Webloyalty travel research have today released results of a survey which show that the average Irish person holidays up to twice a year and generally books their breaks away online.
 
Sixty Nine per cent of Irish people have been abroad in the last two years and of those that have been away, 61% travel up to twice a year. Eighty four percent of survey respondents booked their most recent holiday online. However, while online is the most popular way to make holiday arrangements, 17% still use a travel agent when booking a break. 

Interestingly, mobile booking remains relatively low with only 6% saying they have booked a holiday using a mobile app in the past two years. The propensity to use a mobile app for booking a holiday varies depending on the type of holiday, with mobile bookings most common among those taking city breaks (9%) and those taking a trip to visit family and friends (6%).

Almost three quarters of respondents (73%) booked their accommodation and travel separately while over 1 in 4 (27%) opted to book it as a package. Ninety two per cent of those polled said price is a key influencer when it comes to selecting a holiday.
 
Managing Director of Webloyalty Northern Europe, Guy Chiswick said, "While it’s clear from the research that the majority of holidays are now booked online, it was interesting to see that the traditional travel agent still has a role to play. Of those that had travelled abroad in the last two years, 17% used a travel agent and it would seem that consumers still like the face-to-face experience when booking a trip which requires more planning.

Although the economy is recovering, it was no surprise that price still remains an important factor for consumers when deciding on booking a holiday. This would indicate that price led promotions and value offers from travel companies will help entice consumers to go from thinking about booking to actually booking."

Source: www.businessworld.ie