2017 年全球旅遊人次突破 9 億，連續八年成長。千禧世代帶頭推動自由行，正在改變旅遊型態。吸引包括中國自由行在內的外國旅客，是台灣旅宿業的新機會。
千禧世代旅遊時代 —— 搶下全球旅客！
Dawn of Millennials: Time to Capture Foreign Travellers!
KOR / ENG
文 Booking.com
聯合國世界旅遊組織（UNWTO）世界旅遊晴雨表最新調查顯示，2017 年 1 至 8 月間，全球旅遊人次達到 9.01 億，連續八年成長。全球旅遊產業正經歷前所未有的長期榮景。
這與台灣市場絕非毫無關係。同期包括韓國在內的亞太地區旅遊人次成長了 6%。我們該把眼光投向何方，已經很清楚：吸引懷著不同目的、探索各種目的地的全球旅客來台。
外國旅客的優勢
外國旅客的潛力不只是數字而已。看看他們的旅行型態，就更能明白為什麼要吸引這群人。外國旅客從遠方而來，相較本國旅客通常停留更久、花費更多，並且因為行程明確，提早預訂後較少取消。再考量到各國假期與旺季錯開，只要策略性地吸引外國旅客，就能更有效率地度過淡季。
抓住外國旅客，先讀懂最新趨勢！
要吸引全球旅客，必須快速掌握最新旅遊趨勢。當前旅遊市場最值得關注的兩個關鍵字是千禧世代的崛起與自由行的強勢。
1981 至 2000 年間出生的千禧世代，正在各種服務產業建立獨特的消費型態，引領趨勢。旅遊業也不例外。內容行銷機構 EnVeritas Group 歸納出千禧世代旅遊消費的五大特徵。
首先，千禧世代1) 重視特殊體驗勝過實用性，例如主題式住宿或觀光帶來的獨特體驗；2) 偏好旅途中能與陌生人交流的開放空間；3) 積極尋求像當地人一樣吃喝的體驗；4) 對融入最新科技的旅遊體驗非常熟悉；5) 高度重視性價比。
隨著千禧世代旅客增加，旅遊型態也從團體套裝行程大幅轉向自由行。善於運用最新資通訊科技、語言障礙相對較低的年輕族群，比起跟著套裝行程走既定流程，更喜歡透過網路搜尋與資料蒐集，規劃符合喜好的交通、住宿與旅遊動線並付諸實行。中國自由行旅客的增加尤其是近期全球旅遊業關注的焦點。預計未來五年將占中國總消費 55% 的中國千禧世代，大多偏好自由行勝過團體套裝旅遊。TripAdvisor China Unbounded 調查指出，中國自由行旅客中有 52% 選擇停留期間相對較長的海外旅遊。
結論很明確：全球旅遊業高度關注中國自由行旅客動態是理所當然的。隨著中韓關係從寒冬轉向解凍，我們業界也需要更快速的動作來吸引中國自由行旅客。
與 Booking.com 一起接待全球旅客！
飯店訂房解決方案供應商 SiteMinder 提出旅宿業者要吸引全球旅客應該掌握的五項訣竅：
1) 盡可能提供多國語言與貨幣
2) 積極運用社群媒體
3) 快速導入 OTA，並強化搜尋引擎最佳化（SEO）
4) 與全球網站合作推廣住宿
5) 用心管理網站與顧客評價
如果您與 Booking.com 合作，這些訣竅中的大部分已經在實踐了。首先，Booking.com 支援全球 43 種語言與貨幣，這個數字就連主要 OTA，甚至 Amazon、eBay 等電商網站都難以匹敵。在 Booking.com 註冊的住宿可依需求翻譯成 43 種語言，讓全球旅客看見，費率也能輕鬆轉換成使用者想要的貨幣。
我們也在搜尋引擎最佳化（SEO）上大量投資，讓我們的網站在旅遊目的地或住宿類型等關鍵字搜尋結果中排名靠前，使 Booking.com 上註冊的住宿能接觸到更多使用者。
另一方面，Booking.com 擁有超過 1 億則顧客評價，連 NAVER 這類線上搜尋引擎都在使用這些資料。發布在 Booking.com 網站上的顧客評價經過嚴格驗證，保證準確性與客觀性。此外，我們在合作夥伴使用的 Extranet 管理後台設有顧客評價回覆系統，讓您能即時快速回應顧客評價。
就從今天開始，在 Booking.com 上接待全球旅客吧！
International tourism is on the rise! Statistics from UNWTO(World Tourism Barometer) show that from January till August 2017, there were 901 million international tourist arrivals. Upward trajectory of international tourism has been continuing for the last 8 consecutive years without any signs of stopping.
This is not a story from a distant land. During the same period above, number of international visitors in the Asia Pacific Region that includes S.Korea also increased by 6%. How then do we capture international tourists flooding in on an unprecedented scale? In this article, We will be looking at how hosting international guests can benefit your business and practical measures we can take to draw attentions of foreign tourists all over the world.
Why Host International Guests?
Untapped giant pool of demand from foreign travellers really exists and it is for us to exploit this opportunity. Not so convinced how international guests can be a cash cow? Benefits are obvious if you look at their travel patterns. According to Booking.com's own database, foreign travellers tend to book early, cancel less, stay longer and spend more whilst their stay! Plus, differences in high seasons among the different nationalities can play to your advantage as this can make up for low demand in domestic market. (e.g. high season for Americans can be a low season for Korean market!)
Get into Swing of Latest Travel Trend
How then do we attract foreign guests? One needs to be in the constant look out for the latest travel trend. Right now, the hottest two buzzwords for travel industry are 'Rise of Millennials' and 'Free Independent Traveller(FIT)'.
So called Millennials (born between 1981~2000) are now considered to be trend setters in the industry and they are showing different purchasing behaviour. EnVeritas Group, a content marketing agency has typified consuming behaviours of millennials as follows. 1) Millennials want an experience, not just functionality. 2) Millennials love open public spaces to meet new people and gather with friends. 3) Local dining and drinking options are a must**. 4)** Technology is no longer an option, but a necessity. 5) Millennials want more bang for their buck.
Influence of millennials is such that they are reshaping the way travelling is traditionally done i.e. Package Travelling is giving ground to Free Independent Travelling(FIT). Tech savvy millennials are less bound by language barrier and tend to prefer independent way of travelling. Rather than following the itinerary set by others, making own plans based on the hand picked information is their preferred method of travelling. What is interesting and noteworthy is the fact that same trend can be found among Chinese youth. Growth of Chinese FIT has now become a new buzzword for global travel industry. Chinese millennials are expected to take up more than 55% of Chinese consumers within next 5 years and their preferred way of travelling is that of independent way. According to TripAdvisor China Unbounded, 52% of Chinese FITs are said to be opting for overseas travelling with longer stay period. And this bit of information becomes all the more relevant for Korean property owners as existing tension between the Chinese and Korean government is beginning to thaw.
Host Internal Guests through Booking.com
SiteMinder – the hotel reservation solution provider suggested 5 know-hows to capture international guests. And they are as follows:
1) Increase your language and currency capabilities
2) Stay active on social media
3) Keep up-to-date with OTAs and maximise SEO
4) Partner with international websites and showcase your destination
5) Maintain your website and manage your reviews
Luckily, if you are with Booking.com, you are more or less covered for all five know-hows above. Booking.com is offering service in 43 languages and currencies – an industry leading figure, even exceeding other e-commerce websites such as Amazon and Ebay. Once your property is registered with Booking.com, your property page can be translated into 43 languages according to demand and be exposed to global audiences. It is also easy to convert your room rate to other currencies that customers want to see.
Main strength of Booking.com has always been SEO(Search Engine Optimization) and we are continuing to invest heavily in this area so that any keywords relating to your property can rank higher on all majour search engines round the world.
As for guest reviews, Booking.com possesses over 100 million guest reviews written by customers who actually stayed at the property. This is why majour search engine such as Naver is using our guest reviews. We are proud to keep our reviews genuine yet objective. And partners are happy as they can directly reply guest reviews. This feature is helping property owners to maintain high level of service and manage their reputation even after guest's stay is over.
At Booking.com, it is easy to meet your guests all around the world!
參考資料（References）
https://enveritasgroup.com/campfire/5-ways-attract-millennial-travelers-hotel/
Booking.com
註冊諮詢（Contact）
Hani Lee hani.lee@booking.com
Rachel Jeong rachel.jeong@booking.com