Among travelers' main complaints about online travel planning are that it takes too long, and they need to search too many different websites to find a good deal for what they want. While online travel shopping frequently requires multiple searches, other online experiences deliver personalized recommendations that streamline the process. Netflix and Amazon, for example, each offer consumers suggestions based on what's in their cart, past purchases or activity, or what they are currently doing on the site.

These online experiences have primed travelers for recommendations, and now for travel planning as well. Half of U.S. online travelers agree they would rather see a few choices based on what they tend to do, in order to avoid spending time hunting down the one perfect option. However, at a time when the issue of data privacy looms large in the U.S. and elsewhere, it's important to note that personalization requires the sharing of personal data. For most travelers, though, this is not a significant deterrent; around half of travelers are comfortable sharing their past or current travel plans with travel companies, if it helps provide a more personalized, streamlined experience.

Source: PhocuswrightSource: Phocuswright
Source: Phocuswright

For more on the fine line between personalization and privacy in online travel planning, check out Phocuswright's From Chat to Personalization: How U.S. Travelers Use Chat, Voice and Social. This report is one of three in the U.S. Traveler Technology Survey Eighth Edition Report series.

ABOUT PHOCUSWRIGHT INC.

Phocuswright is the travel industry research authority on how travelers, suppliers and intermediaries connect. Independent, rigorous and unbiased, Phocuswright fosters smart strategic planning, tactical decision-making and organizational effectiveness.

Phocuswright delivers qualitative and quantitative research on the evolving dynamics that influence travel, tourism and hospitality distribution. Our marketplace intelligence is the industry standard for segmentation, sizing, forecasting, trends, analysis and consumer travel planning behavior. Every day around the world, senior executives, marketers, strategists and research professionals from all segments of the industry value chain use Phocuswright research for competitive advantage.

To complement its primary research in North and Latin America, Europe and Asia, Phocuswright produces several high-profile conferences in the United States and Europe, and partners with conferences in China, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. Industry leaders and company analysts bring this intelligence to life by debating issues, sharing ideas and defining the ever-evolving reality of travel commerce.

The company is headquartered in the United States with Asia Pacific operations based in India and local analysts on five continents.

Phocuswright is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Northstar Travel Media, LLC. (116 32nd Street, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10001 United States). www.phocuswright.com

ABOUT NORTHSTAR TRAVEL GROUP

Northstar Travel Group is the leading provider of business-to-business news, information, data, transactions and custom content solutions for the travel, meetings and hospitality industries. Brands under the Northstar umbrella include Travel Weekly, Travel Weekly China, Travel Weekly Asia, TravelAge West, Business Travel News, Phocuswright, Meetings & Conventions, M&C China, Web in Travel and Inntopia. Northstar is the industry leader in marketing solutions, custom content communications, content licensing and database management serving the travel and meetings industries. The company produces more than 52 face-to-face events, taking place in North and South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Northstar is based in Secaucus, NJ, and is a portfolio company of EagleTree Capital. www.northstartravelgroup.com