By Netpal Travel Bureau
Today hotels and other travel-related companies get 60percent of bookings through mobile devices, while 74percent of total revenue will be generated through online sales by 2026.
Ranging from user engagement, a broad customer base, multiple revenue streams and lower customer support costs, Booking apps offer many more benefits.
In 2020, almost 150 million travel bookings were made online, hence the popularity of booking and travel apps will continue to grow. Safe travel, capacity management, better customer experience will help many companies to add value to their apps and recover the tourism industry during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Important Functionality to Implement
Search Filters: Users should be able to search for their lodging options based on price, location, rating, location to stay, check-in or check-out dates, number of rooms needed and others.
Discover places: Travelers like to discover new places. Moreover,70percent of new customers will spend their time reading reviews first before booking.
Push notifications: The travel industry has the highest open rate for push notifications, which is 30percent for Android. This feature allows the user to stay informed about new offers and suggestions.
Customer account: Users should easily access their profile information, which includes a wish list, booking history, browsing history, currency, and preferred language.
Booking and Cancellation: Once the user decides to stay, he will be redirected to a secure payment gateway and pay with his debit/credit card. Most importantly, hotel reservation services offer their customers a full refund within the first 24 hours in case of cancellation.
Analytics Dashboard: Typically, such dashboard allows getting consumer feedback for mobile app, making informed decisions and determining where your business is heading.
Car Rentals: Integration of Omni channel experience into booking apps is an emerging trend today.
In-app navigation: Appleor Google maps could be a great addition to your app that allows users to easily find locations.
Nearby locations: By implementing geographic location tracking, you can allow users to search for places to explore.
Most of the travelers prefer multi-functional apps rather than single-purpose apps