The travel industry is now just as savvy as various other industries in seeing the value in using Big Data analytics in their regular business operations. Online activities by consumers aka “holiday-makers” generates a lot of data while searching for holiday destinations to buying backpacks online.

While people generate a lot of data on the internet purposely or accidentally there are several other Alternative Data sources that the travel industry can use to make better decisions. These datasets can help the travel industry in seeing their “blind spots” and make more analytics-driven decisions.

The Role of Big Data in Tourism & Transportation

Big Data analytics is being used by travel and transportation companies all around the world. For instance, airline operators use analytics to understand passenger’s purchasing and travel patterns about particular demographics. Brands and airport retailers use data to plan inventory, adjust pricing, and even for staffing.

Companies and Destination Marketing Organisations (DMOs) in the tourism sector can benefit from Big Data in many ways. That includes marketing campaigns, offering packages sorted to visitor’s likely interests or passenger profiles, to focus on getting customers in from new source markets.

“They (DMOs) can identify their potential customers while increasing the efficiency and the quality of services given at every stage in the planning process and customer journey. Big Data can also be used as a predictive tool to forecast which new products, hotels, and tours might work well in their destination,” says Emilio Iñes Villar, VP of Destinations at ForwardKeys.

Big Data for Travel Recovery

Tourism companies in several countries are also turning towards Big Data applications to understand tourism progress and travel recovery post-Covid19 and also to find more investment opportunities in their country.

Innovation and adoption of technology have made it feasible to give real-time insights into what your clients need, the overall growth of the business, and competitive performance in the market.

“What we can expect from the future is that smart cities and key tourism players will increasingly use Big Data to their advantage. This will truly revolutionise what cities and destinations offer to their international traveller arrivals and local residents alike. With initiatives around the globe, intelligent travel is the way of the future for tourism,” concludes Villar.

What is your organization doing to cover its blind spots as it drives your destination towards travel recovery? Life and the way we work needs to be re-adjusted to the “New Normals” post-pandemic, are you ready for it?