The travel industry often centers its discussions around lodging, airlines, and experiences, overlooking a significant $157 billion sector: ground and sea transportation.
Within the discourse of the travel industry, discussions predominantly revolve around accommodations, air travel, and experiences, overshadowing a significant sector that often receives less limelight — ground and sea transportation, valued at a staggering $157 billion.
This sector encompasses buses, ferries, trains, and private cars used by travelers at their destinations. Despite its importance, ground and sea transportation remains largely fragmented and offline, posing challenges for travelers in booking and navigating these services.
Travelers are increasingly seeking authentic, local experiences, and transportation is not only a major part of the experience but also dictates how and where tourism reaches. In light of the rise in slow travel, people are opting for more adventurous getaways in less crowded destinations. The growth and investment brought to transportation can enable this market opportunity with the development of sustainable ferry networks or chartered boat platforms catering to isolated islands.
Once transportation becomes easier, travelers and destinations reap the benefits.
Vietnam serves as an important case study in its rapid rise as a popular tourism destination outnumbering Thailand in both baseline and pandemic recovery growth, going from 7.6 million international arrivals in 2013 to 12.9 million in 2017. It is said that a major contribution to this growth was the investment in transportation improvements, including, convenient trains and luxury shuttles to Ha Long Bay and Sa Pa from Hanoi.
The modern customer is becoming acclimated to digitalization and convenience. Yet ground and sea transportation lags behind with booking processes being difficult to navigated, and majorly fragmented market, forcing travelers to deal with local vendors, currencies, and language barriers without real-time updates or ticket guarantees.
Land and sea transportation represents as much as 8 percent of the global travel market, the segment still mostly operates offline.
While some travelers may navigate complex transportation systems with ease, others find it challenging, especially across different countries and regions. This inconsistency poses difficulties for third-party resellers like online travel agencies (OTAs), particularly in less regulated or fragmented markets.
Despite the slower adoption compared to other travel verticals, efforts are underway to bring transportation services online, offering benefits for both travelers and destinations.
Educating transportation providers, leveraging technology, and raising consumer awareness are essential steps in this transition. Although progress may be gradual, the shift towards digitization promises significant advantages for stakeholders, including increased revenue streams for travel providers and more sustainable tourism for destinations.
Ultimately, a digitized ground and sea transportation sector will offer travelers greater convenience, accessibility to new destinations, and a more integrated travel experience, aligning with evolving expectations in the digital age.
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Credits: SkiftX