But what is the reason behind travel being redefined and how has it come about?  We look in just a small amount of detail at some ways that social media has contributed to changes in the travel industry:-

We want something new

Once upon a time, if you wanted to travel on holiday you would have to head down to your local travel agent and browse their collection of brochures in order to find the right destination for you.  Now we have a whole wealth of photographs, recommendations and inspiration at our fingertips and it has given the whole industry a huge shake-up.  We are being motivated to travel further, to search for a more authentic experience when we do travel and to push the boundaries on what has already been done.  It isn’t enough now to just book a two week holiday in the sun, we want bigger and better and we want it now.  It is precisely because of social media networks that we are travelling into more exotic places than ever before; places which would previously have seemed too far away are now quite common place and people don’t view long-haul travel in the same way that they once did.  On top of that, our quest to showcase our amazing holidays pushes us to try things and to venture into experiences we wouldn’t have ever thought possible.

We want to share

Oversharing is the name of the game at the moment and the majority of us love to upload our photos and videos to show off to our friends and family, preferably whilst we are still out enjoying ourselves on holiday.  This means that we are more demanding when it comes to the facilities we find in our hotel; we expect there to be free wireless internet for one and it also makes us more savvy about the type of holiday we choose to go on too.  Sharing photos and videos creates a circle effect; friends and family see inspirational and vibrant images and are themselves inspired to book a trip and share photos which in turn goes on to entice other people and so on and so on.  Although some people turn their noses up at the amount of sharing done online it is actually giving the tourism industry a huge boost as people are now much more willing to invest money into travelling in order to capture those same memories they have seen shared by other people.

Of course this does also have its downsides and whilst we are all too happy sharing our enjoyable moments, we have also become quite adept at sharing when things don’t go right either.  Delayed flights, lost luggage or simply a hotel which didn’t live up to its reputation…everything is fair game and more people are turning to social media to air their grievances when something goes wrong.  Whilst some people may say that this is fair and right; that people should be able to share and warn other potential travellers, there does also have to be a certain amount of common sense applied when reading other people’s complaints.  Each individual person will come with their own set of expectations so just because one company or brand doesn’t match them, doesn’t mean that they should be written off.  Likewise however, a brand or company should do their best to assist customers and guests and ensure that they have the best possible experience when travelling.  It is best to try to read a wide number of opinions before forming your own if you plan to research on social media before booking your next trip.

We want to connect

Far from social media making us less interactive, it would seem that when it comes to the world of travel we are actually more of a community than ever.  Like-minded people are gathering together on social media networks to share their gems of knowledge, to offer advice and support to travellers and even a place to stay for the night if people find themselves in a sticky situation.  It is because of social media that a person can book a room at the Montcalm, having never been to London before, and then throw out a request for hidden locations worth visiting, before ending up with a whole host of places to go and see.  There are numerous hashtags which can be used to identify yourself as a person who likes to travel and there are even apps and programs which allow you to physically arrange a meeting with other people in your chosen destination (although we would always recommend caution in these types of situations).

But social media has ultimately opened up a whole wealth of travel possibilities which many of us would never before have considered and this can only be to the better.  We are learning more about different cultures, investing in the tourism industry and raising the expectation of what we expect when we travel.

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TripIt

Wouldn’t it be great if something could organise all the details in all those confirmation emails you receive for your trip, so your travel arrangements are easily digestible? Well, there is in the shape of the terrific TripIt. Simply forward those emails to this app and it’ll do the work for you – organise your flight schedules, hotel bookings and meetings info into both a calendar-formatted itinerary. Available on: iOS, Android, Windows Phone and Blackberry/ price: free (Basic); $49 a year (Pro).

Hotel Tonight

Within  just five clicks on your smartphone this free app will ensure you’ve been able to locate and book a perfect hotel room in the major city you’re visiting – on the same day as your arrival – as it taps into its clever-clever list of thousands of last-minute room deals. Ideal for those who’ve either forgotten to book beforehand, found somewhere they wanted to stay’s overbooked or are simply caught having to fly out for a meeting at the last moment. Available on: iOS and Android.

The Montcalm

Being one of the world’s most business-oriented and busiest cities, you may well find yourself visiting London for work at some point in the future. In which case, if you fancy spoiling yourself a little while you’re there (and why not?), then a great place to base yourself would be at one of the several Montcalm luxury hotels. And this stay in London app is an excellent example of a hotel-specific digital presence done right. It perfectly reflects the Montcalm brand – enticingly and stylishly elegant but contemporary; efficient and effective – showcasing the venue’s many additional amenities (including cocktail bars and acclaimed restaurants), as well as enabling you to book rooms and edit or cancel reservations.

WeatherPro

If he’s being honest, this particular blogger doesn’t put much stock in weather forecasts (let’s be honest, half the time they’re wrong – at least in changeable weather-afflicted Britain. However, not everyone feels that way and, on occasions, when seriously adverse weather is clearly on the way, having an app that provides up-to-the-minute forecasts or even real-time updates for any destination you might visit is more than a little useful. And this is right where the highly recommended WeatherPro comes in. Available on: iOS, Android, Windows Phone and Blackberry/ price: from around £0.65 ($0.99).

Gate Guru

A similar sort of offering to TripIt, this app creates a flight itinerary for you as a simple but rather beautiful interface – the real beauty of it being that it will update changes to your flight in real-time; really handy among business traveller apps, especially for when you’re sitting at the gate itself and immersed in other things so might miss alteration announcements over the airport P.A. system. Moreover, downloading is free. Available on: iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

Uber

The Uber service allows you not just to book your ride from the airport to your place-of-stay, but also track its arrival time, as well as be assured of a highly recommended professional service. This free app’ll even take care of the payment side of things. Plus, showing up in one of Uber’s private cars – instead of a taxi or minicab – is bound to make for a great impression at that business meeting. Available on: iOS and Android.

AroundMe

If you’re visiting somewhere entirely new and need to hit the ground running (when don’t you?) then this is the – again, free – app for you. Why? Because once you tap in the area where you’ll be staying, it instantly finds services in exactly your vicinity; hotels, banks, petrol stations, coffee shops and even hospitals. Whatever you’ll need, basically. Needless to say, it comes complete with a directions feature so you won’t get lost on the way to wherever you go. Available on: iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

iTranslate

If you’re trying to converse with someone for whom English isn’t their first language, just imagine the tables being turned and how difficult it would be for you to do so in their language (should you know little or nothing of it). This is where iTranslate comes in very handy. An easy-to-use and easy-on-the-eye app to break down the language barrier in business meetings – and indeed social meetings too. Best of all, it’s free to download. Très bon! Available on: iOS, Android, OSX and Windows.

Evernote

Finally, here’s an ideal app for taking notes in meetings – saving you having to pack, get out and then carry around with you cumbersome and fiddly note-taking or recording equipment. It also ensures that everything it ‘records’ is stored in the cloud, so you don’t need to use exactly the same device to retrieve it; any other one with Evernote installed will suffice. Available on: pretty much everything/ price: free (upgrades available for small fees).

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