Syuhada on Social Computing

New Travel Trend: Travel 2.0

Web 2.0, a phrase coined by O'Reilly Media in 2003[1] and popularized by the first Web 2.0 conference in 2004, refers to a perceived second generation of web-based communities and hosted services — such as social-networking sites, wikis and folksonomies — which facilitate collaboration and sharing between users. It does not refer to an update to Web technical specifications, but to changes in the ways systems developers have used the web platform.

This term is so popular that everyone want to use it. The increasing use of blogs, wikis, and of course social networking sites has led people to create many 2.0 terms like Enterprise 2.0, Library 2.0, and of course Travel 2.0. All these terms refer to the usage of Web 2.0 technologies on their respective field and industry.

Travel 2.0 is a term that represents the extension and customization of the concept of Web 2.0 into a form that applies to the world’s largest industry: travel and tourism. It defines a transformation of online offerings into a new level of user empowerment and functionality.

As an increasing number of people research and reserve travel online, Travel 2.0 is providing consumers with countless tools to find, and design, not just the cheapest trip, but the perfect trip. People now more interested in finding the opinions and reviews of their fellow travellers in lieu of professional travel advice. Furthermore, the busy habit of people nowadays made them more convenient to search and buy what they need online, including their next vacation.

Consistent with the rapid growing of Web 2.0 technology, Travel industry (with its Travel 2.0) can accommodate what people really need by using the technology. Below is the example of websites that using the Web 2.0 technologies:

• Blog: Starwood Hotel Network with TheLobby, Low Cost Carrier AirAsia with HaveYouFlownAirAsia
• Podcast: The online travel agency, Orbitz offers audio descriptions of travel destinations at Orbitzinsider, the same applied on LonelyPlanet
• Online Video: Travelistic claims itself as the ‘YouTube for travel’
• Social Networking Site: Yahoo Travel and TripAdvisor are among of them
• Mash-Ups and API: Google Maps are heavily used to locate some spots like in Agoda and TripAdvisor, Facebook API (which is known as FacebookConnect) also has become one of the APIs that usually used by some Travel 2.0 websites.
• Wikis: If Travelistic claims itself as ‘YouTube for travel’ then WikiTravel is the Travel Wikipedia.
• Aggregate: Websites like Kayak  aggregates fares from over 100 airlines, and uses ajax to provide a great user experience

and many more examples available on the web.

While many players in Travel Industry has already using it, Travel 2.0 still provides great opportunities to those travel and tourism marketers who are willing to understand and embrace it. The result is new ways to engage with customers, build loyal communities, and maximise online revenue through travel Web site.