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If you waited for the next proverbial shoe to be dropped for Google Travel to collect all the pieces, that's what it did.
Google launched a Google Travel desktop website Tuesday that includes flights, hotels and vacation packages, as well as a variety of travel planning tools and recommendations, all on one page. Features are also available in Google Search and Google Maps, making Google Maps a great app for travel, restaurants, events, spa appointments, and more.
In a blog post written by Richard Holden, vice president of Google's product management at Travel, Google announced last year that it was easier to navigate between Google Flights, Google Hotels and Google Trips "more easily on smartphones", and that the company claims similar to what it has done on mobile. But the mobile restitution of these functionalities did not make it possible to assemble the different components of the trip so centralized.
For those waiting for Google to begin trading, beyond the limited number of current hotel advertisers, Google has not taken this step. Instead, Google Travel continues its meta-search pattern, referring users to advertisers for reservations, but now it has linked them all to the same place.
Google Travel's new offer processing includes new travel planning features, including the ability to view their upcoming flights and stays (if they're Gmail users), edit their routes and manually add new bookings.
Google Travel also allows users to start planning their searches in Google Maps or Google, and "pick up where they left off during planning."
Come see Richard Holden from Google at Skift Forum Asia
Recommendations regarding "the plans of the day, popular restaurants nearby and events taking place during travel dates" will also be presented to users, said Google.
Custom recommendations
So, Google obviously uses the vast amount of user data it has to make better and more personalized recommendations. This is a feature that most small businesses can not hope to replicate.
Google's hotel search feature includes options to review its recently launched vacation rental functionality, with Los Angeles locations such as Vrbo, Holiday Lettings, RedAwning, Agoda and Hotels.com, for example.
A vacation package offered by Google Hotels indicates a stay at the Sofitel Magnificent Mile from May 26 to May 31 in Chicago for two people combined with a Spirit Airlines flight departing from LaGuardia Airport for $ 1,532. example.
It is important to note that the packages should however be booked with two companies: Priceline for the hotel and Spirit Airlines for the flights.
Google Travel on mobile receives similar treatment, displaying tabs for Travel, Explore, Flights, Hotels and Packages.
What does it mean?
For years, Google has collected and built its travel elements, including the acquisition of ITA Software for flights, from Zagat for restaurants, as well as meta-research for the construction of hotels and hotels. of travel recommendation features. But until Google facilitates navigation between different services last year, travelers should search and find each segment separately.
But today, with the launch of flights, hotels, packages and travel planning features on the desktop, as well as making them all available on mobile, Google has taken a big step forward to becoming a destination of planning and booking of complete trip.
Yes, Google lets its travel advertising partners, from airlines to hotels, to online travel agencies, continue to do most of the bookings, but it's also a challenge for them.
Why choose Expedia to plan your trips, for example, when travelers can do everything in the Google search engine, as well as everything they use Google throughout the day.
Not surprisingly, Mark Okerstrom, CEO of Expedia, which spent $ 1.53 billion on sales and marketing in the first quarter, said last year that Google was Expedia's biggest competitor. The lion's share of these sales and marketing expenses has undoubtedly been poured into Google's coffers.
Skift underscored Google's relentless rise in our 2018 Travel Megatrends: Google's product-driven vision is paying off: "Nothing can stop Google Flights and hotels from continuing to gain market share because Google's fast response time, focus on user experience and position as a dominant search engine – with the exception of the imminent threat of regulation. "
Of course, Google Travel is a work in progress. But this is the way used by Google to test, learn, iterate, solve big problems of consumption, develop it around the world, then monetize the hell.
Google Travel lacks a lot of things, including car rentals, ridesharing, cruises, multimodal options, dynamic packaging and – a preponderance of travel bookings to complement facilitated reservations for advertisers via services Google's meta-search.
But one day at a time.
Meanwhile, you can count on March 14, 2019 as a big step forward towards Google's dominance in the travel industry.
You can learn more about Google Travel from its leaders, Richard Holden and Rob Torres, at the Skift Asia Forum on May 27 in Singapore. Get tickets now
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