Observation and Benchmarking News Internet Assumes Crucial Role in the Hotel Business in Portugal Internet Assumes Crucial Role in the Hotel Business in Portugal
- 23/08/2005Casa dos Bits/TeKsapo published the following news item:
A study carried out by Vector 21 for Unicre confirms the significant role the Internet is assuming in the Tourism sector. According to data collected in a survey conducted on a sample of hotel customers in Lisbon, Porto and the Algarve, approximately 78.6 percent of customers said they used the Internet, while more than 50 percent stated they had become aware of the hotel in question via the Web and 44.8 of these booked online.
“The Internet ceased to be a mere promising instrument for promotions and dissemination a long time ago. Nowadays, it is essentially an absolutely indispensable sales tool”, states the document disseminated by Unicre.
The survey also established that 72 percent of customers search using tourism portals, followed by generic search engines (with 57 percent of users). Almost 60 percent of respondents said that when they search they value information on prices, followed by details of the premises and information on the region.
The Unicre/Vector 21 study also analysed Portuguese websites offering accommodation, showing that only 26.7 percent are in two languages, an aspect that needs to be addressed given that more than 85 percent of the respondents were foreign and that their online search rate was over 88.5 percent.
According to the document, hotel managers interviewed in the scope of the study believe the Internet has changed hotel management. They underscore the need to respond to the higher number of bookings made online, which means human resources have to be reorganised. These managers also highlighted the need to revisit hotel pricing models, pointing out that entrepreneurs have to be aware that customers are increasingly taking the initiative and comparing prices.
As regards the future for traditional travel agencies, the conclusion is that they will not vanish. If truth be told, “regardless of whether it is a website, mobile phone or travel agent in front of customers”, travel agencies will continue to have their own space, one respondent revealed.