Good news for travel sites: A new survey shows that a vast majority of online
shoppers
say they will make their holiday travel plans via the Internet this year.
According to a survey released by e-commerce rating and marketing research
firm BizRate.com, the two-day survey, which drew
more than 7,700 respondents, revealed that 85 percent of those surveyed
intend to use the Internet exclusively or in conjunction with off-line
resources to schedule airfare, hotel and car rental reservations for holiday
travel.
Nearly 90 percent of those planning to purchase travel online will secure
airfare, followed by hotels (52 percent) and car rental reservations (42
percent).
Interestingly, of those who plan to make travel arrangements on the Web this
holiday season, 25 percent say this will be their first online purchase in
the travel category.
More than 75 percent of respondents indicated that discounts would motivate
them to purchase future travel reservations online. Thirty-nine percent said
earning frequent flyer miles or points also would be a strong influence.
Online travelers said they plan to spend more than $1,000 on average for
holiday trips, with men outspending women, $1160 to $885.
“Clearly, travel is a popular category among online shoppers and with the
right incentives, this holiday travel season could be profitable for online
vendors,” said Farhad Mohit, president and chief executive officer of BizRate.com.
BizRate.com is an independent rating guide built on the experience of
millions of actual online buyers.
