22. 06. 2022

Meet Google’s Free Travel Analytics Tool for Destinations and Travel Businesses

travel analytics tool insights with google

After launching a tool to provide search data to airlines called Flight Demand Explorer, Google has come up with a new travel analytics tool focused on destinations and accommodations.

Travel Insights with Google is meant for governments, tourism boards, hotels, or anyone else interested in the changes in demand for the tourism market. Which is of great help to guide your marketing efforts for the next season.

Why you should be using a travel analytics tool

Tourism is a complex industry. There are a series of factors that impact on the decision-making process of travelers when planning their trip. The most recent was the COVID-19 pandemic, which had a catastrophic impact on the industry worldwide.

Because of this complexity, being able to predict travel demand is the holy grail for travel marketers, but also one of their biggest challenges. In order to better understand travelers’ behavior, which period of the year demand is high and from which market visitors are coming from, it is common for big organizations to rely on travel analytic tools.

Some of the benefits of using these travel data aggregators are:

  • Creating an accurate profile of your ideal traveler
  • A better understanding of travel seasonality for your destination
  • Acquiring valuable data to create a tourism development plan for your destination
  • Faster recovery of tourism during the post-pandemic
  • Better planning your marketing strategies

Your new source for travel analytics: Travel Insights with Google

google logo photo travel analytics tool

Like Google’s previous solution, the data shared in Travel Insights comes from Google searches. But instead of flight inquiries, the focus is the intention of traveling to a certain location or finding a hotel room. 

The user also receives insights and resources to make the most of the travel data. That makes it a great travel analytics tool, a source of free information for data-driven decisions and operational improvements.

Travel Insights with Google is divided into:

  • Destination Insights
  • Hotel Insights
  • Travel Analytics Center

Destination Insights

This feature provides relevant data to municipalities and organizations that need a broad overview of tourism in a certain location in order to plan the tourism activity in their region or improve their travel policies.

travel demand over time graph travel analytics tool

DMOs, for example, can use Destination Insights to find out the countries that are top sources of inbound travel demand for their destination. Or, to track the travel demand growth or decline over time to understand better the seasonality in their destination.

top demand source country travel analytics tool

This feature also provides an overview of the domestic destinations with an increasing search interest.

top growth by destination city travel analytics tool

It is possible to filter the travel data according to the origin country, type of trip (domestic, international or both), demand category (air, accommodation or both), and date range.

travel analytics tool filter

Hotel Insights

This feature contains a chart of the changing searching interest for places to stay in the chosen area. Which is great data for accommodation providers to plan their pricing strategy.

seach interest over time travel analytics tool

They can also compare the search interest for accommodation from domestic and international markets as well as detailed information regarding the countries that are performing most of those searches.

domestic vs international search interest travel analytics tool
top inbound markets travel analytics tool

Travel Analytics Center

This last feature is exclusive to Google’s travel commercial partners. Those organizations can combine their own Google account data with broader Google demand data for more personalized insights regarding:

  • Travel Demand Insights 
  • Marketing Performance
  • Google Flights Performance

If you are Google’s travel commercial partner, check out more details about this feature here.

Conclusion

All the information acquired through Travel Insights with Google is fuel to a top-notch marketing strategy.

Combining this data with a strong online presence gives you the necessary advantage to put your destination or business ahead of the competition.

If you are a DMO struggling to turn your destination into a Smart Destination, we might have the solutions you need.

SmartDestination is a crew of award-winning tech companies with the know-how to digitalize your tourism offer and put it in front of thousands of potential guests. Learn more about how we help destinations become smart and contact us if you need our help.