Destinia, the international online travel agency with offices in Dubai, Egypt and Spain, has revealed that
over a third (34%) of travellers from KSA and the UAE book their flights using their smartphones compared with only12% from Germany, 11% of travellers from Portugal and 10% from Spain. Travellers from KSA (35%) and UAE (32%) also use their smartphones the most when making hotel reservations. The research was revealed at a panel discussion at Arabnet 2015 in Riyadh with the Chief International Officer of Destinia, Ricardo Fernández and followed the announcement that Destinia has expanded its presence in the Middle East by planning to open an office in KSA by 2016.
The research further revealed that the mobile travel reservation is on the rise with 21% average of bookings made at Destinia in 2015 compared to 15% in 2014. Hotels are the best-selling product as 22% of hotel reservations are made by mobile devices, as opposed to 16% of flight reservations, although there are several differences by markets. The research shows figures about bookings and spend profile from a selection of countries: Spain, France, United Kingdom; United States, Italy, Japan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Brazil. The research also showed that travellers from the KSA and UAE generally book their trips at the last minute whereas the average lead time of mobile reservations has increased from 18 days in 2014 to 22 days in 2015, the lead time for travellers from the KSA and UAE is 18 days and 9 days respectively when booking a flight. "Mobile bookings are increasing at an astonishing rate in every travel sector facet and this research demonstrates how innovative and tech savvy travellers from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the UAE are. We are very excited to expand our presence and open an office in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as it is a young and rapidly expanding population and currently leads the Middle East economy. This recent research is further evidence that the expansion will be a great opportunity for us to support this growing market " commented Ricardo Fernández, Chief International Officer at Destinia. As one of Europe's top online travel agencies, Destinia.com boasts a selection of 300,000 hotels and 600 airlines around the world. The website takes pride in offering travel expertise through bespoke servicing and customers care 24 hours a day. Catering to each market's preferences, Destinia.com offers several payment modalities, including a cash-on-delivery service pay @ home.
