Business travellers of the future will expect technology to give them a seamless and convenient travel experience and will be driven by sustainability goals.
This is according to the new Traveller Tribes 2033 report from tech company Amadeus, which predicts what will shape travel over the coming decade and what types of travellers will emerge.
It identifies four Traveller Tribes that will develop in the next 10 years by examining emerging traveller traits, behaviours and preferences, to understand exactly what travellers will want a decade from now.
The report suggests many travellers will be open to new and emerging technologies and will want to travel in more sustainable ways.
The five technologies that will most interest travellers by 2033 are:
- Being able to pay for trips by cryptocurrency, in a virtual reality or via facial recognition
- Using data to create relevant trips
- Biometric data, to allow quick access through passport control
- Apps which have everything needed to plan travel
- Virtual reality preview tours
Business travellers and travel managers will benefit from tech advancements in a number of ways, says Clare De Bono, Associate Director Strategy & Transformation, & Country Manager, Amadeus UK.
“AI will be able to make personalised and relevant recommendations and help with planning. UK travellers will be most interested in using data to plan trips, while VR preview tours and the metaverse will enable try before you buy.
“AI is just one of the things that’s going to help, but also biometrics, really allowing that smooth transit through airports, and we are seeing tech helping with facial recognition and payments too.
“AI will make things better and more seamless. There are many talented people in the industry who are working on the big problems and if we can automate some of the smaller tasks, that will only make things easier and better. It’s about a blended and humanised approach.”
Travel managers should focus on personalisation and giving travellers more control, she added.
“Travel needs to be meaningful and person- centred, and we need to put the power to control the trip into people’s own hands.
“If they can control they’ll be able to personalise, which means less stressful journeys and experience without fuss, and planning at a pace they want.”
Business travellers will have an appetite for more sustainable travel, and are prepared to pay more for biofuel flights but will want to know whether their company is going to foot the bill.
De Bono urges the travel industry to work together to eventually embed sustainability in all parts of the process.
“The first step is transparency, to know what the sustainable choices are and to work together as an industry to offset and choose which are the most sustainable options.
“We should work towards sustainability by design so that travellers shouldn’t have to make those choices in the future as those things will already be embedded.”
