Travel App Development Guide – Cost, Benefits, Features
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Ankit Patel - November 21, 2022
- 6 min read
Gone are the days when one had to place calls offline to make a travel plan. In the digital generation we live in, it comes as no surprise these offerings have gotten digitized. This has allowed users to easily book trips online and access their details in a simplified way.
Therefore, travel app development is undoubtedly worth investing in, particularly if you have yet not digitized your travel and tourism business. It will ensure that end-users can easily book trips and based on the bookings, the business earns a good amount of returns and profits.
Want to know more about the solution? Read this comprehensive guide to know about the concept of travel mobile app development.
Market Stats for Online Travel and Tourism Business
The online travel and tourism business has helped customers easily book trips and access their details. It has equally assisted the tourism business to digitize its offerings, manage bookings, automate its operations, and so on. This has supported it eventually in gaining a prominent nature.
Check out these market stats to get a clear view of this.
Image source: statista.com
- Current revenues made by travel apps is $333.40 million in 2022.
- Profit to take place at a CAGR of 11.05% between 2022 to 2026.
- The market volume will be $507 million by 2026.
- The number of downloads are around 2308.2 million in 2022.
- The online travel booking market will be around $83 billion in 2025.
Stats source: Statista
Reasons for Popularity of Travel and Tourism Business
Have a look at the reasons for the popularity of the travel and tourism business.
- Assists users to record travel experiences.
- Helps travel and tourism businesses to automate booking and other related tasks.
- Supports the travel venture to get visibility boosted.
So you know the reasons for the popularity of the travel business, let us know the benefits of developing a travel app. This will help you to gain insight into why ventures are integrating their operations.
Benefits of Developing a Travel App
Check out the benefits of building a travel app to take your business to the next-gen level of success.
- Streamlines travel itinerary planning tasks.
- Automates how ticket booking is done by customers.
- Reduces the rate of paperwork for the tourism industry by allowing the business to manage operations from the app itself.
- A travel mobile app can be run from anywhere
- Helps resolve any form of queries related to travel bookings instantaneously.
How Does the Online Travel App Work?
Check out the operations of the online travel booking app.
- Users can login through their mobile number or email id or can directly login through social media accounts such as Facebook, Twitter, etc.
- After successful login, the user chooses the destination they want to travel, to and the hotel they want to book and performs booking consecutively.
- Booking gets confirmed.
- Travel agency receives bookings and receives payment for the same.
Alongside the flexibility that the app provides for booking trips, it also supports customers in connecting with other travelers, getting trip recommendations, and so on. This has helped the solution in getting its prominence boosted manifold.
Popular Travel Apps in the Market
The most popular travel apps that have been responsible for travel and tourism businesses observing prominence are Airbnb, Skyscanner, Booking.com, Expedia, etc. These solutions have streamlined the travel booking experience for users. It has supported the industry to earn sufficient returns as well, side-by-side.
Factors To Consider While Building a Travel App
When you set out on the journey to perform travel mobile app development, follow these steps so you can successfully build a travel app that drives value for you.
• Conduct Research on Competitors & Target Customers
Research is probably something you cannot ignore. Unless you know what your competitors are doing it is impossible to gain insight into a structure for your app.
It is equally recommended that you have comprehended the needs of your target market well in advance. This is going to make it easy for you to ideate an app design so more customers remain engaged with your solution.
Ask these questions, in particular:
- What kind of an app has been developed by my competitors?
- Does the app have any missing features?
- If yes, can its inclusion add value for me?
- Are customers happy with what they are received?
- If not, how do I make them happy and engaged?
• Gain Insight into Revenue Models
When you enter the journey of travel mobile app development, make sure to know the revenue models. This will give you a formative idea of how the app generates profits.
- Merchant Model – The platform purchases hotel rooms, and sells them to guests. Used by apps like Expedia, through the model it becomes easy for hotels to provide affordable deals to customers.
- Commission Fees – The travel business sets commission rates based on booking customers make, travel agencies or hotels get charged around 10 to 30% on the booking amount.
- Advertising – Known as an affordable revenue model; the model involves displaying ads of hotels, tour operators, etc, or selling advertising spaces. Used by TripAdvisor, the model involves charging cost-per-click to the supplier and earning through them.
• Know Different App Types
This is another important point that you need to keep in mind when you build a travel app; it is crucial you know the different app types.
- Booking app for making trip bookings
- Accommodation app for booking a room
- Travel guide app to assist customers to know about a particular destination in detail
- Virtual tour app
- Flight tracking app
• Add Unique and Relevant Features
It is a good idea to include relevant features. In other words, include features that will drive value for your app and allow travel booking to take place conveniently, alongside supporting you to generate profits.
Here are some you can particularly add-
- Profile management to update profile details.
- The search filter to make the process of travel booking an immersive one.
- Push notifications to provide personalized travel plans.
- Multiple payment options.
- Get travel recommendations.
- Travel booking history.
- Intelligent booking system to automate the booking process and allow customers to get quick travel booking options.
- Climate and weather updates.
- Rating and review to share travel experiences.
• Use Robust Tech
Choose robust tech stacks when you build a travel app so that booking and other services are easy to perform through it.
- Swift for iOS
- Kotlin or Java for Android
- Node.JS/Express.JS for Backend & API
- React.JS for Front-end
- MongoDB for Database
- AWS for Server
- Flight alerts – Alerts API
- Twilio for Push Notifications
- PayPal, Braintree, EWallets, Stripe for Payments
• Outsource Travel and Tourism App Development
Once you have a comprehensive understanding of the revenue model, features, and kind of app you want to develop, it is a good idea to next outsource tourism and travel app development services.
Connect with a reliable travel app development company offshore after you have assessed their portfolio and client reviews in detail.
To find the company it is a good idea that you go online. Visit sites like Clutch to read about the company review. This will simplify your journey of finding a dedicated partner.
Once you are satisfied with the organization, connect with them. Share your app idea, and comprehend their understanding of the same. Thereafter, partner with them to see your dream transform into reality and earn sufficient returns.
How Much Does Travel App Development Cost?
When you set out on the journey to build a travel app to create a revolution among other travel and tourism businesses, it is a good idea that you keep your budget in strict check.
Remember, The cost of developing a travel booking app will depend on several factors, such as:
- The country you are hiring the app development company
- UI/UX design
- App platform (iOS, Android, or both)
- Advance features you want to include
- 3rd Party API integration
- App maintenance
Hence make sure to keep the app as relevant as you can- include features that make travel booking easy to perform and track. Also, outsource the services. This will keep your budget within the limit and allow you to operate without any form of obstacles or roadblocks.
Check out the developer’s rate for travel app development in different parts of the world.
- USA – $150 to $200
- Australia – $100 to $150
- UK – $50 to $100
- Eastern Europe – $50 to $100
- Central & Western Europe – $100 to $150
- India – $15 to $40
However, the estimated cost of developing a basic traveling app can vary between $20,000 – $30,000. The cost may go higher based on the advanced features and functionalities you want to include in your mobile application.
Bottom Line
The pandemic has come to an end. It is time to pack your bags and get your travel bug into action. As more and more people start stepping out of their houses the prospect to build a travel app will do wonders for the travel and tourism businesses. It will allow the business to reduce paperwork and automate its daily activities. If you are among them, connect with us today. With our expertise in custom travel app development, when you share your requirements, we will craft a solution to keep costs in check and allow you to obtain returns like never before.
Ankit Patel is a Director of Sales & Marketing at XongoLab Technologies LLP and PeppyOcean, A leading mobile app development companies. In his free time, He likes to write articles about technology, marketing, business, web, and mobile. His articles featured on YourStory, E27, Datafloq, JaxEnter, TechTarget, eLearningAdobe, DesignWebKit, InstantShift, Business Magazine, SimpleProgrammer, and many more.
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