Globally, travellers continue to prioritise convenience and speed above other considerations when making travel decisions, according to IATA’s Global Passenger Survey.
“Passengers want flexibility and transparency when planning and booking travel, plus speed and convenience at the airport. More are embracing biometrics, digital wallets, and off-airport processes to make it happen,” said Nick Careen, IATA’s Senior Vice President of Operations, Safety, and Security.
Of all respondents, 68% said proximity to the airport was their top priority when selecting their departure airport, followed by minimising total travel time (33%) and getting the best ticket price (25%).
Proximity to an airport was also the top consideration for African passengers, on a continent where there is a distinct lack of secondary airports.
While the majority of global respondents said they preferred to book travel via an airline’s website or app, African respondents showed the greatest preference for in-person bookings.
Globally, preferred payment methods are evolving with growing adoption of new technology. The preference to pay for travel with a credit or debit card grew by eight percentage points over 2023, followed by digital wallets and instant payment solutions; 70% said convenience was the main reason passengers chose a particular payment method, followed by benefits and security.
The survey revealed that youth and African travellers were some of the most eager to adopt new technology. African passengers show stronger interest in adopting digital solutions and technology to streamline their travel processes. African travellers also proved to be the most willing to provide immigration data such as passport, visa and biometric data to authorities before departure to speed up airport the process.
Younger travellers, those under the age of 25, were more proactive in using technology to improve their travel experience, but they wanted assurances on digital security.
- 51% would choose digital wallets for payment – far above the global average of 20%.
- 90% expressed interest in using a smartphone with a digital wallet, passport, and loyalty cards for booking, payment, and airport navigation, surpassing the global average of 77%.
- 48% prefer biometrics over traditional passports and boarding passes compared with 43% of those aged 56-75.
- 50% of under-25s would be more open to biometric solutions if assured of data security, versus the global average of 39%.
Asia-Pacific-based travellers lead in using mobile apps and digital wallets to book and pay for travel, more than any other region.
“Technology continues to change the way people plan, book and pay for travel. Travellers expect the same conveniences when shopping for travel that they get in any other online shopping experience. That means simplicity, clarity, and with options to meet their preferences while keeping their data secure,” said Muhammad Albakri, IATA’s Senior Vice President for Financial Settlement and Distribution Services.
