The next decade and beyond will see a qualitative shift in the travel experience. The future of travel is likely to be shaped by technological innovations which reduce stress, uncertainty and chaos. It will allow the traveller to harness the experiences of friends, family and fellow travellers more intelligently. And it will herald a new eco-system whereby information is freely exchanged and the idea of one-way transactions becomes obsolete.

The key thread running through this report is that travel will become more collaborative over the next decade, both in terms of how people travel, and how the travel industry interacts with travellers.

The world of collaboration is about service users becoming partners rather than customers, in which the context becomes as important as the transaction.
For the 21st century travel business, it means moving from a model of service provision and selling to being an aggregator of information and facilitator of relationships. The paradox is that by reducing the emphasis on selling, travel industry providers will have a deeper and more profitable relationship with travellers. The future traveller will find their journey enriched by the shared experiences of many others, whether checking on the easiest way to reach the city centre from the airport, or finding the unexpected side to a familiar destination.

At every step of the journey, travel will be enhanced by greater and more fluid interaction with other travellers and travel providers. But all this is only possible by new technologies and innovations which will underpin and enable this greater fluidity and interaction to become a reality.