Travel landscape set for transformation this year, says Cloudbeds
July 05 2024 - 5:44AM
Cloudbeds, the hospitality management platform powering more
reservations and happier guests for independent lodging businesses
around the globe, has spotlighted key developments poised to
reshape the travel industry this year.
The findings, featured in Cloudbeds’ 2024 State of Independent
Lodging Report, include new spins on experiential travel, the
rising popularity of inflation-busting travel hacks, and a growing
demand for new skills among next-generation hoteliers.
Adam Harris, Co-Founder and CEO of Cloudbeds, said: “The
economy seems poised to dodge a recession again this year, but that
doesn’t mean it’s smooth sailing for hotels. Travel patterns are
changing, travelers are more price-sensitive, and demand may
soften. Under any market conditions, it’s the hoteliers who monitor
the trends and data closely, act quickly to seize opportunities,
and offer a distinctive guest experience that will outperform the
market.”
Here are some of the emerging trends set to shape the travel and
hospitality landscape in 2024, as identified by Cloudbeds:
- Travelers trade up. Travelers are finding creative ways
to upgrade their travel experiences amid high inflation, by
leveraging money-saving hacks, swapping popular destinations for
more affordable ‘dupes’ (Expedia), and relying on ‘Buy Now, Pay
Later’ options (Atmosphere Research). Despite the rising cost of
living, Skyscanner found 81% of travelers planned to travel the
same or more in 2024 compared to 2023.
- The experience IS the destination. After years of
post-pandemic binge-buying, consumers are moving on from collecting
stuff to collecting experiences. Almost 70% of travelers say they
are more likely than ever to travel to a concert outside their
hometown (Expedia), while 47% of US travelers have booked a
destination purely to visit a specific restaurant (Skyscanner).
Meanwhile, Booking.com found more than half of travelers are keen
to book a surprise trip where everything down to the destination is
unknown until arrival.
- Next-gen hoteliers upgrade their skills. As technology
transforms the hospitality industry, next-gen hoteliers must adapt
by acquiring a blend of technical, analytical, and strategic skills
to effectively leverage new tools and maintain a balance between
automation and human interaction. The World Economic Forum suggests
an estimated 42% of business tasks will be automated by 2027. In
the hospitality sector, 91% of hotels globally use a PMS, 64% have
a booking engine, and 33% have a channel manager (Skift).
The new trends complement last year’s five key developments,
which are set to continue this year: value-driven decision-making,
the shift to virtual front desks, blended travel meeting hybrid
hospitality, new technologies to disrupt travel search and
inspiration, and a shift from focusing on amenities to guest
experiences.
For more trends and comprehensive global insights into the
independent lodging landscape in 2024, download a free copy of
Cloudbeds’ annual ‘State of Independent Lodging Report’ at
https://www.cloudbeds.com/hospitality-industry-report.
ENDS
About Cloudbeds
Cloudbeds is the platform that powers hospitality, enabling tens
of thousands of lodging businesses in more than 150 countries
worldwide to grow and thrive. The award-winning Cloudbeds Platform
brings together technology solutions to increase revenue, delight
guests, and streamline operations into a single unified system,
enhanced by a curated marketplace of third-party integrations.
Founded in 2012, Cloudbeds was named No. 1 PMS, No. 1 Hotel
Management System, and No. 1 Guest Messaging Software by Hotel Tech
Report in 2023 and was recognized as a major player in the 2022 IDC
Marketscape Report. For more information, visit
www.cloudbeds.com.
Nancy Huang
Cloudbeds
nancy.huang@cloudbeds.com