Mobile Travel Apps Survey: Deals, Research Among Top Motivators

Mobile applications are becoming a big part of many different industries – including travel. Mobile travel apps can help consumers do everything from researching room rates to planning out routes. In fact, a recent study by TripAdvisor found that nearly half of travelers around the world use smartphones to plan or book their travels. So how many people have used mobile travel apps? And what types of functions do they look for in those apps? We asked 1,000 respondents about their thoughts on mobile apps and travel.

Mobile Applications

In Ask Your Target Market’s latest survey, 37% of respondents said that they currently own multiple mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. 41% said they own one such mobile device. And 22% don’t have any. Of those respondents who have at least one mobile device, 60% said they own a smartphone. 38% have a tablet. And just 2% own other types of mobile devices like iPods with internet access or notebooks.20% of mobile consumers said that they last downloaded new mobile apps within the past day. 27% have done so within the past week. 25% have gotten new mobile apps in the past month. 11% have within the past three months. 5% have within the past year. 4% said it’s been over a year since they last downloaded any new mobile apps. And 8% said they aren’t mobile app consumers at all.

Mobile Travel Apps

In general, 21% of mobile consumers said they have social media apps on their devices. Another 21% have gaming apps. 16% have photo or video related apps. 12% have news apps. Another 11% have utility apps. 9% have food or drink apps. 6% said they have travel apps. And 5% have other types of apps like those related to finance, sports or wellness.More specifically, 17% of mobile respondents said that they’ve used multiple mobile travel apps at some point. 22% have used one travel-related app. And 61% haven’t used any. Tablet owners were slightly more likely than smartphone owners to say they’ve used travel apps, though there was a lot of overlap between smartphone and tablet owners. Google Maps, Expedia, Travelocity, TripAdvisor, Hotels.com, Kayak, Trivago, Uber and Waze were among some of the popular travel apps respondents have used.

Travel Habits

Looking forward, 28% of mobile consumers said they are at least somewhat likely to download travel-related mobile apps within the next year. Of those who have already used travel apps, 49% said they would be at least somewhat likely to download more travel apps this year. In addition, 19% of those who are likely to download travel apps said they would look for apps that let them find travel deals or discounts. 17% would look for apps that let them research travel or accommodations. Another 17% like apps that let them plan routes or navigate. 16% want apps that let them research restaurants or other attractions in an area. 15% look for apps that include reviews of attractions or destinations. And 14% want apps that let them actually book their travels or accommodations.Overall, just 3% of respondents said they’ve traveled within the past day. 6% have traveled in the past week. 16% have done so within the month. 16% have traveled in the past three months. 17% have done so within the past year. 25% said it’s been more than a year since they last traveled. And 18% said they don’t travel at all. Of those who have traveled in the past month, 30% said they’ve used multiple mobile travel apps. And 29% have used one. In addtion, 41% said they would be at least somewhat likely to download travel related apps in the next year.

Key Takeaways

Mobile travel apps can serve many different purposes and appeal to a lot of different consumers. However, it seems that regular travelers are more likely to actually download travel related apps, since those who travel irregularly may be more likely to just visit a website once or twice instead of getting an app dedicated to that function. Those who have already used travel apps and tablet users also seem to be more likely to consider downloading new travel apps. In addition, it seems like potential travel app users are most interested in apps that let them research and compare rates and deals, rather than ones that let them actually book their travels.You can view the complete survey results in the widget below and be sure to click “Open Full Report” to take advantage of all the chart and filter options.Photo Credit: BA mobile app for iPhone – Mobile boarding pass by British Airways under CC BY 2.0What do you want to know? If you need some consumer insights on a particular topic, let us know in the comments below and we’ll consider it for an upcoming survey post.

Results were collected on August 1 via AYTM’s online survey panel.