Despite more than $15 billion in annual revenue and hefty profits, online travel agents like Priceline and Expedia Inc. are increasingly wary of Google encroaching on their turf. That's lifting tension with a sector that's one of Google's biggest advertisers.
In the twelve months to the end-September, Thomas Cook’s capital expenditure on IT systems came in at £73 million compared with store refits on which it spent £7 million.
The deafening buzz around Airbnb Trips means that established experiential economy brands such as OpenTable, Viator and Ticketmaster need to shout even louder.
Nearly three-quarters of travellers said they have chosen a hotel property based on its Wi-Fi capability, with one in five claiming they make purchase decisions this way for every hotel stay.
A study by research house ReportLinker found that brand awareness amongst millennials was extremely high, with 96% of respondents mentioning Uber when asked about what product they used for ride-hailing.
Priceline reckons one of the key trends to affect the consumer landscape over the course of the next 12 months will be how travellers look to technology to “eradicate on-the-road niggles”.
China made 101.5 million outbound trips in first three quarters of 2016, whereas total number of cross-border tourists traveling in and out of the country was 194 million.
Under the Migration Legislation Amendment inked on November 10, Chinese citizens with 10-year Australian visas could enjoy multiple free entry permits during the period.