Mobile Drives Growth Of Online Travel Bookings

This year 40% of online travel sales will come from mobile devices, according to a new study by eMarketer. These sales include airline, car rental, cruise, hotel, accommodations and transportation.

Mobile travel sales will total $75.85 billion in the U.S., up 16.7% from last year. On the other hand, desktop and laptop travel sales will decline 1.6% this year to $113.77 billion. By 2021, eMarketer predicts mobile will represent nearly half of all online travel sales.

U.S. adults are using smartphones much more than tablets when booking trips on mobile devices. This year 57.5 million U.S. adults will use a smartphone to book travel, up 14.3% from last year.

eMarketer says consumers are booking more travel on mobile due to larger smartphone screens, easier mobile payment methods and overall habits shifting to mobile.