The Travel 3.0 Era – Local Travel

This article was published by our friends at The Travel Word, who have agreed to its republication here. View the original article on their blog.

Tourists and Rapa Nui locals sharing a Tunu Ahí (fish barbecue with sweet potato) in Easter Island. 

© Mana Tupuna

by Len Cordiner

There is no right or wrong about how we position the Local Travel Movement, but its relevance is obvious. As I look at the evolution of travel, we are at the leading edge of what I would call Travel 3.0.

Travel 1.0

Travel 1.0 was about the travel professionals and travel experts telling us about the great things to see and do. This was the travel agents (off- and later online), travel media, guidebooks, etc. It was a time of trusted brands (National Geographic, Lonely Planet, Four Seasons, Thomas Cook, Virgin Holidays, etc.). With the exception of some friends and family advice, travellers took counsel from experts and planned their travel accordingly.

Hence the world of travel information up to around 2005 looked very much like the image seen above right.

Travel 2.0

Travel 2.0, which coincided with Web 2.0, was (and still is) about travellers telling everyone about their travel experiences. This has caused major trauma for the travel industry, as brands are (largely) replaced by or created around traveller feedback, and push-marketing is replaced by social networks. The new big names in travel information are the likes of Tripadvisor and Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree.

From 2005 until very recently, the world of travel information became like this the image seen above left.

Travel 3.0

Travel 3.0 is about locals (and location). Locals are the ones on the ground every day – people with the intimate who-, what-, where-, when- and why-type information. Google’s relentless push to connect suppliers directly with buyers, geolocation, mobile Internet and the ‘when’ component added regularly by locals, along with a growing desire for experiential travel, are driving the next big shift in travel information… one driven by locals.

So from 2010, the world of travel information is looking more and more like this the image seen above right.

In keeping with this, the Local Travel Movement is all about locals – sharing stories told by locals, seeking out and writing about innovations in local travel and probing what all this means for travellers and local communities.

LEN CORDINER

In incubating and running numerous companies over 35 years, Len Cordiner has developed a passion for win-win outcomes. Most recently, he has made harnessing the power of the Internet and new communications tools central to his mission to change paradigms in travel, making it more accessible to all. In this vein, founding the WHL Group, of which Len is the CEO, is his latest and most ambitious global business initiative.

THE TRAVEL WORD

The Travel Word is a blog that showcases responsible, sustainable and local travel. It is committed to inspiring mindful and independent travelers headed off the beaten path with local businesses making responsible and sustainable decisions about their destinations. The Travel Word is the online mouthpiece of the WHL Group, the largest local-travel company in the world.