MUMBAI: As many as 73 per cent Indians book hotel rooms on mobiles while only 45 per cent go for the traditional route of booking through a travel agency, a study says.

A little more than half the people surveyed in India admitted that they book more trips than ever because of mobiles, the main reasons being business trips (58 per cent), short break elsewhere within the country (41 per cent) and booking a hotel room nearby while attending a particular event (37 per cent), a Hotels.Com study revealed.

The global study was conducted among 9,200 travellers across 31 countries, including India. Over 40 per cent Indians have booked a hotel on other devices such as personal computers. Almost 40 per cent admitted that they chose to book a hotel room while they were in company of their partners, 36 per cent did so on public transport, an equal percentage at airports prior to the departure and 34 per cent at their office in between working hours. According to the study, right payment method and offering genuine guest reviews are key factors while booking a hotel on a mobile. It also revealed that more than 80 per cent of people feel their smartphone makes them more spontaneous and 68 per cent said they have made a booking on the same day of travel. Nearly 30 per cent of holiday makers reserve their hotel rooms less than a week before the travel. Some 36 per cent of Indian travellers have left booking of a hotel to the very last minute and actually booked at the airport lounge just before the departure, it said. Hotels.Com is an accommodation booking portal with properties ranging from international chains to all-inclusive resorts. — PTI