UK travellers are willing to spend an average of £60 on ‘personalising their trip’, representing a large untapped market for hotels and airlines, according to travel technology firm Sabre.
The study of more than 100 travel and technology professionals showed the amount travellers are willing to spend on extras is significantly higher than revenue generated by airlines from ancillary sales, which is £10 per passenger.
It also showed around 70 per cent think it’s important to receive travel options catered to their personal travel history and preferences.
“I receive custom music options after I download a song, and my bank remembers my preferences, so it’s no surprise that consumers expect the same from their travel suppliers,” said Eric Hallerberg, managing director, UK and Ireland, Sabre.
“The travel industry is leaving money on the table by not making their ancillary services more widely available, wherever and whenever the traveller wants them. It’s a significant retail and revenue opportunity, and one we are very focused on helping our airline, hotel and agency customers address,” he added.
Female spend
The study showed women were more likely than men to spend on personalising their journey, with 71 per cent saying they’d be prepared to part with cash for airline extras, versus 63 per cent of males.
Willingness to spend was also higher among younger travellers, with 20 per cent of 16-24-year-olds willing to fork out more than £100 on personalising their travel compared with just 10 per cent of over 55s.
Data sharing
The Sabre research showed some UK travellers were willing to share personal information in return for a more personalised service, with 25 per cent agreeing to share their location and 33 per cent sharing their travel history with travel suppliers.
“In the hotel industry, there is a real opportunity to use information from guests to create valuable and seamless experiences for them when they return,” said Lennert De Jong, chief commercial officer at Citizen M Hotels.
“For example, you set your room to 18 degrees when you stay at Citizen M; why would we, on your next check-in, give you a room that is 24 degrees? There’s an opportunity for hotels that can learn from and respond to their guests, which will create not just additional revenue through purchasing extras, but also will garner more loyalty from travellers that feel like their hotel knows and cares about them.
“Travellers are likely to experience more of this seamless personalisation from their hotels within the near future,” he said.