to get the best deal. Microsoft gained this technology after a $115 million acquisition of travel website Farecast last year.
(travelmole, June 2010)
The winners of the UK 2010 Travelmole Web Awards have been announced at a ceremony at the Canadian High Commission in central London in June 2010. The winners were:
- Best Tourist board site - www.yorkshire.com
- Best Use of Video site - www.yorkshire.com
- Best Car Rental site - www.holidayautos.co.uk
- Best Accommodation only site - www.i-escape.com
- Best Airline site - http://flybmi.com
- Best Cruise, Ferry & Rail site - www.pocruises.com
- Best Deployment of Mobile technology site - www.thetrainline.com
- Best Holiday Add-ons site - www.essentialtravel.co.uk
- Best Responsible tourism site - www.responsibletravel.com
- Best Hotel resorts site - www.borgoegnazia.com
- Best Meta search site - www.skyscanner.net
- Best Recruitment site - www.gailkenny.com
- Best Tour operator site - www.gapadventures.co.uk
- Best Travel Agency site - www.sunshine.co.uk
- Best Travel blog site - http://wearecunard.com
- Best Use of UGC - www.tripadvisor.co.uk
(travelmole, June 2010)
bmi, British Midland International, has launched its social media strategy. The airline says its customers can now engage with bmi on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. The latest move features news, special offers and customer engagement across the chosen social media platforms.
The launch marks part of a larger move towards increased online engagement for the airline, which has recently launched a destination guide widget with Wallpaper magazine, and has integrated a live Twitter feed into its destination guides.
Only a few days ago, Wallpaper launched a free iPhone app, in association with Swarovski Crystal Palace. This free app will give users instant access to the pick of the best from the worlds of art, fashion, travel, architecture and technology. (eyefortravel, May 2010)
TripAdvisor has launched its flight search engine in the UK. The new offering, which was launched in the US earlier in 2009, is now available in beta on tripadvisor.co.uk. One of the highlights of the site is its dynamic Fees Estimator, a tool that helps in understanding the true cost of a flight in a single display with payment method charges and other fees included. Other features include SeatGuru content that is available for the first time ever in a flight search engine through colour-coded maps with detailed information about each seat, from legroom to noise levels, according to the company. It will also have a built-in currency converter. Also, airline information bubbles appear when travellers mouse over the airline logos, describing special features of a particular airline, including seatback entertainment.
TripAdvisor shared that its survey of 600 Britons indicated that the average traveller currently spends three and a half hours researching flight options across six different websites in order to find the optimum flight. Other findings of the survey show that:
- 68% of British travellers have been surprised by the final cost of a flight, as a result of `add-ons'.
- 2/3 of travellers (64%) do not know what their free-baggage allowance is across the major carriers.
- 77% are unaware of what the differing card-payment fees are.
(EyeForTravel, October 2009)
Teletext has decided to focus completely on online travel services. The company is to switch off its news and information service, available on analogue and digital television, in January 2010. The move comes following a comprehensive review of the business by the senior management and will see up to 70 people made redundant.
Teletext is available on ITV, Channel 4, Channel Five and some Sky and Freeview channels. Teletext Holidays, which is broadcast on Freeview, would continue, as would the increasingly profitable Teletext web operation, which includes teletextholidays.co.uk, thisistravel.co.uk and villarenters.co.uk.
The company will focus on these assets. The removal of loss-making TV activities will allow investment in these businesses to accelerate, according to the group managing director at Teletext.
The volume of commercial activity generated by the TV service has fallen sharply, with revenue declining by 50% since 2003. As a result Teletext's television services have been loss making for the last three years. The company blamed the decline in the financial performance of the television services on the government's allocation of broadcast capacity for the public teletext service in the 1996 Broadcasting Act. (EyeForTravel, July 2009)
Looking at the UK online travel market, the percentage of travel websites' search traffic that comes via paid clicks has declined over the last 12 months, from 25.4% in March 2008 to 21.7% in March 2009, according to Hitwise. The rates and declines vary by travel sub-sector:
- Websites in the agencies category (which includes both traditional and online players such as Expedia) are most reliant on paid search traffic, but have also experienced the steepest decline over the last 12 months.
- The declines in the Transport (i.e. airlines, trains, car hire, etc.) and Destinations and Accommodation (which includes both hotel aggregator provider sites) sectors have been less severe - although both are less reliant on paid search than the Agencies category.
Looking at the decline in actual upstream traffic from paid search, rather than just the paid search rate, provides further perspective. The percentage of the travel sector's overall traffic that comes from paid search declined from 11.6% in March 2009 to 9.3% in March 2009.
Percentage of travel websites's UK internet traffic that comes from paid search, March 2009:
- Overall Travel: 9.3% (-2.3% compared to March 2008)
- Agencies: 14.4% (-6.2%)
- Destinations & accommodation: 9.4% (-2.2%)
- Transport: 9.8% (-1.0%)
(Hitwise United Kingdom Newsletter - May 2009, May 2009)
87% of Travelodge's room reservations are booked online, according to IMRG's Industry Digest. (IMRG, June 2009)
People will be inspired by an even wider variety of British destinations as VisitBritain helps Google take its Street View technology beyond the nation's towns and cities.
Feedback from people around the UK indicates that Britons want to showcase famous landmarks beyond the 25 towns and cities currently captured. As a result, Google is giving people a sneak preview of its latest groundbreaking invention - the Google Trike. This mechanical masterpiece comprises 3 bicycle wheels, a mounted Street View camera and a specially decorated box containing image collecting gadgetry. It comes replete with a very athletic cyclist in customised Google apparel. The Trikes have the same capability as Street View cars for collecting street-level imagery and are designed to help Google make special imagery collections in places less accessible by car.
Google and VisitBritain are asking the British public to suggest tourist spots, such as historic castles or famous landmarks, that the trike might visit to ultimately showcase the destination to the world. People can submit suggestions in five categories: Castles, Coastal Paths, Natural Wonders, Historic Buildings & Monuments, and (Sports) Stadiums. These will be narrowed down to a shortlist for the public to vote for the three locations the Google Trike will visit first. People can submit suggestions at maps.google.co.uk/streetviewinfo.
The partnership is part of VisitBritain's strategy to ensure visitors are enticed to explore Britain. As well as helping plan a trip, Street View adds an extra element to the memories that visitors will share with friends and family when they return home - potentially inspiring them to visit in turn. (VisitBritian eNews 27 May 2009, May 2009)
Following the launch of Google Street View in the UK on March 19th 2009, UK internet visits to Google Maps UK increased by 41%, according to Hitwise. This was the busiest ever day for Google Maps in the UK, becoming the 20th most visited site overall - its highest ever ranking.
Google Maps UK received 1 in every 250 UK internet visits on the day of its UK launch, while the US Google Maps site also received an 84% increase in visits. The average visit time was 7 minutes 6 seconds, up from 5 minutes 28 seconds the day before its launch. Consequently the increase in page views (76%) for Google Maps UK was higher than the increase in visits (41%). (Hitwise UK Newsletter - April 2009, April 2009)
TripAdvisor has come out significantly ahead of other Expedia Inc brands in a study about which hotel-related sites are most visible within Google UK natural search results, according to a study by digital media agency Greenlight Search.
The study found that 5.6 million searches were generated in March 2009 from a selection of 1,200 hotel sector key terms. The rankings are based on a site's presence on the first page of Google for the term. TripAdvisor.co.uk was identified as the most visible website, appearing on 42% of all searches. However, the most visible site in the flights category, Cheapflights, had visibility of 100%. Six flight sites had a stronger showing in their sector than the hotel market leader. (HOTELMARKETING.COM, April 2009)
Enjoy England has joined Facebook and invites Enjoy England users to become a fan of England and to share their video, ideas, stories and photos. There is also the opportunity to see the views and comments of other Enjoy England users.
(England eNews - England's official tourist board newsletter, Issue 04 2009, April 2009)
Top travel websites including EasyJet and Lastminute.com are failing to meet customer expectations, according to a study by Global Reviews. The websites were assessed against more than 600 criteria including the information available to prospective customers, customer support and site usability.
Expedia recorded a satisfaction rate of 59%, 5% above the standard Global Reviews regards as satisfactory. Lastminute.com scored 54%, while EasyJet was the worst performer, scoring 46%.
For online bookings, Expedia received the highest score of 65%, closely followed by Ebookers with 64%. Lastminute and Ebookers scored over 80% for their error management system which helps customers through the booking process. (HOTELMARKETING.COM, April 2009)
A brand new series of high quality mp3 guides from Way2Goguides have been launched to leisure and business travellers coming to London. The Way2GoGuides are set to revolutionize London's major attraction industry by offering a more sensory experience, which gives visitors a chance to hear real Londoners talk about ‘their London', as well as sharing usual local knowledge.
The series of 12 guides, which are available online at http://www.Way2GoGuides.com and http://www.visitlondon.com offer the visitor an alternative - one that goes beyond just the venue, and where the experience can begin at home.
Based around an hour of pristine quality mp3 audio, Way2GoGuides use professional actors, authentic music and sophisticated sound design, all skillfully crafted to memorable effect. Likened to a 'docu-drama', Way2GoGuides tell a compelling story - in the words of those who were there.
Preloaded Way2GoGuides mp3players will shortly be available from selected retailers. (TravelMole, March 2009)
The mobile application, mobiEXPLORE UK, is free to download via visitbritain.com/mobile and is part of VisitBritain's campaign to promote Britain as a leading tourist destination and capture its online audience.
mobiEXPLORE UK contains interactive maps, London tube map, sights description, list of pubs, restaurants and hotels, sport & spa centers, shopping advice, weather forecast, events notifications etc. The application covers Northen Ireland, Wales, Scotland and England.
VisitBritain is supplying the mobiEXPLORE UK application with its events and destination guides along with attractions and quality assessed accommodation data from its database.
VisitBritain's head of online marketing Justin Reid said that the application fuses the best parts of the traditional guidebook with the benefits of internet search. (EyeForTravel and TravelMole, March 2009)
Virtual walking tours of key UK cities are to be made available on the internet through a tie-up between VisitBritain and Google. The new Google Street View technology will feature 25 cities and towns in Britain and Northern Ireland. Users of Google maps can use the Street View mapping to get an idea of the sights they can see when visiting Britain. They will be able to take a virtual walking tour of destinations such as London, Cardiff, Belfast and Edinburgh, and from Southampton to Aberdeen, Bristol to Norwich.
VisitBritain has worked with Google to create a visual guide - called a maplet - directly in Street View which features sights in London, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Birmingham, Cambridge, Leeds and Oxford.
This maplet then links to VisitBritain's global website, visitbritain.com, where users can access some of its 1,000 destination guides. Each guide further helps them plan their trip with information about where to stay, shop and eat out, as well as the attractions, events and experiences. (TravelMole, March 2009)
UK budget hotel chain Travelodge offers consumers a free GPS room booking service via the 3G Apple iPhone. This new service labelled "Travelodge iBooker" will allow business and leisure travellers on the move to find low cost accommodation across the UK in three easy steps.
Travelodge iBooker is located in the iTunes Application Store and can be downloaded for free to the iPhone via iTunes. Users simply hit the Travelodge logo and the GPS service locates the nearest five Travelodge hotels with images, availability, distance and room rates within the users' locality. In three easy steps the user can then book their room(s).
Alternatively, the Travelodge iBooker service can be used to book Travelodge rooms without using the GPS service. Just select a specific hotel, arrival dates and the software will then return you the best room prices available. Select your room and proceed with the booking.
There are currently over 1 million Apple iPhone users in the UK and 10 million users across the world and this is set to rise to 45 millon by the end of 2009. The Apple iPhone is set to become the UK's most popular mobile phone this year. (HOTELMARKETING.COM, March 2009)
A new application allowing iPhone and iPod Touch users to access real-time rail journey planning information across the UK rail network has been unveiled. At a cost of £4.99, the applications is described as the "equivalent of SatNav for passenger rail". It enables to find your nearest station and plan your journey home at the touch of a screen.
The National Rail Enquiries for iPhone application uses the device's inbuilt GPS to find your nearest station anywhere in Great Britain. The Next Train Home feature then plans the best route home to your destination. A Journey Planner search function allows users to save regular journeys for quick planning. Favourite stations can be saved for one-touch access to departure and arrival information.
The software has been developed in conjunction with Agant Ltd.
National Rail Enquiries plans to introduce a complementary service that will enable Microsoft Outlook users to plan journeys within Outlook using a meeting invitation as the basis for their journey. (TravelMole, March 2009)
Lastminute.com launched a free talking phrasebook for 2009 for iPhone and iPod Touch users in the UK. Developed by Coolgorilla, the phrasebook is available in six different language versions: French, German, Greek, Italian Portuguese and Spanish, and can be downloaded by visiting Apple's App Store. Lastminute.com is helping consumers to make the best of their breaks and holiday costs by providing the phrasebook completely free.
Using the talking phrasebook consumers can ask for directions, hire a car and even engage in small talk. Each one contains over 500 sound files. The intuitive application allows consumers to search quickly and simply for a phrase in English and press 'select', their iPhone then pronounces the phrase in the foreign language with a real, native accent. The text translation is also provided on the screen. (EyeForTravel, February 2009)
Potential cruise passengers go online to do most of their pre-booking research and the brochure is becoming little more than a ‘timetable', according to findings of research by P&O Cruises which emerged as part of parent company Carnival UK's annual Cruise Report.
P&O Cruises acknowledge the fact that most people now prefer to base their choices on user-generated content on cruise websites. Their research indicates that people go online to do most of their pre-booking research so that by the time they get the brochure, they have already decided to book and just want to see what is on offer for the destination they want and the time slot they have for their holiday. (Travelmole, February 2009)
UK's PC Advisor magazine features a selection of the country's best travel sites. Dozens of Web 2.0 travel sites jumped in to fill new niches in travel planning (many of them still in beta testing).
Best Trip Choices uses a simple yet highly revealing questionnaire to identify which of six ‘travel personalities' you most closely match. After taking the quiz to determine your type, you can drill down to identify destinations and activities that BestTripChoices thinks are suited to your preferences.
Similarly, TravelMuse, Tripbase and Triporati present destination suggestions based on your interests (which you identify on supplied lists or tags); TravelMuse and Tripbase also factor in your budget, and TravelMuse asks you how much time you're willing to spend en route.
All three sites provide reviews, maps, and other content, including links to booking sites. These sites offer some specialised features, too. Triporati's Facebook application lets you find friends who share specific travel-related interests. Tripbase returns costs for its suggested destinations. And TravelMuse provides tools. (HOTELMARKETING.COM, February 2009)
Top Agencies websites in the UK for the week ending June 5 2010 by % of visits:
1. Thomson (www.thomson.co.uk): 9.21% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Expedia.co.uk (www.expedia.co.uk): 7.74% (2nd)
3. Thomas Cook (www.thomascook.com): 5.48% (3rd)
Top Destinations and Accommodation websites in the UK for the week ending June 5 2010 by % of visits:
1. tripadvisor.co.uk (www.tripadvisor.co.uk): 7.50% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Booking.com (www.booking.com): 4.51% (2nd)
3. LateRooms.com (www.laterooms.com): 2.92% (3rd)
Top Airlines websites in the UK for the week ending June 5 2010 by % of visits:
1. easyJet.com (www.easyjet.com): 20.77% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Ryanair (www.ryanair.com): 17.64% (2nd)
3. British Airways (www.britishairways.com): 8.89% (3rd)
Top travel search terms in the UK for the week ending June 5 2010 by % of clicks:
1. google maps: 0.98% (previously ranked 1st)
2. ryanair: 0.83% (2nd)
3. easyjet: 0.76% (3rd)
(tnooz - talking travel tech, June 2010)Experian Hitwise has revealed the most popular travel websites in the UK for the week ending June 19 2010 in the categories Agencies; Destinations and Accommodation; Airlines and travel search terms.
Top Agency websites in the UK for the week ending June 19 2010 by % of visits:
1. Thomson (www.thomson.co.uk): 8.53% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Expedia.co.uk (www.expedia.co.uk): 7.53% (2nd)
3. Thomas Cook (www.thomascook.com): 5.39% (3rd)www.tripadvisor.co.uk): 8.03% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Booking.com (www.booking.com): 4.63% (2nd)
3. LateRooms.com (www.laterooms.com): 3.10% (3rd)www.easyjet.com): 20.57% (previously ranked 1st)
2. Ryanair (www.ryanair.com): 17.95% (2nd)
3. British Airways (www.britishairways.com): 8.87% (3rd)tnooz - talking travel tech , June 2010)
Last Updated on Friday, 23 July 2010 10:22
