Updated: August 26, 2022 
People are becoming independent these days as they do not need to rely on a travel agent for all the bookings and arrangements. Thanks to travel apps. Travel mobile apps are growing these days tremendously and have a great scope in the years to come.
Traveling apps have made things easier for travelers as they solve their problems and stay with them as companions throughout the trip. That is why people prefer to book their trips through mobile applications.
Traveling apps have made things easier for travelers as they solve their problems and stay with them as companions throughout the trip. That is why people prefer to book their trips through mobile applications.
So, if you are a new travel tech startup planning to grow your business with a successful travel mobile app, you must think of fresh and unique concepts as there are various market leaders in this niche.
In this blog, you will get details on developing a successful travel application but before delving into that, let’s check the statistical facts about the travel and tourism industry.
Travel and Tourism Industry Statistics
According to the UNWTO long-term forecast, the travel and tourism industry will reach 1.8 billion by 2030. The number of app downloads in the Travel industry is anticipated to reach 2,308.2m downloads in 2022.
Types of mobile travel apps you can develop in 2022
If you plan to develop a travel app for your business, you can consider these app ideas with a twist to offer something unique to your users that no one is offering in the marketplace.
Please find below some of the travel app ideas you can develop for your business.
Flight booking apps
Users can find flights to the destinations they want to visit using a flight booking app. The software assists you in finding all forthcoming flights, prices, and seat availability to particular locations.
Additionally, the software allows you to track planes by route, airport, or number on a map on your phone. Further, users can look up information on current delays, the time to land, the weather, when to board, and when to take off.
Hotel Reservation App
A mobile app for booking hotels lets travelers locate and reserve lodging. Customers can use this app to look for lodging options, including homestays, hotel rooms, etc.
Because there are numerous options available on this app, consumers can pick a property that meets their needs. Using the app’s search function, they can utilize filters like pricing, amenities, and customer ratings to choose a hotel. An app for hotel reservations benefits both travelers and tour operators.
Transport apps
Travelers are not permitted to bring their vehicle when flying to another city. But they must find a way to move around. Transport mobile apps can be helpful in that situation.
These apps can provide access to transit information as well as routes. Routes can even be shared amongst friends and family members. Additionally, you can integrate your solution with the current ride-sharing and taxi providers.
A tour guide app
Another great concept that offers travel guides for locations worldwide is the tour guide app. Tourists may locate a variety of restaurants offering different cuisines and price ranges.
The city guides mobile app also includes information on numerous regional tourism attractions, transportation, and other topics. Customers may rely on these apps to easily discover and enjoy a location. These apps make finding nearby, well-liked eateries and lodging facilities at a tourist site more straightforward.
Bus Ticket Booking App
You can use the concept of bus ticket reservation, just like you would with aircraft reservations. You can develop a bus ticket booking app to assist those who frequently take buses in quickly locating the available buses so they can go to their destinations.
Insurance App
The concept of this app appeals to many travelers. Tourists who get travel insurance find it simpler to get in touch with an insurance provider and submit a claim while abroad.
These apps offer real-time access to hospital contacts, insurance purchasing services, and emergency medical assistance while traveling.
You must include these essential features if you are planning to develop a travelling mobile app for your business:
Map Integration & Navigation
Geography and travel go hand in hand. All applications for travel and hospitality must include maps. Users should have access to comprehensive maps that are simple to read, use, and navigate. The maps must contain the necessary essential and in-depth information.
Numerous geolocation strategies are available that can be used to achieve this objective. There are more options outside the well-known Google Maps API, of course. TomTom, OpenLayers, HERE, Mapbox, and Mapfit are several options mentioned.
Must have features in a travel app
Registration
A sign-up function is present in almost all apps. Users must first create an account and provide personal information to use the app. People typically dislike drawn-out sign-up processes, so it is easy for users to use their phone, email, Facebook, or Google accounts to sign up for the app.
You can skip personal information like, name, age, nationality, etc. for as if you ask this information in the very start customers will get irritated.
Booking & reservation
For contemporary tourists, travel applications have already begun to resemble a marketplace. Include a booking feature in your app so that customers can reserve accommodations, tickets, tours, transportation, and entertainment.
To improve user experience, incorporate practical filtering and sorting options into your booking system, intelligent reminders, transparent price comparison, and simple navigation.
Listings
No matter what they are looking for, hotel rooms, apartments, hostels, attractions, etc., travelers must get the details about it. For instance, if the app provides room listings, it includes a feature that allows owners or hotel managers to provide detailed information about their business. It is ideal for incorporating things like videos, pictures, reviews and ratings, and 3D tours in the description.
Transportation
Once a person reaches the destination of their choice, obtaining practical transportation is essential. It is crucial to give users accurate and current information about the various transportation options, the timetable, costs, and other crucial facts.
Booking transportation services like taxis and trains would be quite beneficial. You can check through a comprehensive collection of transportation APIs or ask developers for more detailed analysis on it.
Emergency Services
A traveler may become lost or find themselves in an emergency situation while abroad. Emergency situations can become tragedies if the person cannot communicate in the local language and is unfamiliar with the surroundings.
Giving as much thorough information on emergency services as possible is one of the most excellent methods to avoid this. Additionally, enabling users to utilize the program to call for help in an emergency is a smart move. You can also assist them in contacting insurance firms and obtaining insurance.
Translator
An excellent method to facilitate communication between your users and the locals while traveling is to incorporate a built-in translator into your app. For visual translation, you can also include text scanning technologies.
Trip Planning
Planning travel is one of the key reasons people use travel applications. Apps with these features let you choose from various destinations, select your mode of transportation to get there, book hotels, and more.
Reviews & Recommendation
Offering consumers frank evaluations and suggestions is a must-have feature for any travel app, regardless of whether you are developing a mobile app for a travel agency or a travel aggregator. Users should be able to provide reviews for hotels, cafes, restaurants, and other establishments.
Weather Forecasting
Add a weather prediction element to your app to provide customers with information on temperature, humidity, weather changes, and anticipated precipitation to assist them in planning their ideal trip.
Currency converter
The payment system also includes a currency converter. For instance, if a user has to pay for a hotel room, they can instantly convert the amount into a helpful currency. Additionally, customers frequently need to exchange money while going abroad, so they can use your app to see the current conversion rate.
A step-by-step guide to developing a travel app
Step 1: Define the goal and objective of your mobile app
The first step is to decide the app development idea and the category you want to choose for developing traveling applications. To make your app properly customized, you need to define the objectives and app goals to make it a success.
Step 2: Research
Once the idea and goal are clear, you need to research the application’s market-like vital features and functionality. Also, you must research your target audience to get the right audience, and then you can decide how to stay ahead of your competitors.
Step 3: Decide the functionalities you want to add to your app.
Every business owner prefers to develop a feature-rich mobile app. Still, for that, you need to work on the features you need to include as per the app idea determining your end users’ needs and how you can influence them to download your travel app.
Step 4: Hire App Developers
Once everything has cleared up, the next step is looking for professionals to develop your mobile. You can consider freelancers, mobile app development companies, or in-house developers.
But it’s best if you go ahead with hiring a mobile app development company as they have a proper development team, from designers to testers to developers.
Step 5: Promote Your Mobile App
Once your mobile app gets launched to an apple store and playstore, you can start working on promoting it. You can consider marketing your mobile app digitally to let the audience explore it and become aware of its features.
How much does it cost to build a mobile travel app?
The cost required to develop a travel app depends on various factors like tech stack, development company location, platform, and features you want to add. US mobile app developers pay more, and Indian app developers charge less hourly fees.
To develop an app, you can either hire an in-house development team, hire a development company for your project or look for a freelance developer. Whichever option you choose also constitutes app development cost.
The development team for the mobile travel app:
Project manager
Android developers
Backend developers
iOS developers
QA engineer
UI/UX designer
How to Monetize your Travel App?
Advertising
It is one of the most well-known app monetization methods. You can show relevant advertisements for hotels, airlines, tour companies, and other businesses using a travel app. Companies in the travel and hospitality industries may purchase advertising space from you. They can pay as per reach, impressions, conversion, etc.
Paid Downloads
Another straightforward strategy is to charge consumers to download your mobile app. You must offer them enough value for this approach to succeed. They won’t be willing to pay for your application if that is the case.
Premium Features
Users may be charged for using the app’s extra features. Even while it would often be preferred, making your software free is not a requirement if you offer premium services.
Paid Subscription
You can charge consumers a monthly subscription for utilizing your program, much like the pay-per-download model does. Similar to pay-per-download, the value you offer on a regular basis needs to be greater than the cost you charge.
Commissions
Affiliate commissions are among the best business strategies for travel applications. Since users will book lodging, travel, and other services through your app, you can charge an affiliate commission for each transaction.
Using such a model would be advantageous for the app owner and the partners. It’s crucial to note that you don’t have to choose one model over another. One app can incorporate several monetization strategies.
So, the best is to discuss in detail and select the ideal team for developing a travel app.
Now, you must have an idea how to create a travel app, what features to include, and how to monetize it.
Conclusion
When it comes to traveling is an ever-growing business as people want to explore new places and make their travel experience enjoyable. You can develop a mobile app with exciting features that your competitors are not offering, or you can develop a unique mobile app development idea for business success.
+918968519881