Maps have always been an essential part of every travel experience. Every time you pack for a trip, one thing that you need is a Map. However, today we don’t pay much attention to literally packing a properly printed map because we have it on our phones. Earlier, people used to use printed maps and figure out the route to where they are heading or locating where they are. Maps used to be prints covered with complex lines that routed around wherever a person planned to go. As time passed, and technology took over a lot of aspects of our lives, Maps became digital, accessible, and easy to use. All of this has been possible only because of the Global Positioning System. This system has helped a lot in navigation, location sharing, tracking, etc. Today we just use interactive maps to get from one place to another with the help of the navigation feature. The navigation system is so advanced that it gets us on the best and the most convenient route possible to make our travel experience comfortable. It has become an important part of everyone’s day-to-day life. From cabs and busses to airplanes and ships, GPS has made travel efficient.
According to a report by Grandviewresearch, “The global positioning systems (GPS) market size was estimated at USD 37.9 billion in 2017. It is anticipated to progress at a CAGR of 18.4% during the forecast period.” The same report also talks about the applications of GPS stating, “GPS technology can be used in a variety of applications including road, aviation, marine, location-based services, and surveying and mapping. The location-based services segment represented the leading share of 41.7% of the global positioning systems market in 2017.”
GPS has also made a huge impact on the tourism industry. Tourism experiences have become much safer and comfortable for travelers all around the globe. People usually travel to get away from their day-to-day life and experience something different. A maximum number of people like to have a peaceful and calming vacation while they are traveling and with the help of GPS, that has become possible and well managed. Especially for travelers that like to go on road trips, GPS is something that they depend upon today. There are various ways in which GPS has impacted the Tourism Industry.
How Positioning Has Impacted the Tourism Industry
- Interactive Navigation
One of the most main points of how Positioning has changed the Tourism Industry is Navigation. People can easily find the way to the exact destination without the hassle of trying to ask people in the area the right way. With the help of navigation, they can plan their entire day based on the places they want to visit. It also gives them suggestions and alerts for various pit stops that would want to make on the way for food, fuel, and rest. It makes traveling much more planned and stress-free especially for road trippers.
2. Route Allocations and reports
The travelers can get updates about the quickest routes that they can take in an area to get where they want to go. A positioning system helps in getting information about the traffic flows of various routes that can cause a lot of delays. GPS can give them the best route possible based on the positioning data it receives. This makes the travel much more comfortable and quicker. The system can also provide real-time reports on the usage of the vehicle based on the distance traveled and the utilization of fuel. This will help the traveler know where they have to make a quick stop to refuel and take a break. - Notifications and Real-time Alerts
Positioning systems help travelers have the best kind of exploration experience without having to look and ask for places to go to. The notifications feature allows them to get notified about popular places in and around their current location that they can visit and spend time at. This can be exciting for people who like to explore places that are not pre-planned. Real-time alerts can help the person tracking their own vehicle to see where they are heading on the map. This also makes cab journeys safe. - Hotel services
Positioning can help tourists find the best hotels in their location and book them immediately through their smartphone devices. Earlier it was difficult for people to find good hotels and make a booking, they would have to go and enquire physically and check-in. But today, it is super easy to find hotels based on ratings and reviews by other travelers who have stayed there and then decide. This helps in finding relevant places that will make the stay much more comfortable and safe. Online check-ins are another feature that makes the process of taking a room much quicker.
There are many other ways in which Positioning systems have made tourism much better. With time, we can expect more development in positioning systems in the coming years. Apart from GPS, indoor positioning systems are also becoming very popular in various industries. Especially for businesses in the hospitality industry, places like large resorts can benefit highly from this technology. Not only it provides indoor navigation but it also offers location sharing, like tracking, notifications, event alerts, asset management, customer feedback, and much more. This system can help customers experience a smart vacation at resorts. It enhances the service quality and enables easy management of property and assets. It also helps in risk and emergency management. There are various companies in the market that provide indoor positioning systems, and a lot of them require the installation of certain hardware devices for them to carry out the tasks. However, Mapsted has one of the world’s leading indoor positioning technology that works without the installation of hardware like beacons or Wi-Fi, which makes it unique and easy to implement. This advanced system can help you maintain the systems operations much easier than the systems that require hardware installations.
