Travel App Development Guide: Types, Features, and Cost

Travel app development is a prospective niche to bring investments in: for example, in 2023, 48% of worldwide travelers applied to mobile devices for destination research, 47% to compare prices for accommodation and transport, and 40% of people in the world – to book flights. But if you want to build a big-time travel app, you need to carefully choose the business model, features, and decide on the budget matters.

As a software development provider with hands-on experience in travel app creation, we’ve prepared this guide. You’ll discover what this app is, its operating mechanism, core feature set, the average cost for travel application building, and more. Let’s get started.

A travel app development is a creation of a mobile or web application designed to assist users in planning, booking, and managing their travel experiences. It typically allows users to operate with flight and hotel reservations, itinerary organization, destination guides, and real-time updates on travel conditions. By integrating various travel services and information into one platform, it aims to provide a seamless and convenient experience for travelers.

An operation mechanism of a travel application starts with a user-friendly interface where travelers can search for and book flights, hotels, and rental cars. The app uses secure payment gateways to handle transactions. It also features itinerary management, allowing users to organize their travel plans in one place.

GPS and map services are integrated to provide navigation and local attraction recommendations. Push notifications keep users informed about flight status, weather updates, and travel advisories. Finally, the app employs data analytics to personalize suggestions based on user preferences and travel history, enhancing the overall experience.

The travel industry has undergone a significant transformation, with mobile apps becoming the go-to resource for modern explorers. This surge in popularity isn't without reason - travel apps offer unparalleled convenience, personalization, and information access, revolutionizing the way we plan and experience journeys.

Let's delve into the data to understand the captivating rise of travel app development.

• In 2023, the travel industry market has reached $629 billion, which is 13% more than in 2022.
• Only 850 million people applied to travel apps worldwide in 2023.
• For a flawless experience, consumers of mobile travel apps prefer features like real-time flight notifications, itinerary management tools, and easy-to-use booking functionality.
• About 60% of mobile travel apps are used at least monthly

As you can see, the travel mobile apps popularity is explained by the convenience, personalization, and information access they offer. This trend is fueled by user demand for features like real-time updates and easy booking, making travel apps a must-have for modern explorers.

Let’s discuss the major reasons that make travel app development and usage so popular and advantageous for users.

Besides everything else, one of travel apps’ undeniable benefits is their ability to serve as a powerful revenue stream for the travel industry, fostering a win-win situation for both developers and travel businesses. So, we’ll find out how travel apps like Airbnb, Tinder (for traveling) and others earn money.

There are the following revenue models for travel and tourism app development:

• In-app purchases (e.g., HotelTonight)
• Premium/Freemium model (e.g., Tinder for traveling)
• Advertising (e.g., Skyscanner)
• Listing charge (e.g., Airbnb)

In-app purchases offer users the ability to buy additional features or services directly within the app. For travel apps, such as HotelTonight, this could include purchasing premium content such as detailed travel guides, exclusive destination tips, or access to virtual tours.

Users might also pay for enhanced features like offline maps, priority customer support, or travel insurance. This model appeals to users who want more personalized and comprehensive travel planning tools without overwhelming them with upfront costs.

The premium model, also known as the freemium model, allows customers to download and use the basic version of the application after mobile travel app development for free. At the same time, they can offer advanced features (e.g., real-time flight status updates, advanced itinerary management, exclusive travel deals, etc.) through a paid subscription.

Users who see the value in these added features are likely to upgrade, providing a recurring revenue stream. That’s why the premium model for apps like Tinder for Travel, ensures a broad user base for the basic travel app while monetizing power users who need additional functionalities.

It’s a common monetization strategy where the digital solution displays ads from third-party advertisers. In travel apps, advertisers could include airlines, hotels, travel agencies, and local attractions. Revenue is typically generated on a per-click (CPC) or per-impression (CPM) basis. While ads can provide a significant revenue stream for travel guide app like Skyscanner, it’s essential to balance ad placement to avoid disrupting the user experience.

The listing charge model involves charging service providers, such as hotels, tour operators, and local attractions, a fee to be listed on the travel and tourism app (e.g., Airbnb). This can be a one-time fee, a subscription fee, or a commission on bookings made through the application. For example, a hotel might pay to be featured prominently in search results or to offer exclusive deals to travel app users. This model creates a symbiotic relationship where service providers gain visibility and potential customers, while the app benefits from a steady revenue stream.

Creating a travel app from scratch involves a series of well-planned steps to ensure the final product meets users' needs and stands out in a competitive market. Here’s a comprehensive guide to the travel app development process.

The first step in developing a travel app is to clearly define its purpose. Identify the specific problems your app will solve for travelers and the unique value it will offer. Consider whether your app will focus on booking flights, accommodations, creating itineraries, or providing travel guides.

Having a clear travel app idea helps streamline the development process and guides your decisions. Understand your target audience and their needs, as this will influence the travel app features you want to choose and design. A well-defined purpose sets a foundation for the rest of the development process.

Conducting thorough market research is crucial to understand the competitive landscape and identify market gaps. Analyze successful travel apps to learn about their strengths and weaknesses. Gather insights from potential users through surveys or focus groups to understand their pain points.

This research helps in refining your travel app idea and ensures that your app addresses real user needs. Stay updated with the latest trends in the travel industry to incorporate relevant features that appeal to modern travelers. Market research also aids in creating a strong marketing strategy for your app.

Bringing your travel app idea to life can be challenging, but outsourcing development offers numerous advantages. You gain access to a pool of experienced professionals, saving time and resources while leveraging their expertise. This allows you to focus on your core business strengths while a trusted tech partner translates your vision into a robust and user-friendly app.

Now, let’s check the points the effective travel app vendor should have:

• Experience in rendering quality travel app development services
• A strong portfolio of successful projects
• Client testimonials on Clutch page and reviews to gauge their reliability and quality of work
• A proficient team of developers, designers, and testers
• Ability to provide a clear and transparent pricing model
• Flexibility to adapt to changing requirements and updates during the development process
• Strong project management skills to ensure timely delivery and adherence to deadlines.

Cleveroad mobile app development company possesses all these qualities and more. Our team of travel app development specialists has a proven track record of creating innovative and user-centric travel apps. Whether you envision a niche booking platform or a revolutionary trip planning tool, we can partner with you to turn your vision into a reality.

Collaborate closely with your mobile travel app development vendor to identify the essential features that must be integrated into your app to provide a comprehensive solution to users. Begin by focusing on core functionalities such as booking management, travel itineraries, and real-time updates, which are fundamental for a seamless travel experience. Discuss the inclusion of additional features like user reviews, interactive maps, offline access, and secure payment gateways to enhance usability.

Prioritize these features based on user feedback gathered from market research, ensuring each contributes directly to fulfilling your app's objectives. Working hand-in-hand with your vendor, align these features with your app's overarching purpose to create a unique value proposition that sets your app apart in the competitive travel app market.

The travel app development provider’s designers will render you top-notch quality UI/UX design services. It will help make your travel app design clean, with clear icons and readable fonts, ensuring a pleasant user experience. Checking the vendor’s designers work, you should also pay attention to color schemes, ensuring they are consistent and appealing. Consider the user journey and make sure all actions can be performed with minimal effort. Responsive design is essential to provide a seamless experience across various devices.

Our team of expert travel app developers will be by your side throughout the development and testing stage, transforming your travel application concept into a functional reality. During the travel app development process, we leverage Agile development methodology to ensure flexibility and continuous improvement. This means you'll be involved every step of the way, providing feedback and iterating on features to create the perfect travel app.

Rigorous testing is essential, and Cleveroad employs a combination of manual and automated testing to identify and eliminate the developed travel app bugs, performance issues, and usability problems. So, partnering with Cleveroad means your travel app is not only feature-rich but also reliable, high-performing, and ready to impress your target audience.

Launching your travel app is a critical milestone in the development process. At the day of travel app launch, the developers and QA engineers (for example, in Cleveroad) ensure your solution is flawless and help you publish it on marketplaces like Google Play or App Store.

But what should you do next? Consider the following set of activities:

• Ensure your app is available on major app stores like Google Play and the Apple App Store.
• Provide clear instructions and support for users to encourage downloads and positive reviews.
• Monitor the app’s performance post-launch and be prepared to address feedbacks from early users, or solve any issues promptly.

No fancy travel app design or smooth performance will work for customers if there are no good offers provided. So collaboration with hosts is one of the key points of travel application development. That’s a large amount of data, and hosts are more likely to manage it from an easy-to-use app.

From their account, hotel managers should be able to monitor the bookings, general information, and other details. Another point is a smooth notification system. Besides, customers are likely to blame the app if anything happens during their trip. Make sure you’re choosing trustworthy partners that will follow your agreement.

Post-launch activities are crucial for the ongoing success and improvement of your travel app. Work with your travel app development vendor to continuously monitor app performance and user feedback. Regularly release updates to fix bugs, improve features, and introduce new functionalities. Engage with users through social media, newsletters, and in-app notifications to keep them informed about updates and new features. Analyze user behavior and usage patterns to make data-driven decisions for future enhancements. Provide responsive customer support to address any user issues or inquiries promptly.

By following these steps and maintaining close collaboration with your travel and tourism app development vendor like Cleveroad, you can create a successful travel app that meets user needs and excels in the competitive market.

When you use the app, understanding the basic feature set is crucial for maximizing its benefits. Popular travel apps typically include the following features we’ll discover below.

Users should be able to search for flights, accommodations, and activities based on specific criteria such as price, location, dates, and preferences. Filters help narrow down the options, making it easier for users to find exactly what they're looking for. Travel app developers must ensure the search function is fast and accurate, providing relevant results promptly. This feature simplifies the travel planning process and saves users time.

The ability to book flights, hotels, car rentals, and activities directly through the app is a must-have. Integrating secure payment gateways and providing users with confirmation and booking details within the app enhances convenience. This feature should also include options to view and manage existing reservations, ensuring users have all their travel details in one place.

A robust itinerary management feature allows users to create and organize their travel plans in one place. Users can add flights, hotel reservations, activities, and notes, creating a comprehensive travel itinerary. The app should send reminders and notifications earlier implemented by teams in travel app development companies for upcoming bookings and activities. This helps users stay organized and ensures they don't miss any important events during their trip.

Keeping users informed with real-time updates on flight status, weather conditions, and travel advisories is essential. Notifications about gate changes, delays, and cancellations help users stay updated and adjust their plans accordingly. This feature enhances the reliability of the app and provides users with peace of mind knowing they are well-informed throughout their journey.

Travelers often find themselves in areas with limited or no Internet connectivity. Providing offline access to essential features such as travel itineraries, maps, and booking details is crucial. This ensures users can still access important information even without an internet connection. Offline access enhances the app's usability and reliability, making it a valuable tool for travelers.

Integrating interactive maps helps users explore destinations, find attractions, restaurants, and other points of interest. The app should offer turn-by-turn navigation, helping users get to their desired locations efficiently. This feature enhances the travel experience by providing users with valuable information about their surroundings. It's an essential feature for any travel app looking to offer comprehensive travel assistance.

Including user-generated reviews and recommendations for hotels, restaurants, and attractions provides valuable insights to other travelers. This feature helps users make informed decisions based on the experiences of others. Travel app developers should ensure the review system is easy to use and offers authentic feedback. This fosters a sense of community within the app and helps users trust the information provided.

Let us explore the main types of online travel solutions divided by the services they can offer. We’ll dive deeper into their aims and core features as well as give you examples for each of the types used during the travel mobile app development process.

Apps for booking flights are made to make it easier for passengers to find, compare, and book flights. These applications usually provide a must-have feature set like:

• Seat selection
• Price notifications
• Flexible date searches
• Safe payment methods.

The finest flight alternatives that fit their needs and budget may be found by users by browsing through a variety of airlines, departure timings, and rates. The popular examples of travel booking apps for flights are: Skyscanner, Kayak, Expedia and others.

Transportation apps are a category of travel applications designed to facilitate various modes of transport for travelers, including ridesharing, public transit, car rentals, bike-sharing services, and online train ticket reservation.

Core features of this type of app for traveling typically include:

• Real-time tracking
• Route planning
• Fare estimation
• Booking and payment integration
• User reviews

Examples of popular transportation apps include Uber and Lyft, Google Maps, and Turo. These apps significantly enhance the travel experience by providing convenient, reliable, and often cost-effective transportation solutions, enabling users to navigate and explore new destinations with ease.

Accommodation booking apps are specialized travel and hospitality applications designed to help users find, compare, and book various lodging options such as hotels, hostels, vacation rentals, and more. To build a travel app like this, developers need to incorporate the following core features:

• Comprehensive search and filter options
• User reviews and ratings
• Detailed property descriptions
• High-quality photos and maps to check locations

Examples of popular accommodation booking apps include Airbnb, Booking.com, and Expedia. These apps enhance the travel planning experience by providing convenience, a variety of choices, and personalized recommendations, ensuring users can find the perfect place to stay for their trips.

It’s a popular type of app in the travel industry designed to streamline and enhance the travel experience by organizing all aspects of a trip in one place. It offers a variety of core features like:

• Itinerary creation
• Booking management
• Destination recommendations
• Real-time updates on flights and accommodation

Some well-known travel planning apps include TripIt, Roadtrippers, Google Trips. These apps embody the app idea of simplifying travel logistics, ensuring that travelers can focus more on enjoying their journey rather than managing the details. With features like collaborative planning and offline access, travel planner app development teams cater to both solo travelers and groups, making their product an indispensable tool for modern explorers.

Virtual tour apps transcend static photos, allowing users to embark on immersive journeys through 360-degree panoramic images, high-definition videos, and interactive elements. This technology goes beyond sightseeing; some virtual tour apps allow users to navigate virtually within the tours, providing a realistic sense of scale and layout.

Popular examples of virtual tour apps include Google Arts & Culture, YouVisit, and Lokal. Whether you're a meticulous planner or a spontaneous adventurer, virtual tour apps empower you to explore the world like never before.

How to build a travel app of this type? There are some of the core features you can use:

• Detailed virtual walkthroughs
• Integration of audio guides
• Informative pop-ups
• Compatibility with VR headsets

These types of travel apps significantly enhance the travel experience by offering specialized services that cater to various needs and preferences. Whether you're booking a flight, finding the perfect accommodation, planning your itinerary, or taking a virtual tour, using these apps simplifies and enriches your travel journey. Now, let's delve into the core features of these travel apps that make them indispensable tools for travelers.

It’s difficult to count the exact cost to build a travel app. No vendor can tell it to you until they will study your business requirements. Why so? Because the exact mobile travel app development cost depends on many factors, and below you’ll discover some of the major ones.

A basic app with minimal functionality, such as simple search and booking features, requires less time and resources, thus costing less. However, a complex app with advanced features like real-time tracking, multi-language support, and personalized recommendations involves extensive coding, testing, and integration, driving up costs. The need for back-end infrastructure, such as servers and databases, also adds to the complexity.

Moreover, integrating third-party APIs for services like weather updates, currency conversion, and social media sharing further increases the workload. High complexity also demands rigorous testing to ensure reliability and security, contributing to longer development timelines and higher expenses.

Core features like search filters, user registration, and booking capabilities are essential and relatively straightforward to implement. Advanced features such as real-time notifications, in-app chat, and AR-based location guides require specialized expertise and additional development time, increasing costs. Payment gateway integration for secure transactions also adds complexity and expense.

Furthermore, features like personalized recommendations, loyalty programs, and user reviews necessitate robust data analytics and machine learning capabilities. Each additional feature not only adds to the development cost but also requires ongoing maintenance and updates to ensure smooth functionality.

Investing in high-quality UI/UX design is crucial for the success of travel app development, but it also influences the cost. For example, custom animations, transitions, and visually appealing elements require skilled designers and developers, leading to higher costs. The design process involves creating wireframes, prototypes, and multiple iterations based on user feedback, which can be time-consuming.

Additionally, optimizing the app for different devices and screen sizes adds to the complexity and cost. A well-designed UI/UX not only enhances user satisfaction but also demands continuous testing and refinement to keep up with evolving user expectations and industry standards.

Moreover, designing a travel web app requires attention to responsive design principles to ensure a seamless experience across various browsers and devices. High-quality web app design involves balancing aesthetics with functionality to deliver an intuitive and engaging user experience, which ultimately drives user retention and satisfaction.

Careful selection of partner to outsource software development can lead to cost-effective development without compromising on quality. Development rates vary widely across different regions, with teams in North America typically charging higher rates (around $175-$235 per hour) compared to those in Eastern Europe, Asia, or Latin America. However, lower-cost regions like Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) offer significant savings with average hourly rates ranging from $55 to $99 per hour, if you consider the balance between cost and quality.

Why is CEE particularly attractive and cost-saving for travel app outsourcing?

• Cost-effectiveness. As mentioned above, CEE offers highly competitive hourly rates compared to Western Europe and North America. This allows you to stretch your travel app development budget.
• Strong talent pool. The CEE region boasts a large pool of skilled and experienced software developers with a strong understanding of the latest technologies. Many developers in this region have a solid grasp of the English language, further enhancing communication.
• Cultural proximity. Compared to regions like Asia, Central and Eastern Europe has a closer cultural alignment with Western Europe. This can lead to a better understanding of travel preferences and user behavior relevant to your target audience.
• Time zone overlap. While there might be some time zone difference, it's often manageable compared to regions with significant time zone gaps. This facilitates smoother communication and collaboration throughout the development process.

By carefully selecting an outsourcing partner within Central and Eastern Europe, you can leverage the cost benefits while ensuring access to a talented workforce that understands the travel app landscape and can deliver a high-quality product.

According to the above-given cost-forming factors, we can see that the development costs can differ. Let’s find out some of the average travel app cost estimates:

• The hourly cost for developing a travel app in the UK or the US ranges from $175 to $235 per hour.
• For the CEE region (Central and Eastern Europe), the hourly cost falls within the range of $55 to $99.
• As a general guideline, the average hourly cost decreases when moving from a Western country to a Central and Eastern one. However, it’s important to carefully weigh the balance between cost and expertise. This balance is crucial for ensuring the quality and success of your app.

Taking into account the functionalities and features, the overall development cost for a travel app can vary from $100,000 to $130,000+. Naturally, this estimate may change based on the specific requirements of your travel app.

Travel apps have transformed the tourism industry, giving customers the ability to plan trips and make bookings seamlessly. However, it’s advisable to reach out to a travel app development company for a more accurate estimate before moving forward.

Building a high-performance travel app requires leveraging modern technologies to ensure smooth operation and fast load times. For iOS development, Swift remains the leading programming language, offering robust features and seamless integration with Apple's ecosystem. On the Android side, Kotlin and Java are the preferred choices, providing flexibility and efficiency. Additionally, incorporating third-party tools and integrations is essential for enhancing functionality, from booking systems and payment gateways to geolocation services and customer support.

Here’s an example of a project development stack for travel app development that Cleveroad specialists use during the building process (iOS, Android, web):

Mobile architecture

• Android: Kotlin, Java
• iOS: Swift, Objective-C
• Cross-platform: Flutter, React Native

Web architecture

• Backend: Node JS, MySQL, Python (Django), PostgreSQL
• Frontend: Angular JS, React, Vue.js

Testing:

• Crashlytics, Swagger, Charles, Jira

Design:

• Sketch, Illustrator, Sympli

Tools:

• Segment, Stripe, Google Maps, Facebook, Firebase

Release:

• AWS, Sequelize, App Store, Google Play

Choosing the right technologies aligned with your business goals ensures your mobile travel app development not only meets user needs but also delivers a competitive advantage. And we are ready to help you define these requirements, enhancing your app's market position and driving business growth. Our expertise will make your travel app development process smoother, more efficient, and tailored to achieve your specific business objectives.

Cleveroad is a skilled travel app development company working since 2011 with the main office in Estonia and R&D centers in Poland, Ukraine, the US and Norway. We render quality travel and hospitality software development services for airlines, travel agencies and hotel chains in order to enhance customer engagement and automate the domain tasks to streamline the overall workflow.

How can you benefit from travel apps development with us?

• High expertise in building native, web and cross-platform travel apps
• You can get apps for Android and iOS developed by our experts with the help of the platform-specific programming languages and frameworks like Swift, Kotlin, Flutter, and so on
• A seamless travel app development with a hands-on expertise in creating domain solutions swiftly and efficiently
• We offer a free Solution Workshop stage that’s intended to align your travel app concept vision with its appropriate technical implementation
• Robust and effective quality and security management services which are assured by ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 standard certificates.
• Our Project Management office is ready to oversee your travel app development project to deliver the desired results timely and within your budget.

Let us approve our experience in app development for travel and hospitality business, sharing one of our successfully delivered domain cases with you.

Our client from Denmark applied to Cleveroad and asked us to create a Gym Directory for Travelers called TrainAway. This is a global network of gyms for travelers that makes workouts during trips convenient. This app contains the world’s largest database with 130,000+ gyms worldwide to overcome inconvenience for their customers while searching for gyms abroad.

We required to make this solution attractive and easy to navigate for users. Moreover, it should have allowed the users to pay for gyms through the app, as well as find and offer ones nearby. As a result, the customer received a scalable solution with an extensive worldwide gym database and effectively monetized their business through offering search services to travelers.

Here's how Alexander Schrøder, the owner of TrainAway travel app, has proven the reliability of working on their product with us:

Having successful travel app projects delivered, our domain experts will help you create a tailored solution meeting your business needs and driving growth in the competitive travel industry. You can contact us to start the cooperation on the travel app development.