Decades ago there was just one way to plan your travel - visit a travel agent. You would go to the agency, browse through a few brochures and a travel agent would help you plan your holiday, including your hotel bookings, flights, transport etc. But with the arrival of the Internet a traveller has the control of how they want to plan their journey. With so many Online Travel Agents (OTAs) you are no longer limited to a few options. With a click you can book your flights, hotels, transfers, travel insurance - the list goes on. Agoda, Expedia. Booking.com, Skyscanner and ClearTrip are some of the many OTAs that can help a person make their travel plans. However, it doesn't mean that the travel agencies on the ground have disappeared. They still cater to a lot of corporate companies and individuals.

Travellers in the Middle East have also caught up with the online booking trend. With a young population, many OTAs, airlines and hotels are encouraging people to use their online platforms to plan their travel. Online travel bookings in the MENA region increased by 10% in 2014. According to YouGov data (which surveyed 22,686 online respondents, all MENA residents, in 2014), 31% of those surveyed booked all of their travel requirements online, an increase of 10% over 2013. Of those surveyed 25% used their smartphones to book hotels online while mobile usage to access online travel guides or to book leisure activities rose by 6%. Spontaneity in the decision-making process for choosing a destination has increased by 11% according to the YouGov data, thanks to upgraded technology.

Interestingly, travellers from Qatar form the highest proportion of people who checkin online. The profile of the person who usually checks in online from Qatar is an Indian aged 40+ earning around $2,666 (QR9,700) and is married without children.

In a study conducted in 2014 by Expedia the online travel website, UAE travellers are the most dependent on mobile devices - with 86% saying their smartphone is "very important/critical" versus 76% of global travelers who say the same. 89% of UAE travellers always bring a smartphone on business trips, and Emiratis are the most likely of all countries surveyed to always bring a laptop on leisure trips.

These devices effectively serve as a concierge, guide and companion for travellers, who rely on smartphones, tablets and other mobile technologies during every stage of their trip. On the whole, more than one-third (35%) of the world's travellers use their smartphones more when they travel than they do at home.

The online savvy travellers are not only active on the OTA websites but also many of them prefer directly visiting their preferred hotel or airline website for booking their itinerary. For example, the Qatarairways.com website receives approx. 6.2 million visitors on a monthly basis.  Qatar and Saudi Arabia combined contribute to 12.5% of this traffic, i.e., 775,000 visits a month. We don't know how many of these visits convert to a booking; however, these numbers are encouraging signs of growing interest in online bookings in the region.

As online booking websites have increased in popularity, whether it be via comparison websites or directly through the source, the market is extremely competitive. As a result, most of the OTAs, hotels and flights have their own loyalty programmes tempting customers to book with them. An example is Qatar Airways' QMiles.

The travel sector has a major contribution to the e-commerce boom in the Middle East region. Thanks to the online capability that has empowered the consumer to take control of their
travel plans.

About kapil
Kapil is a digital professional in the Financial Services Industry. He is an expert in Digital Channels, Payments, e-Business, Cross Sell and development of Digital Marketing strategies, with a sound Information Technology base. He is also a founder of a digital/tech blog called Tfour.me that is focused on Middle East

© Qatar Today 2015