Swedes shun locals with smartphone tourism
Swedes will favour their smartphones rather than chatting to a local when they are on holiday, with web access now also topping the charts ahead of consulting a tourist office, a new survey has revealed.
The directory service Eniro asked more than 1,000 Swedes online about how they access information when they are on holiday. Not only do Swedes search online, either on a computer or their phone, for top tourists spots at their chosen destination, they will also turn to the web to find out where to eat and how to get where they are going.
Some 55 percent logged into a computer to get answers, while 38 percent used their mobile phone. A third still seek out the official tourism office for help, but among young travellers between the ages of 16 and 34, more than half rely on their smartphone.
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"The mobile gives a fantastic opportunity to find things nearby, and it's handy as it is tied to a map," Eniro Sweden CEO Mattias Wedar said in a statement.
Women were more likely to go online to find top attractions to visit, 53 and 40 percent respectively, while 48 percent of men looked for road maps and directions, while some 41 percent of traveling women did the same.
If going online was not the travelling Swedes' cup of tea, the tourist office came in third in the survey, followed by guide books.
Asking a local on the street for advice came last, at fifth place.
The Local/at
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The directory service Eniro asked more than 1,000 Swedes online about how they access information when they are on holiday. Not only do Swedes search online, either on a computer or their phone, for top tourists spots at their chosen destination, they will also turn to the web to find out where to eat and how to get where they are going.
Some 55 percent logged into a computer to get answers, while 38 percent used their mobile phone. A third still seek out the official tourism office for help, but among young travellers between the ages of 16 and 34, more than half rely on their smartphone.
SEE ALSO: In Pictures - Stockholm's ten best kept secrets
"The mobile gives a fantastic opportunity to find things nearby, and it's handy as it is tied to a map," Eniro Sweden CEO Mattias Wedar said in a statement.
Women were more likely to go online to find top attractions to visit, 53 and 40 percent respectively, while 48 percent of men looked for road maps and directions, while some 41 percent of traveling women did the same.
If going online was not the travelling Swedes' cup of tea, the tourist office came in third in the survey, followed by guide books.
Asking a local on the street for advice came last, at fifth place.
The Local/at
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