Travel Apps – Ultimate Guide on Design & Development

Traveling is one of the most enjoyable and exciting things for users all over the world. Due to this, the number of international tourists are increasing each year.

Based on the UN World Tourism Organization, international tourist arrivals increased by 6% in 2018, which accounts for more than 1.4 billion people. It is expected that the number will reach 1.8 billion in 2030. 

Smartphone & tablet users spend the majority of their time researching and planning their next trip or vacation. Indeed, mobile bookings in the travel industry have increased by 1700% between 2011 to 2015, growing online revenues from 1% to 18%.

The above statistics prove that travel app development is one of the trending industries to do business, whether you are a startup, travel enthusiast, or a well-known travel agency. 

Besides, there are a wide number of benefits of travel app for travel agencies such as ability to reach potential customers around the globe, track customers actions, online transactions, etc.

But, before you create a travel app, here we have made a comprehensive guide which lists all the points that you should consider during the design and development phase. 

Without waiting much, let’s get started:

Things to consider while designing a Travel App

To ensure that the app provides the best user experience and helps them to build an ultimate travel experience, developers need to consider the following things. 

• Transparency

One of the things that the majority of travelers hate the most is hidden fees. If we talk about one factor which entirely ruins the user’s experience is the cost of hidden fees that a user is charged after they have reached the destination.

Hidden fees are mostly taken for tourist taxes, overweight baggage, WiFi, parking, or similar things.

Communicating directly and transparently regarding all the expenses will reduce traveler’s stress and increase your app’s experience. By doing this, the app will be able to build trust with its users with ease. 

• Better Search Engine

Although apps can estimate what a user wants from them and develop solutions based on that, sometimes, engagement from the user’s side is also required. Apps can’t read the user’s mind. 

But, a good travel app will help to reduce the user’s effort. A quality search engine plays a very vital role in achieving that purpose.

There are four essential things that you should keep in mind while developing a search engine for a travel app.

• Results should be instant
• Search should be visible properly and it will be easy to access
• Search results should be displayed in an attractive way
• Personalization

• Set Function Before Beauty

You might be thinking that this is unusual when we talk about UX/UI design principles. For this, you need to rethink what design actually means.

If an app looks beautiful, then it’s great. However, if that app doesn’t function properly, then no one is going to use that app again just because it looks good. 

Therefore, it is highly essential to consider that all the things in the app work properly. For this, you can include different labels and filters to make the user’s task more manageable. Also, mentioning clearly the number of bookings left makes the booking process quick and straightforward for a user.

• Smooth Booking Process

Based on the research, out of 100 products in the cart, only three are converted to sales. 

Let’s not get disappointed and look at the most important reasons behind it. There are a wide number of reasons due to which users might not just complete their transactions. 

Maybe there are hidden fees that appear just before the purchase option? Maybe there were not sufficient payment options? Perhaps there is an error in the payment system due to which users might get frightened?

In order to provide a flawless booking process, you have to solve all the above problems.

To provide the best UI/UX experience, it is very crucial that the user’s journey from the first screen until the last screen remains consistent. To achieve this, never show a different price on the search screen and purchase screen. Provide all kinds of payment options such as PayPal, Credit/ Debit Card, etc. The payment process should be simple, fast, and secure.

Things to consider before Travel App Development

Before you develop a travel app, here are some of the most important steps that you should consider:

• Select Your App Type

The first step is to choose the travel app type, such as ticket booking, accommodation booking, transport apps, and travel guides apps.

• Know Your Target Audience

Ask yourself some questions like for which type of audience you are developing a travel app. 

Do you want to attract young travelers on a budget? It is easy to attract them using discounts, support in finding hotels, and push notifications regarding upcoming sales and offers. 

Similarly, analyze your target audience before you start the development process.

• Know Your Competitors

Look at the different travel apps in your niche, and check out their pros and cons. Also, think about incorporating ready-made travel app APIs.

• Choose MVP Features for Your Travel App

Before you develop a high-end travel app, think about launching an MVP app to start your business. Integrate some of the basic features in your travel app MVP, such as user account, booking, payment options, and location-based search and filters.

• Choose a Development Team

Select a highly-skilled team from a well-known travel app development company that is familiar with all the ins and outs of developing such an app.

• Develop the App

Finalize the app development process with the development team. After this, they will start designing and development work of your travel app.

• Collaborate With the Hosts

An adequately built travel app with smooth performance will work to attract customers if good offers are provided. Therefore, collaboration with the most critical points of travel app development. 

A host has to manage a lot of data, so they should be able to handle it from the simple and effective app. All the hotel managers and travel agencies should be able to track their bookings, general information, and various other details in the app.

One of the things to consider is smooth notifications process.

Moreover, customers will accuse the app if any error occurs during their trip. Therefore, ensure that you select trustworthy partners who follow your agreement instantly.

Lastly, these are some of the essential things that you should consider during the designing and development phase of a travel app.