Gogobot Named a Top Developer by Google
Westport, CT (PRWEB) August 21, 2015 -- Named a Top Developer by Google Play, Gogobot is a one-stop travel planning website and app that offers a revolutionary level of personalized recommendations for great places to stay, eat and play anywhere in the world. Gogobot empowers people to discover local treasures, events and epic experiences tailored to their interests both on vacation and in their own neighborhoods. The free service is unique in that you get to pick which of Gogobot’s 19 Tribes (Adventure Travelers, Budget Travelers, Foodies, Local Culture etc.) have tastes similar to your own. This makes reviews more meaningful because reviews from people like you who have similar preferences appear at the top of every search.
The Google Play Top Developer program is an in-store badging system that helps users identify and discover apps on Google Play from top app developers, like Gogobot, who are invested in Google Play and the Android platform. When users see the Top Developer badge in the store, they know Gogobot is a company that is committed to creating a great user experience. In selecting Gogobot as a Top Developer, Google Play took a look at a wide variety of components such as app quality, form factor support, utilization of Android features and user satisfaction.
“We’re thrilled that Google Play chose Gogobot as a Top Developer,” said Travis Katz, CEO and co-founder of Gogobot. “We recognize that people have different travel styles. One person’s dream vacation could be another person’s nightmare. Staying at a family friendly hotel with a pool and slide, or partying all night on the streets of Barcelona, sounds amazing to some folks — and terrifying to others. Our vision is for everyone to live life to the fullest by helping you find memorable experiences that are perfect for you.”
With more than 16 million people using Gogobot in the last year alone, the website and app is releasing its own data to reveal three top emerging travel trends for 2015. These trends include the growing popularity of staycations, more people leaning towards shorter trips and an increase in international travel due to the strong dollar.
Micro-Adventures are Hot
“With fewer Americans taking time off than ever before, the people who are relaxing this year are leaning towards micro-adventures as opposed to weeklong trips,” says Krista Canfield, Gogobot’s Getaway Expert.
The average American is taking only 16 days off per year versus the 20.3 days of paid vacation people took between 1976 to 2000, according to research performed by Oxford Economics for Project: Time Off. Gogobot’s data shows that the average hotel stay for travelers over the past year has been between two to three days per trip.
Less time spent away from the office means there is an increased focus on making the most out of each vacation day. Rare getaways with family, friends and even solo trips are precious commodities. Travelers want to put together the perfect getaway, without having to put in endless hours to research and plan their trips. Gogobot is the only online planning tool that makes it easy to do everything from quickly booking your hotel to making restaurant reservations and finding fun events and activities to check out. The best part – putting together your entire getaway is quick, fun and free.
Gogobot Sees 13-Fold Increase in Searches in Australia – The Dollar Goes Far
For those people taking epic trips, Gogobot’s data shows travelers taking advantage of the strong dollar and heading overseas. Australia and Europe are at the top of American travelers’ destination bucket lists. The Aussie dollar is coming in at 74 cents against the U.S. dollar – just over 30 percent less than it was worth when it was fetching $1.10 to the US dollar in mid-2011. Given the U.S. dollar's strength, it isn't surprising that Gogobot has seen a 13-fold increase in the number of clicks on hotels in Sydney since January 2015.
The U.S. dollar has also continued to hold its own against the euro, making vacations in Europe more affordable. As just one example, Gogobot has seen the number of people clicking on hotels in Spain triple in recent months.
Gogobot Sees Staycations Replacing Vacations
More people are adopting a traveler’s mentality at home this year -- choosing to relax and take advantage of local treasures in their own neighborhood rather than taking an epic vacation. Gogobot has seen the number of people using Gogobot's app to research local events and plan things to do more than double since January. Google Trends reported seeing a 10 percent increase in online searches for staycations in 2014. Clearly, continuing to gain momentum in 2015, Gogobot forecasts significant growth for staycations in 2016.
Gogobot’s GoGo This Week, which is just under a year old (it launched in September 2014), is quickly becoming one of its most popular features -- encouraging people to discover and take advantage of exciting events, openings, exhibits, shows and activities in their city each week. GoGo This Week is currently available in 15 cities and features everything from Star Wars festivals and dragon boat races to public water fights and gelato making classes at nearby restaurants.
About Gogobot
Gogobot’s mission is to help people discover great places to stay, eat and play that are perfect for them. 19 Tribes (Family Travelers, Foodies, Luxury, Wellness and LGBT, among others) provide Gogobot members with personalized recommendations. More than 16 million people used Gogobot to plan and research places to go in the last year. Gogobot also has more than 900,000 reviews, four million photos and 60,000 city guides available on both the site and its apps (Android, Apple Watch and iPhone).
Lorraine Abelow, Abelow PR, +1 9149440076, [email protected]
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