Technology is undergoing a paradigm shift and has transitioned at a supersonic speed in the last couple of years. Things which you would have never imagined is happening right in front of your eyes. Be it the hearables like Amazon Echo, Google Home, Apple Siri, Microsoft Cortana, etc. or the wearables like Apple smart watch, Fitbit, rings activated with locker passwords, etc. – it is true that World is moving into a different horizon in regard with the onslaught of technology and the speed at which it is getting accepted by everyone.

Travel on the other hand has also found it’s own share of innovations with the help of the new age technology. Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, Video chats, live streaming, recorded footages, etc. helps us to know about new places, new cultures , new cuisines, etc. But the urge to try this on your own is making people travel. The number of travellers have increased exponentially in the last decade. With the help of technology , people are very well aware of places that appeal to their tastes. Hashtags are the new style statement and it is also the go to search mantra. Instagram, in particular, has created a wave in this regard especially in the travel world. Insta Stories and Insta posts is helping the New Age travellers to get the knowledge of new places. But all this while the technology has only helped in creating the excitement to Travel.

Soon Travel enabled with future technologies will give a whole different experience. Be ready to get personalised welcome to the aeroplane. Artificial Intelligence & Facial Recognition will give the details of each and every passenger to the air hostess / stewards.

This will enable them to welcome you by calling out your name.They will even have your preferences with them and will have data in regard with what was the food, beverages you consumed on your last flight. In flight entertainment will also get a makeover soon. You will be able to project your mobile to the tray table in front of you. Watch movies , play games or read your content from your mobile on the bigger screen. Of course WiFi will also be a standard feature in all airplanes in the near future. Safety instructions will be fed to your brain automatically in a wink of the eye. Meals can be chosen and ordered from the screen menus. The meals may be served to you by Robots. Cab bookings as per flight departure and arrival timing, traffic, etc. will be automatically done by Alexa , Home, or your personalised robots. Once you board the aeroplane , You will not have to keep looking for your seat . The voice command from your mobile / smart watch will guide you to the correct seat and help you skip the embarrassment of occupying a wrong seat.

Hotel will get details of your flight arrival and can get your room ready accordingly. In case the room is not ready then you will get a message from them so that you may plan to take a break before reaching the hotel. Hotels have already started to personalise everything – right from the type of pillows preferred to the time at which morning tea / coffee needs to be served.

The future is all about connected travel. There are already suitcases which are connected and follow you while you walk around the airport. We will soon witness ‘connected’ suitcases automatically coming out of the conveyor belt if you are standing near to the belt. Your trolleys will automatically get the hotel room number update and will guide itself to the rooms. Hotel keys will be eliminated and replaced with voice assisted or finger print enabled door locks. Credit cards will move to mobile friendly smart cards. So there will not be any hassle of carrying that along with you. All payments can be made from your mobile. iPad enabled robots will be moving around serving you welcome drink and fresh towels. Sit on your couch and on a touch of your mobile / a voice command the beer will automatically get delivered on your table. Even The television will automatically tune to the sports channel which is airing your favourite team’s live match. Sophisticated Segways will cater to your transport requirement in the City or tourist location that you visit. Über way of rating the cab driver and the passenger will be carried forward to all aspects of travel including the rating of air hostesses/ stewards, hotel front desk staff, robots, and you will also be rated in return. The cost for each service may get linked to each other’s rating.

We will see ourselves enjoying our travel in the future with technology coming to our aid at every touch point. Yes there are many of us who feel that technology is required only to take care of the basic needs and the rest should be manually managed. But gone are the days when we run to a near by telephone booth to make a phone call or wait for the taxi to arrive at the taxi stand. So wear your seatbelt and get ready to leap in to the tech travel world soon. There may be turbulence, delays in adapting to this new age world but definitely it is going to be the Future. Everyone will have their own wonderful tale to narrate about their experiences.

My fellow traveller casually mentioned “Life is an adventurous journey, no one escapes alive 🙂 “ .