Premier Inn has long been aware of this opportunity and recently revamped its iPad app to try and make it easier for customers to make repeat bookings.

However it has a difficult task on its hands, as JiWire’s data shows that almost two-thirds (63%) of consumers make travel purchases using their laptop compared to just 39% on tablet and 27% on smartphone.

Overall though the stats show a marked increase from back in 2011 when a Tealeaf survey found that 17% of consumer researched travel decisions on mobile while just 3% made a booking on their phones.

Which devices do you use to research and make travel purchases?

The report also shows that consumers aren’t afraid of making big travel purchases on mobile.

44% of respondents stated that they were willing to spend more than $500 on travel-related purchases using their smartphone or tablet. At the other end of the scale, only 13% of consumers said they wouldn’t make a travel purchase using their mobile device.

How much are you willing to spend on travel when making a purchase with your smartphone or tablet?

Apps vs. mobile sites

Finally, the report shows the importance of mobile apps for the travel industry. When respondents were asked what platform they prefer to use when making a travel booking, travel aggregator and airline apps turned out to be three times more popular than mobile sites for both research and purchasing.

However that doesn’t mean that mobile optimised sites are a waste of time for travel operators.

When Affiliate Window compared the conversion rates for a travel operator with a mobile site versus one still relying on its desktop version, it found that the former converted at a rate of 5.8% compared to just 0.8% for the latter.

If you book travel on your smartphone or tablet which of the following is most important?