With more disposable income than the general traveler population and a greater willingness to spend on high-end services, affluent travelers represent a critical segment for the travel industry. In addition to spending more, upscale travelers also tend to rate travel as a high priority relative to other forms of discretionary spending. This Spotlight examines the attitudes and behavior of high income travelers – where they stay, how they book and what they do during their trips.Analysts: Mark Blutstein, Cathy WalshTopic: Consumer TrendsSegments: Air, Hotels & Lodging, Online Travel Agencies, Traditional Agencies & TMCsRegion: U.S. & CanadaResearch Type: Report
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While 2015 was a banner year for U.S. leisure travel, in 2016 the purchase incidence dropped for some travel categories. With travelers taking fewer (and shorter) trips overall, most major travel products experienced a decline in purchases, though the lodging segment has remained strong. This Spotlight provides a detailed analysis of U.S. leisure travelers’ purchase patterns for all major travel segments: air, hotel, car rental, vacation packages, destination activities and cruises.Analysts: Mark Blutstein, Cathy WalshTopic: Consumer TrendsSegments: Air, Car Rental & Ground Transportation, Hotels & Lodging, Tours & PackagesRegion: U.S. & CanadaResearch Type: Report
U.S. leisure travelers have lots of options to choose from when planning their trips: multiple devices, numerous websites and many sources of advice on which travel products to buy. Here’s what leisure travel shopping and buying looked like in 2016, including the influence of mobile, use of OTAs vs. supplier websites, the growth of private accommodation and in-destination activities, and more.Analysts: Mark Blutstein, Cathy WalshTopic: Consumer TrendsSegments: Hotels & Lodging, Online Travel AgenciesRegion: U.S. & CanadaResearch Type: Report
In just a few years, the term the Internet of Things, IoT for short, has evolved from a narrow term used by futurists to describe a utopian vison of a connected world, to today’s reality, where millions of smart devices are connected to the Internet. The beauty of IoT goes beyond individual smart devices, as the sum of its parts delivers the ultimate value to the consumer by simplifying and automating tasks. These range from managing your home’s energy consumption to automatically ordering milk, when your smart refrigerator detects a need to replenish your supply. For the travel industry, the impact of IoT is beginning to be felt at the airport, on the cruise ship, at the hotel, and in the traveler’s destination. This article updates the current state of IoT, providing examples of pilots and implementations all designed to simplify and personalize the travel experience.Analyst: Norm RoseTopic: Technology InnovationResearch Type: Report
CIO.com defines business intelligence (BI) as, "an umbrella term that refers to a variety of software applications used to analyze an organization's raw data. BI as a discipline is made up of several related activities, including data mining, online analytical processing, querying and reporting." The purpose of this article is to evaluate the current status of BI in hospitality.Analyst: Gillian HuntoonTopic: Technology InnovationResearch Type: Report
This report highlights the status and projected growth of mobile bookings in the leisure/unmanaged business travel markets where Phocuswright has collected data across the U.S., Asia Pacific (APAC) and Europe. Estimates and projections for the APAC market include China, India and Japan only, collectively referred to as the APAC Big 3 throughout this article. European market figures are based on 15 European Union countries (the EU15) plus Switzerland and Norway.Analyst: Michael ColettaTopics: Mobile, Market Overview & SizingSegments: Air, Car Rental & Ground Transportation, Hotels & Lodging, Online Travel Agencies, RailRegions: Asia Pacific, Europe, U.S. & CanadaResearch Type: Report
Blockchain, the underlying technology behind cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, has moved from an abstract concept to concrete initiatives by both startups and established companies across all industries. The platform is now being promoted as a solution for identity, security and fraud prevention, with some predicting blockchain will be the foundation for the next generation of the Internet. In boardrooms across the country, C-level executives are evaluating their blockchain strategies. Given this focus, what will blockchain’s impact be on the near term and mid-term infrastructure for the travel industry?Analyst: Norm RoseTopic: Technology InnovationResearch Type: Report
The competitive travel marketplace and high costs of traveler acquisition are strong motivation for travel companies to keep existing customers coming back for more. Loyalty programs seek to do just that, offering perks and points to returning travelers. But are travel companies’ loyalty efforts paying off?Analysts: Mark Blutstein, Cathy WalshTopic: Consumer TrendsSegments: Air, Hotels & Lodging, Online Travel AgenciesRegion: U.S. & CanadaResearch Type: Report
View and/or Download the presentation deck and audio recording of the May 11, 2017 webinar - sponsored by Digital River World Payments - to explore the obstacles that emerging markets still need to face, such as those related to the economy, infrastructure, culture and payments, with a focus on Latin America.Analysts: Carolina Sass de Haro, Lorraine SileoTopic: Market Overview & SizingSegments: Air, Hotels & Lodging, Online Travel AgenciesRegion: Latin AmericaResearch Type: Report
In the previous three Phocuswright articles (Artificial Intelligence for Travel, Neural Networks, and Speech Recognition and Natural Language Processing), of this 4-part Artificial Intelligence series we described the components, processes and disciplines of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The intent of this 4th (and final) paper is to discuss the opportunities for the effective use of AI in the travel business. One of the startling findings in the research for this paper is the significant growth in the use of AI without a lot of fanfare. AI applications will define much of how travel will be shopped, distributed and experienced in the next decade. In this paper, we will attempt to recognize some of the opportunities for AI in travel as well as highlight a few of the suppliers in the AI travel space.Analyst: Bob OffuttTopic: Technology InnovationResearch Type: Report