Travel: Are We Really Connecting?
Travel to explore has a whole new meaning now. Technology has helped bring everything on a platter. There is no effort involved in planning your vacation. There are numerous apps and website services that can do all the planning and execution for you. You just have to relax and be on the next flight to your destination. Even choosing the best mode of transport and finding the best deals is none of your concerns now. Travel agents will do all the hard work for you. Travel assistance has gone to the extent of websites and services spying on your travel related activity online. Sometimes it is creepy that a hotel in someplace close to your destination sends you deals about a room availability, when all you have done is to generally look for places worth visiting this summer.
Most of us agree on the fact that it is the death of privacy in this internet age but third party tracking websites and cookies take this to another level by bombarding you with numerous suggestions about where to go, what to see, how to shop in style and what not. Gone are the days when travel meant solitude, you traveled to far off places to get away from the crazy urban rush. But that’s a distant dream today. Technology has changed the way we travel. True, that technology has been instrumental in making travel convenient. But, with convenience, have emerged a new set of problems, I call it the problem of disconnecting with an intent to connect. We can’t seem to disconnect from technology and are disabled without it.
Apps have taken over the world of travel technology. The last time I googled cheapest flight fares, I found a gazillion apps that came to my rescue. That’s not all, I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw an app called ‘Toilet Finder’ and ‘Flush Toilet Finder’ that lets you find the closest toilet from your current location. I personally miss the times when getting in touch with family after a week of travel wasn’t as easy as it is now. Today we have mobile phones equipped with Global positioning systems that just won’t let us get lost. It’s tough to get lost these days, with the numerous apps that can track your location to the minute. Flashback to 30 years and we had to carry a compass, a map, food, water, etc., basically everything you need to survive because you never know when you will be faced with bad weather, dark alleys and parched deserts. Today if you are stuck somewhere you have nothing to worry because like a knight in shining armor, travel apps will come to your rescue. These apps serve you for everything under the sun, you name it and we have it. Its only about finding what fits your needs. One of the interesting apps I spotted was JetLag Genie, works by creating a customized schedule based on your flight information and sleeping patterns. It provides you with tips on when you should wake up, go to bed, go out in the sun, sit in the dark, change the time on your watch, or take a nap. Some of the informative and useful apps that could be helpful are Rome2Rio lets you pick any two points on earth, and will put together an itinerary connecting them, PackPoint Tracking List travel Companion to help you pack for your journey based on the weather, duration of stay, type of adventure, etc., Tipping tips that lets you tip like a local anywhere you go.
The internet and mobile technology have dramatically changed the way people search for and make travel arrangements. Now, one might argue that apps aren’t something that the older generation is comfortable with, but if we take a look at the demographics, 32 % of the travelers in United States are Millennials. These are the target audience for App makers. It also makes sense for businesses to target them because millennials spend a lot more than any other age group. They have the purchasing power and the disposable income which the middle aged people and the older generation most often do not have.
According to Digital Trip, travel technology experts, “Digital disruption can only come about when the digital process allows for something that was not possible in analogue form. Although these new formats are more convenient, they are more like-to-like versions than anything else. The Conversation argues that these are only superficial differences; they don't make the experiences of being in a new country any more profound.” Really, travel is a physical experience; the person must physically take themselves to a different location and experience it with both time and convenience restraints. The experience of a flying visit will never be the same as the experience of someone who has completely immersed themselves in that culture (by living or working there, for example). Digital has made some changes to travel, but these changes don't run deep, and they don't completely alter what it feels like to experience "new land".