Tuesday, 15 October 2013
Talking Tech - Hotel Owner - Ryan C Haynes becomes a columnist
So, I've just become a monthly columnist for UK publication Hotel Owner where I will be talking the world of Technology. giving my insight and advice on how hotels should approach core developments in the technology.
Check out my monthly column as I post it here.
Friday, 11 October 2013
The future of independent booking – as hotels and online travel agents (OTAs) see it
So I was privy to a
presentation from Google talking about the trends it sees in travel and the
forecast for the industry – the thing with Google is that 1) it sits on huge
amounts of user data from our searches, our blogs, our reviews, our thoughts,
our status updates and our videos and 2) it receives billions of pounds in
advertising from the travel industry – so it definitely has an interest in the
market…
Interesting trends:
43% people move between
devices when researching travel
Desktop saw a reduction
of searches by -6%
Mobile saw an increase in
searches by +71%
Tablet saw an increase in
searches by +131%
Admittedly I work across
all 3 devices, but my tablet is only connected to WiFi so I do tend to end up
working on my mobile or Desktop - I still love my laptop.
The UK, according to
Deloitte, is one of the most advanced for using mobiles, with smartphone
penetration at a height of 72%.
It must people pointed
out, however, that if you do a search on Google for most regular terms it is
likely your results will be the big online travel agents, therefore to filter
these out, you should consider long-tail key words that focus on Location,
Season, Events, Interests etc…so if you’re looking for a hotel
AVOID:
- Hotel Munich
USE
- 3star, hotel munich, boutique, special Oktoberfest events,
towards the north of city
If you have interest in a
particular event or location in the city, name it in your search term, this
will give you an array of new results that will include independent hotels.
What the hoteliers on the
panel did note, is that the OTAs do offer travelers the ‘Distressed’ inventory –
this is rooms that have not yet been sold. Therefore a greater opportunity to
get a good deal on these rooms.
Another place to look for
checking hotel rates is meta-search website http://www.hipmunk.com/
that offers the Discomfort factor…how much are you willing to lose out on for
the sake of a good rate at a hotel…give it a test run and see if it suits your
needs. An alternative is http://trivago.com/ offering
comparison in products for you.
What all this shows us,
is that the way we may soon research travel is going to change. The hotels are fighting
the OTAs, the OTAs are buying new companies to stay ahead, and the technology
is changing fast. Furthermore, the way, we as travelers must interact with
Search Engines has to change to give us the results that we want.
So – are you ready to
make a change in the way you buy your travels?
Thursday, 10 October 2013
Top Gay Travel Websites
Gay travel information websites – getting the
low-down part 1
I wanted to share
with you the websites I use to find out gay information when traveling and out
and about. I know my blog is one way of helping you, but any experiences you do
have, please share with me and on my blog so we can build fresh content
together.
Check these out.
GayTravel.com
This website
connects gay and lesbian travelers with gay friendly destinations, hotels,
cruises and tours throughout the world. It is like a virtual gay travel
magazine with a mission to provide visitors with the most comprehensive
and accurate information available to make your vacation pleasurable and comfortable.
Qguide.com
QGuide.com is a
growing social travel network that lets you discover, connect and share your
interests, passions and experiences with other like-minded travelers and meet
locals. It focuses on taking the gay and then taking you out of that experience
- enticing you to venture out of your comfort zones to discover the beautiful
wonderful wider world through a gay eye. Here are blogs and content from other
gay tavelers
myGayTrip.com
This growing
French gay destination and travel information provides reviews of places,
venues and events and gives you the low-down of what is coming up. Discover new
places with some excellent sexy imagery through the gay French eye.
GayCities
This growing
website and mobile phone application is putting you in the heart of the gay
world wherever on the globe you are. This simple location-based application
will provide all local bars events and clubs. Still developing with content but
ever receiving more reviews and rankings from members, GayCities is becoming an
excellent source of information. http://www.gaycities.com
Patroc.com
This gay travel guide may seem basic, but
there are some hidden gems within the content. Patroc can occasionally pop-up
on search engines when looking for gay events across Europe, so it is
definitely worth delving in on your next European trip to learn more about the
cities and its activities.
GaysOnTour.com
Check out Gaysontour.com for events
worldwide, they seem to source many bear, leather and fetish parties and Pride
events. So if you like to check out something different or you have a
particular interest when traveling then this is an ideal source for your travel
plans.
The Longest Way Home
Providing travel inspiration from some of
the greatest traveler and writers the world has seen, thelongestwayhome.com
covers countries and cities across the world providing the information on the
must see places
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