Mobile phone travel and hotel bookings hit a high

WITHOUT them, we'd be sitting at home. Seventy per cent of us now use phone or tablet to book or research travel.

Smartphones have changed the face of travel - from researching, to booking, to sharing while on the road.

THEY are an increasingly important part of our everyday lives - almost as connected to some of us as our arms and legs.

So it's no surprise that when booking and researching a holiday, Australians are turning away from the traditional travel agent and towards their mobiles.

New research reveals 70 per cent of Australians are using mobile devices to help them sort their holiday - and young holidaymakers are leading the drive.

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Of those who use their mobile device to organise travel, 36 per cent use it for research, 26 per cent for planning and 25 per cent for booking, the research from hotel comparison site HotelsCombined.com found.

HotelsCombined head of community Kristen McKenzie said Australians were embracing new technology for their travel needs.

"As the quick uptake of smartphones and tablets in Australia shows no sign of slowing, people are increasingly confident planning, booking and sharing travel experiences using mobile devices," she said.

"Whether on the way home, over breakfast, at work or on the couch, the freedom and convenience of researching and booking travel on-the-go is only set to increase."

Ms McKenzie said the move to mobile was having a profound impact on their business model.

"I wouldn't say the travel agent or online travel model is dead by any means, but there is definitely a growing recognition that mobiles and tablets are the future," she said.

Separate research from internet based travel company Expedia found 38 per cent of Australians aged 34 and under booked their travel via smartphone in the past year.

The smartphone figures show 49 per cent use it for planning, 26 per cent for sharing a trip while travelling, and 21 per cent for updating or amending a trip while travelling.

Expedia managing director for Australia and New Zealand, Georg Ruebensal, said when the company launched in Australia eight years ago, about a quarter of bookings were made over the phone through its customer service team.

Now, less than 10 per cent of bookings are made that way and a growing number are made via a mobile device.

"Our intention is that we are an online business," he said.

"We do have a call centre to support online, but we are online."

Mr Ruebensal said Expedia was witnessing a surge in Australian travellers using its hotel and flight booking app, with visits increasing 300 per cent since the start of the year.

He said the app not only made it easier for travellers to research and book their trips, it worked as an all-in-one travel assistant that they could take with them wherever they go.

"Apps are lovely for us because they allow us to engage with the customer," he said.

"For them, they can become a digital travel assistant and provide a whole range of updates, reminders and information."