Gaurav Bhagi

Cluster General Manager – North India, VITA STAYS

The impact of technology on travel is enormous nowadays. Technology made travel easier, mainly because of travel apps, online travel platforms, and blogs.

Millennials and Gen Z also played a crucial role in boosting the technological innovations in the travel industry – they love traveling and love technologies. The worldwide pandemic also boosted technological progress on one hand & implemented new technology in the tourism sector.

Technology has transformed the travel industry, increased business efficiency and optimize different processes, reducing manual work, and improving customer experience.

Some Top Travel Tech Solutions

∙ Travel Apps – Travelers use their smartphones for bookings, shopping, or other actions. Apps are our travel assistants where we can search for the best hotels or restaurants and read other reviews.

∙ AI chatbots – As people use apps in their travel planning, it’s convenient to use messengers with chatbots. AI chatbots can give an immediate answer with no need to search for the answer in FAQs or spend time chatting with customer agents.

❖ Artificial Intelligence (AI) & machine learning (ML) help provide customers personalised services, analyse user reviews, and

offer virtual assistance, ensuring that guest have pleasant

experiences.

∙ Contactless Check-In – This is one of the most crucial changes in the post COVID era, as people want social distancing. Today, airports and hotels offer their customers contactless mobile check-in, helping them minimize shared touchpoints or other interactions.

∙ Contactless payments – The ‘COVID’ era has influenced the shift to contactless operations and cashless payments. People are nervous about the spread of the virus and don’t want to handle cash. Another reason why travellers need contactless payments is that it’s fast and convenient.

∙ AR and VR – AR / VR technologies provide the guests with the ability to teleport to the location and explore the hotels, their rooms as well as surrounding areas. AR (Augmented Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality) are going to reshape the hospitality industry

∙ Robotics – From chatbots to robot assistants, the use of robots in the tourism industry has become more widespread in recent times.

❖ “Through increasing operational efficiency and improving traveller confidence, robotics in tourism will continue to grow.

∙ Internet of Things (IoT) – The Internet of Things (IoT) is the phrase used to refer to the inclusion of internet connectivity within everyday devices and appliances that have not typically had such capabilities.

❖ Essentially, it can turn those devices or appliances into ‘smart’ objects, which are capable of both sending and receiving data and communicating with each other & can improve data collection, increase levels of automation from one centralised place, such as a phone or tablet.