Nearly 8 in 10 Asian travelers share adventures online

Can startups gain from this trend?

Do you update the web with your travel adventures? Well, eight out of 10 Asian travelers do.

Eight out of 10 Singapore travelers cannot leave home without a smartphone in their pocket. Out of the same 10, seven of them share their holiday experiences online after returning home.

On the whole, 77 percent of Asian tourists are keener to update the web with their adventures, as compared to their global counterparts at 71 percent.

These are some insights generated from the Visa Global Travel Intentions Study 2013, commissioned by the global payments company to Millward Brown.

Conducted both online and offline between November and December 2013, the survey saw views from some 12,631 travelers aged 18 and above, across 25 markets in Asia Pacific, Africa, Middle East and the Americas.

Evidently, smartphone and gadget use is not uncalled for. For travelers from the city-state, 79 percent chose to refer to online sources like travel review, service provider and official tourism websites, 77 percent chose bookings of independent travel and 66 percent took to information while traveling.

“While traditional word of mouth reviews from friends, relatives and guidebooks are still used – especially among travelers from Africa the Middle East – online resources that offer reviews from frequent travelers as well as a host of other information such as currency converters, pictures, booking and discount facilities are becoming the first source of information for most Singapore travelers,” said Ooi Huey Tyng, Visa Country Manager for Singapore and Brunei.

“In a positive sign for providers who are offering both information and booking solutions online, Singapore travelers are saying that online booking processes are fast and getting easier.”

Market opportunity

For startups in Asia, especially Singapore, are they looking into this market opportunity? There are companies like WayGo, a smartphone-based visual translator for menus, which received US$900,000 to better translate more Asian languages to English.

This also proves to be a big opportunity for formerly web-dominant companies that are moving toward mobile, like Agoda, an international online hotel booking site.

Robert Rosenstein, CEO of Agoda, shared in a previous interview with e27 that the company is targeting mobile with new customers making their first booking on small devices at the last minute.

Another company which targets travelers with mobile devices would be HotelQuickly. It is a same-day hotel booking system, and recently made news raising US$1.16 million from global investors.

Size matters

The Visa Global Travel Intentions Study 2013 also revealed that Singapore travelers preferred smart phones as their top choice for a holiday companion at 79 percent, followed by cameras at 67 percent, computers at 52 percent and entertainment devices at 33 percent.

The size of the gadgets chosen to bring on the trip came in as the top consideration for affluent travelers in Singapore at 61 percent ahead of Internet capability and weight.

By: Elaine Huang
Source: http://e27.co/2013/10/03/77-percent-of-asian-travelers-share-adventures-online/

Nearly 8 in 10 Asian travelers share adventures online