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Which phone you have says a lot about what kind of traveller you are, according to Booking.com data, particularly in China, where the hotel booking platform will soon give different search results depending on what phone is being used. “People using iPhone and Android have different behaviours and, generally speaking, people with Android phones tend to spend less and tend to book mostly domestic travel,” says Marsha Ma, managing director and China vice-president at Booking.com. “But it depends on the handset. There’s a much bigger price range for Android phones, and actually those with higher-end Android phones [choose] more expensive hotels than iPhone owners.” So while you may think those toting an iPhone XS Max are the biggest spending travellers, it’s those with a Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus or Huawei P30 Pro that are more likely to be staying in the most expensive hotels. (The Booking.com app comes pre-installed on Huawei phones in China, and new users can get exclusive discounts.) However, Chinese travellers aren’t using the service like that. In fact, so different is digital behaviour in China that the company has had to treat it like an entirely new part of its business. “Chinese tourists are much happier to book a hotel on the same day,” says Ma. “China is an app-only world, and when Chinese people search, their behaviours are very different to the rest of the world.” Booking windows are getting ever shorter, and many Chinese travellers regularly book somewhere to stay when they reach their destination. |
