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Travel Predictions for 2010

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Time to plan your 2010 vacation. Here are some ideas to consider when planning your big trip for 2010.

Five Online Travel Predictions for Europe in 2010

Here are five predictions for the European online travel market in 2010 from the new report:
1. Online travel will account for more than one-third of the total European travel market.
While the total European travel market experiences a double-digit decline, online leisure and unmanaged business travel will in fact grow slightly in 2009. As effects of the recession linger into next year, consumers are increasingly shopping online for better deals. Online penetration will surge from 28% in 2008 to 34% by 2010.
2. Priceline could become the largest pan-European online travel agency (OTA).
Long in last place among the big four global OTAs (Expedia, Orbitz and Travelocity being the other three), Priceline has gained ground dramatically since the onset of the recession and especially through the success of its main European acquisition, Booking.com. Amid Orbitz’ stumbles and Expedia’s catch-up play with Venere, Priceline is poised to become the number two OTA globally and quite possibly the largest OTA in Europe (although Expedia may have something to say about that…).
3. Metasearch will make it in Europe—finally.
The highly fragmented European online travel shopping landscape—among OTAs and suppliers—could prove fertile ground for metasearch. Uptake of meta in Europe has lagged behind the U.S., but the growing incidence of online shopping is driving more consumers to visit metasearch sites when they plan their travel.    –more

Top 10 Destinations for Independent Travelers in 2010

Once again, the writers, editors, and community at BootsnAll have collected up our best recommendations for destinations we think are worth considering for any independent traveler. Lists like this seem to be everywhere these days, which is another reason we try to make ours special by highlighting a mix of popular places along with places that aren’t on everyone’s radar just yet.

Before we get to 2010’s list, if you haven’t been following along and want to look back at the places we’ve listed in prior years, here’s your chance:

Top 10 Destinations for Independent Travelers in 2008
Top 10 Destinations for Independent Travelers in 2009
Ready for 2010 now? Alright, here we go…

10 – Fukuoka, Japan
Fun to say? Sure. But on top of that Fukuoka is a highly recommended destination for anyone wanting to see what Japan is like outside of its insanely huge and crowded capital of Tokyo.    –more

Related travel articles

• Top 5 Sites To Search For Cheap Online Car Rentals (makeuseof.com)
• Travel deals could persist into 2010 (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Advertising: Top-Tier Travel Discounts to Promote a Magazine (nytimes.com)