Updated: August 9, 2022 
The ability to traverse the world easily has been made more accessible, all thanks to travel apps. The development of travel apps has become significant and profound because more people spend their time studying and preparing for their upcoming trips or business tours.
As per stats, online travel mobile app bookings were $755 billion in 2019, and in 2021, bookings increased to $613 billion. Also, hotel mobile searches grew by over 60% in the past two years.
Before developing a Travel Mobile App for your business, research properly, check your competitors, and add exciting UI/UX and advanced features accordingly.
Let’s dig deep into understanding more about how to develop a feature-rich travel app that helps you in generating ROI.
Travel Apps Monetization Method
Developing a travel app is not enough. You need to plan how you want to earn from your traveling app. We have helped you to get an insight into how travel apps make money to help you better understand your business monetization model.
How do travel apps make money?
The oldest and most successful method of making money from a travel app is advertising. As soon as the user launches the app, a full-screen advertisement is shown for a brief period. The advertisement may include a link to any other website. Therefore, the ROI of the tourism industry would also increase due to this.
What type of travel apps are doing wonders in the marketplace?
What apps are being created now, and how can they benefit travelers? In this section, we’ll discuss a few of the most common application types developed for this sector.
Types of travel apps you can consider developing for your business.
Please find below a few of the popular travel app categories that you can consider:
Travel Planning App
A trip planning app is a tool for making reservations, keeping track of rewards, and looking through travel deals. Consumers, travel suppliers, and agents can use software to arrange their trips. While some applications are made exclusively for use by travel agents, others are made for private customers.
Expedia, Orbitz, and Travelocity are a few examples of trip planning applications.
Deals Alerts App
Deals alerts help travel agencies generate revenue by directing potential clients to partner websites. These alerts are intended to supplement rather than take the place of standard travel search engines.
Bargains notifications are typically implemented as mobile apps or browser plugins that alert users to exclusive deals even when they aren’t actively looking for travel.
Deal alerts come in a wide variety of forms. The simplest form of deal alerts is the most fundamental. Customers may only hear about local bargains from them, or they may only hear about deals that are valid for a certain period.
Customers may be shown the price of the bargain or simply the name of the business providing the deal. More sophisticated deal alerts are tailored to the user. These alerts consider the customer’s location and the most recent search engine results. Additionally, they can view the client’s prior purchases and customize alerts to their interests.
The trip planning apps Scott’s Cheap Flights, Skyscanner, and Hopper, are a few examples.
Travel Security Apps
A travel security app offers users safety and security support when traveling. Travel security apps provide safety and security alerts, emergency assistance, travel expense crowdfunding, and trip record-keeping. They also offer tools like personal safety and security checklists, crucial information like emergency contact numbers, and facts on nearby embassies and consulates. Since they put security and safety information in the hands of those who need it most, these applications can be helpful for travelers. As a result, travelers are less exposed than they would be without the app.
State Travel Safe, NordVPN, and bSafe are a few examples of social networking apps.
Virtual Tour App
Virtual tours are 360-degree videos that allow viewers to explore a place before going there in person. Similar to panoramic photographs, virtual tours are created utilizing specialized equipment (360-degree cameras), technical stitching programs, and 3D animations. Real estate brokers, travel agencies, hotels, and other players in the tourism sector employ virtual tours to give their clients engaging experiences.
Examples of virtual tour apps include National Museum of Natural History Virtual Tours, The Hidden Worlds of the National Parks, and AirPano.
Currency Conversion App
Any app that enables users to convert currencies on their smartphones qualifies as a currency conversion app for the travel sector. Some apps for currency conversion are linked to certain currencies, such as the Euro. Various currencies are linked to other currency conversion apps, including the US Dollar, the Japanese Yen, the British Pound, and the Australian Dollar.
Although this program can be used for many different things, international travelers frequently seem to use it. To change their home currency into the local currency of their destination, travelers use currency conversion applications. They can buy food, travel, and lodging with the converted currency.
Money Converter+, Xe Currency Converter, and Currency are a few examples of currency conversion apps.
Translation App
Translation could be one of the features of the tourism industry to offer through an app. A mobile application that enables passengers to translate words from their mother tongue to the language of their destination is known as a translation app.
For instance, a visitor from Germany might translate a word from German to Italian while they are in Rome, thanks to translation software for the tourism sector.
iTranslate, Google Translate, and SayHi Translate are a few examples of translation apps.
Facilities Finder App
A smartphone application called a facilities finder enables users to look up and identify nearby hotel and airport facilities. These apps often contain a database of services and other companies in the area, such as stores and restaurants. These apps’ special features might vary widely, and the industries they cater to may strongly influence how they are designed.
Apps that help you find amenities include Flush, HotelTonight, and AroundMe.
Navigation Apps
Customers can use a navigation app on their smartphone to find their way through congested areas like railway stations, airports, and other public spaces. They are accommodating to people who are blind. Most navigational applications employ GPS signals to determine the user’s location and Google Maps or digital maps to show the user how to get there.
Others can take the user directly to their destination (and prevent detours) based on the quickest way, while some navigation applications can estimate journey time based on current traffic patterns. In addition to helping users navigate around cars and pedestrians, some navigation applications also contain information on public transportation.
Here are a few examples of navigational apps: Waze, Kampot, and HERE WeGo.
Features you must consider for your travel app in 2022
Here is the list of features that you must implement while developing a travel application in 2022:
Social Media Account Login
Travelers’ social media accounts and platforms should be immediately integrated into the app because it is a personal tool. Include the option for social media login when a user creates an account on your app.
This will shorten the registration process and get you access to their social media profiles, enabling you to create customized offers and advertisements for each user. The majority of users also value being able to share travel information straight to their preferred social media platform without having to launch a different app.
Local Emergency Services
When an emergency arises, life doesn’t care whether or not a traveler is in a foreign country. No matter what city they travel through, tourists can feel secure knowing where local hospitals and police stations are, with the help of local emergency services.
Simply incorporate a feature that lists the phone numbers of all nearby emergency services. Users can also make direct phone calls to these providers using the app. This not only gives your users protection but also lends them some trust and shows that you are concerned about their safety.
Traveler evaluations of the experience
If an application has a review system and provides the most excellent services, it can develop a viral fan base. This feature lets users rate a location and tell other tourists about their experience. It raises awareness and aids in enhancing the offerings of hotels, cafes, and numerous other establishments.
Translation Functionality
Travelers are less likely to remain in their nation or region these days. The surge in international travel makes it unnecessary for any travel app to have translation features. Too frequently, a language barrier makes people feel impeded when traveling.
Even though translation apps are available in the iOS and Android app stores, travelers don’t want to be forced to use multiple programs simultaneously to save battery life.
With the help of travel app development companies, you can incorporate translation features into your travel app to give visitors the freedom to wander around without worrying that they won’t be able to understand the locals or street signs.
Washroom Finder
The most basic need of tourists is to locate restrooms in an emergency. Many travelers may have encountered and endured similar circumstances. This function may be a vital service for users while creating a travel app.
Services for geo-tracking
One of the critical components of developing a travel application is integrating a GPS-based location service. Users’ current locations can be locked by tracking services, which can instantly retrieve the closest matches. This functionality allows you to provide all the services a tourist can need on a trip.
The Currency Converter
Tourists encounter significant difficulties while exchanging their money. One of the critical functions of a travel app is a currency converter. The inclusion of this function can assist travelers in understanding currency exchange rates. It can keep track of both recent and past changes in exchange rates.
A Travel Itinerary Generator
The vacation itinerary generator is one of the most sought-after features in the travel sector. This function lets users build a comprehensive trip itinerary by just inputting the destination they wish to visit.
With this capability, an administrator can include pre-existing tourist destinations or even unique locations to create appropriate tour itineraries for users. It may seem challenging to add a feature with such a complicated algorithm. It would be best if you, therefore, get help from experienced travel app developers as they have the required skills and knowledge.
A language translator within the app
A language translator is one of the most challenging features to add to your travel app. Most of the time, tourists are unfamiliar with the local languages of the destinations they would like to visit. This function can improve user experience and enable passengers to translate voice and text messages and scan texts for visual translation.
Predictions of weather
A simple change in the weather can have a favorable or bad impact on any journey. Any skilled corporate software development team may integrate a weather feature into your travel app using a standard open-source API. For 2022, incorporate weather updates into your travel app to enable people to make travel plans without using additional apps.
If you’re looking for travel app development services, get in touch with us right away!
World Clock Time Converter
A world clock time converter should be included in your trip application due to time zone differences. Users may find this World Clock Time Converter feature helpful as it determines the accurate clock times for many time zones worldwide. This function can help confuse travelers and prevent them from looking for other time-converting software.
Integration of App Services
One of the most crucial components of tourist apps is vehicle services. Every user needs transportation assistance when traveling from their destination to hotels or other popular tourist destinations. As the foundation of any travel application, cab services will undoubtedly be integrated if you select a skilled travel app development company for a travel app project.
How much does it cost to develop a travel app?
To develop a travel app, you need to consider many factors, starting from technology stack, developer location, features you want to add, app design, app platform, and more.
If you have a small budget, you can hire mobile app developers from India as they charge less than other locations. For example, if a US developer charges $150-$200 an hour, an Indian developer will charge you around $30-$50.
Also, the proper estimation to develop your mobile travel app will depend upon various things, and to get an exact price, consult the development team.
Takeaway
The best tourism apps of 2022 will incorporate features that help simplify each traveler’s journey. Think like a traveler while simultaneously advertising your brand and business, whether it’s keeping a track of their daily activities or transportation services to carry them securely to the next station. Implementing these features in your travel app to increase your customer reach and offering them what they want from your app.
Contact us for more information about travel app development, as we are one of the best travel app development companies in India.
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