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Why UAE travellers opt for biometrics

Dubai - Technology allows certain travellers to complete passport control in just 15 seconds.

Four in 5 air travellers from the UAE (83 per cent) are now open to offering their biometrics to reduce waiting in security lines, according to an independent global study.

The study commissioned by Travelport, a travel commerce platform, said most UAE residents look for innovative and tech-savvy travel capabilities.

Kathryn Wallington, Travelport's country manager for the UAE, said the research findings underpin how important digital tools, such as smartphones, biometric screening and voice search, have become for UAE travellers.

"For those in the global travel industry, providing relevant and timely digital tools is no longer an option, but essential to be able to reach and satisfy travellers of the modern age," said Wallington.

According to the annual Global Digital Traveller Research study, Dubai International airport has already taken the cue by setting up biometric technologies instead of human checks to allow certain travellers to complete passport control in just 15 seconds.

The study surveyed more than 16,200 travellers in 25 countries who took at least 1 return flight last year, and revealed that over half (61 per cent) of UAE travellers now use voice search to research their next trip and 1 in 5 (17 per cent) believe it has the greatest influence over their choices. The findings also highlight that UAE travellers are now most reliant on their smartphone when researching their trip (76 per cent). Furthermore, 64 per cent admit they feel lost without their smartphone when travelling and nearly two-thirds (63 per cent) express worry about their technology failing or running out of battery.

The study also revealed more than half (58 per cent) of UAE travellers now tend to research and book all travel arrangements via smartphone, and they use an average of 14 different types of apps when researching, booking and experiencing their trip.

"The travel industry has always been about new experiences and adopted new technologies early. This is as true today, with such high demand for voice search and biometric screening," said Travelport CEO Gordon Wilson.

A recent Expedia 2018 global flight and hotel etiquette survey found that Indians are already No 1 when it comes to being tech-savvy when travelling overseas. Indians are also the most likely to pay for in-flight Wi-Fi, said the survey.

The Travelport study said flight-related mobile app features are critical to UAE travellers, particularly the capabilities to search and book flights (73 per cent), receive flight alerts (67 per cent), mobile check-in (68 per cent), and buy extras such as WiFi, baggage allowance and priority boarding (64 per cent).

It also showed 35 per cent of UAE travellers prefer seeing their trip itinerary in one place, while 38 per cent feel not being able to access bookings on all their devices is frustrating. Nearly 70 per cent of UAE travellers said a good digital experience, such as access to gate information on their mobile, is important when choosing an airline.

- issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com