Why Consumers Don't Book Activities Online

European travelers frequently use the Internet throughout the activities planning process, but less than a quarter of travel activity gross bookings happen online. Travelers are accustomed to purchasing most activities during the destination and face-to-face, directly from the provider.

According to When They Get There (and Why They Go): Activities, Attractions, Events and Tours in Europe (a Global and European Edition report), roughly one in four European travelers who bought activities offline felt it was easier and more convenient to book in person than online. One in five wanted to speak with someone for detailed information about the activity before booking.

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"Consumer attitude is a major inhibitor to both online and mobile activities bookings growth," explains Phocuswright senior research analyst Cathy Schetzina Walsh. "Many travelers simply do not think of planning activities until they are in-destination, and offline, provider-direct bookings continue to dominate. Educating consumers about online activity booking options will be key to growth."

Advance booking incidence varies significantly by activity type. Travelers tend to pre-book activities that are central to their trip, expensive, or have limited availability (e.g., skiing, performing arts, sporting events). Activities without these characteristics are often chosen out of convenience and are most likely to be booked in-destination.

Despite the impediments, online activities penetration is on the rise, and mobile interest is high among both European travelers and activities providers. Three in four European travelers own a mobile device, and six in 10 activities providers have implemented or plan to implement ticketing via a mobile app.

Phocuswright's When They Get There (and Why They Go): Activities, Attractions, Events and Tours in Europe provides a definitive view of the travel activities opportunity in Europe with a comprehensive look at more than 30 types of travel activities across five key countries in Europe – France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the U.K. The report provides insight into progress made in the broader travel activities ecosystem in the past several years and examines lingering barriers to online and mobile activities growth. 



Key topics include:

• Market sizing and forecasts for the European travel activities market from 2012-2015
• The role of activities in the trip planning process
• Technological transformations of in-destination activities
• How travel suppliers, distributors and technology providers adapt
• How travelers discover, shop and book different activities
• The rising role of mobile in in-destination activity planning
• Activity provider use of technology and the readiness for new technology adoption
• In-depth segmentation by activity type

Purchase When They Get There (and Why They Go): Activities, Attractions, Events and Tours in Europe to understand and navigate the complex travel activities marketplace.