Travel technology
Encyclopedia
Travel technology is a term used to describe applications of Information Technology
(IT), or Information and Communications Technology (ICT), in travel
, tourism
and hospitality industry
. Travel technology may also be referred to as tourism technology
, hospitality automation, travel tracking and flight tracking
.
(CRS) of the airlines industry, but now is used more inclusively, incorporating the broader tourism sector as well as its subset the hospitality industry. While travel technology includes the computer reservations system, it also represents a much broader range of applications, in fact increasingly so. Travel technology includes virtual tourism in the form of virtual tour
technologies. Travel technology may also be referred to as e-travel / etravel or e-tourism / etourism (eTourism), in reference to "electronic travel" or "electronic tourism".
Travel technology is increasingly being used to describe systems for managing and monitoring travel, including travel tracking and flight tracking
systems.
In other contexts, the term "travel technology" can refer to technology intended for use by travelers, such as light-weight laptop computers with universal power supplies or satellite Internet connections. That is not the sense in which it is used here.
which provide useful new options for consumers. Today the tour guide
can be a GPS tour guide, and the guidebook
could be an audioguide, podguide
or I-Tours, such as City audio guides. The biometric passport
may also be included as travel technology in the broad sense.
XML-based
technologies have become increasingly important for the travel industry. XML can be used to support air reservation booking or to implement optional services and merchandising functions in the booking process. Another important application of XML is the establishing of direct connections between Airlines and Travel Agencies. In order to create a generally accepted XML-standard, the Open Axis Group was founded.
partners. It should be kept in mind that there was an online world before the advent of the world wide web
in the form of private and commercial online services, via packet switched network
using X.25
. Travel technology played a significant role in the so-called dot-com boom and bust, circa 1997-2001.
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
(IT), or Information and Communications Technology (ICT), in travel
Travel
Travel is the movement of people or objects between relatively distant geographical locations. 'Travel' can also include relatively short stays between successive movements.-Etymology:...
, tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
and hospitality industry
Hospitality industry
The hospitality industry consists of broad category of fields within the service industry that includes lodging, restaurants, event planning, theme parks, transportation, cruise line, and additional fields within the tourism industry. The hospitality industry is a several billion dollar industry...
. Travel technology may also be referred to as tourism technology
Tourism technology
Tourism Technology is a term coined by the Korea Tourism Organization, which refers to the recent trend of incorporating technology within the tourism industry.-External links:***...
, hospitality automation, travel tracking and flight tracking
Tracking (commercial airline flight)
Tracking commercial aviation flights is an activity by enthusiasts or concerned citizens. Tracking is not limited to aircraft activity, it can include tracking of airport activity...
.
Definition
Since travel implies locomotion, travel technology was originally associated with the computer reservations systemComputer reservations system
A computer reservations system is a computerized system used to store and retrieve information and conduct transactions related to air travel. Originally designed and operated by airlines, CRSes were later extended for the use of travel agencies...
(CRS) of the airlines industry, but now is used more inclusively, incorporating the broader tourism sector as well as its subset the hospitality industry. While travel technology includes the computer reservations system, it also represents a much broader range of applications, in fact increasingly so. Travel technology includes virtual tourism in the form of virtual tour
Virtual Tour
A virtual tour is a simulation of an existing location, usually composed of a sequence of video images. They also may use other multimedia elements such as sound effects, music, narration, and text....
technologies. Travel technology may also be referred to as e-travel / etravel or e-tourism / etourism (eTourism), in reference to "electronic travel" or "electronic tourism".
Travel technology is increasingly being used to describe systems for managing and monitoring travel, including travel tracking and flight tracking
Tracking (commercial airline flight)
Tracking commercial aviation flights is an activity by enthusiasts or concerned citizens. Tracking is not limited to aircraft activity, it can include tracking of airport activity...
systems.
In other contexts, the term "travel technology" can refer to technology intended for use by travelers, such as light-weight laptop computers with universal power supplies or satellite Internet connections. That is not the sense in which it is used here.
Applications
Travel technology includes many processes such as dynamic packagingDynamic packaging
Dynamic packaging is a method that is becoming increasingly used in package holiday bookings that enables consumers to build their own package of flights, accommodation, and a hire car instead of a pre-defined package...
which provide useful new options for consumers. Today the tour guide
Tour guide
A tour guide provides assistance, information and cultural, historical and contemporary heritage interpretation to people on organized tours, individual clients, educational establishments, at religious and historical sites, museums, and at venues of other significant interest...
can be a GPS tour guide, and the guidebook
GUIdebook
GUIdebook is a website that contains screenshots of computer software.It shows a visual history of the software's user interface. It includes operating systems like Mac OS and Windows, desktop environments like GNOME and KDE, portable operating systems like Newton OS and Windows CE, and...
could be an audioguide, podguide
Podguide
A podguide is an enhanced audio tour podcast. It is a single audio file where each chapter displays a picture and a number of what to look at a certain stopover. The numbers correspond to the numbers on a map that can be downloaded via the link incorporated into the artwork of the chapters in the...
or I-Tours, such as City audio guides. The biometric passport
Biometric passport
A biometric passport, also known as an e-passport or ePassport, is a combined paper and electronic passport that contains biometric information that can be used to authenticate the identity of travelers...
may also be included as travel technology in the broad sense.
XML-based
XML
Extensible Markup Language is a set of rules for encoding documents in machine-readable form. It is defined in the XML 1.0 Specification produced by the W3C, and several other related specifications, all gratis open standards....
technologies have become increasingly important for the travel industry. XML can be used to support air reservation booking or to implement optional services and merchandising functions in the booking process. Another important application of XML is the establishing of direct connections between Airlines and Travel Agencies. In order to create a generally accepted XML-standard, the Open Axis Group was founded.
History
Certainly travel technology was born on the coat-tails of the airline industry's use of automation and their need to extend this out to the travel agencyTravel agency
A travel agency is a retail business that sells travel related products and services to customers on behalf of suppliers such as airlines, car rentals, cruise lines, hotels, railways, sightseeing tours and package holidays that combine several products...
partners. It should be kept in mind that there was an online world before the advent of the world wide web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
in the form of private and commercial online services, via packet switched network
Packet switched network
A packet-switched network is a digital communications network that groups all transmitted data, irrespective of content, type, or structure into suitably sized blocks, called packets...
using X.25
X.25
X.25 is an ITU-T standard protocol suite for packet switched wide area network communication. An X.25 WAN consists of packet-switching exchange nodes as the networking hardware, and leased lines, Plain old telephone service connections or ISDN connections as physical links...
. Travel technology played a significant role in the so-called dot-com boom and bust, circa 1997-2001.