Travel: ‘We’ll pay pretty much anything for good quality’

Survey of 23,000 people around the world including 500 Kenyans, show travelers want value over cost but often struggle to find it.

Air travellers across the world, including 500 Kenyans, are increasingly prioritizing value over cost, according to the Global Digital Traveller Research 2019 report.

The research conducted by Travelport, a technology company serving the global travel industry, however, found that most travellers struggle to find the much-needed value.

When booking a flight, value is a key priority for over four out of five travellers-representing 81 percent of Kenyan travellers surveyed. Still, on flights, customer service is a top priority for 84 percent of Kenyan travellers.

The research covered 20 countries and surveyed people who had taken at least two round trip flights in the last year. In total, there were 23,000 respondents.

To find offers of value, 49 percent of Kenyan travellers, according to the report ‘nearly always’ use a combination of travel review sites with 46 percent of them opting for price comparison and recommendation sites.

The survey also found that 47 percent of Kenyan travellers speak to travel consultants to find value for their money.

The research found that travellers want more control and transparency when it comes to personalization of their travel experiences by having add-ons like extra legroom, additional baggage allowance and meal upgrades.

But getting the right information on personal offers is daunting and sometimes come at a cost. 31 percent Kenyan travellers are willing to give airlines more access to their personal information to have this personal offers.

However, a growing number of the travellers are getting frustrated by not being able to understand what is included as standard (50 percent in Kenya) and not knowing what add-ons are available to them (57 percent).

Half (51 percent significantly above the global average of 35 percent) of Kenyan travellers are also increasingly frustrated by companies they regularly use not remembering their preferences.