- 2 Min Read / Blog / 3.2.2020
Digital technology has transformed nearly every industry, but perhaps has impacted no industry more profoundly than travel. From the moment Expedia and Orbitz democratized the process of scheduling flights and hotel accommodations, and provided new transparency and renewed competition into prices available online, digital has owned the experience of planning travel for billions of people.
“The process of booking something—buying tickets and so on—has already been disrupted by mobile. The traditional experience of relying on a personal travel agent is completely different today.” —John Norton, iOS Developer
The notion of instant access and empowering customers with information are core to the mobile revolution, so it should come as no surprise that travel arrangements are a natural extension of digital technology and online services. The ways in which travel has been transformed by mobile—instant visibility of available tickets and prices, seamless e-commerce integration, and paperless travel passes that simplify customer experiences—were pioneered first for the travel industry in many cases, and its trajectory has been representative of the larger mobile transformation.
“But modernizing travel agencies is just the starting point,” said Norton. “How long before the processes involved with using Orbitz or Kayak become even easier? How long before the system itself can compute the best course of action based on the traveler’s preferences, and make a predictive recommendation?” The technology isn’t as far off as it may seem—as web services become smarter and make connections between users’ explicit and implicit needs, they can begin to make better recommendations and achieve levels of usefulness once reserved for human beings.
“People sometimes assume that technology can’t go further, that things can’t possibly get easier. But there are technologies in motion that are going to be integrated into systems like this soon, and applied in useful ways for the first time.” —John Norton, iOS Developer
Most of these optimizations are focused on streamlining existing processes that waste time or resources throughout the travel experience. “Half the time, it feels like you’re just waiting in line to get a key when you’ve already paid and verified and taken care of all this stuff,” said Norton. “These systems and new mobile technologies are going to do away with these needless processes, and give people back the most valuable resource on their trip: time.”
As technologies continue to emerge that make our lives easier and more connected, travel remains one of the foremost examples of these optimizations in action. At every stage of the connected travel experience, digital and mobile innovations have helped travelers shave time and costs off of their experiences. Travel is the testing ground for new technologies just before they go mainstream—and transforming the travel agent is just the beginning.