Defining e-leisure
Leisure offers many benefits including ones linked to health, social development, community identity and cohesion, environmental stewardship, and economic development. Leisure can be divided into seven different areas (R. Mikalauskas, 2016):
- Sport and Physical Activity.
- Arts and Entertainment.
- Tourism (Heritage, Visitor Attractions).
- Countryside Recreation.
- Home-Based Leisure.
- Catering.
- Shopping.
Anything we do in our free time can be called a leisure activity: playing sports, watching movies, reading, painting, playing games, travelling, meeting friends etc. When we transfer any of those activities online, we refer to e-leisure.
Almost everybody nowadays is an active user of e-leisure: has some social network account, uses at least one chatting platform, has an email account, reads news and books online as well as plays some games on their phone. The offering of digital entertainment is constantly growing as well as its consumption. It was mainly observed during the pandemic confinement, when e-leisure activities have become increasingly popular. People are now turning to online activities such as streaming movies, playing video games, and even participating in virtual reality experiences. Additionally, platforms such as Zoom, Skype, and Google Hangouts have allowed people to stay connected with friends and family. People have also been taking part in virtual events hosted by museums, galleries and other cultural institutions. This has enabled people to participate in educational and cultural activities from the safety of their homes. Additionally, people have been able to access new forms of content such as virtual concerts, virtual yoga classes and other forms of online entertainment. With e-leisure activities, people can stay connected, entertained and educated, even when they are socially distant.
In this unit, we will focus more on how we can organise our leisure activities with the help of the Internet, such as booking all sorts of tickets, hotel rooms, renting a car etc. That is, we will focus on the travelling part of our leisure. Although, nowadays, you can plan almost any leisure activity online: buy a ticket to a live event, such as a concert of your favourite band or singer, or a football match of your favourite team; book a session at a wellness centre or perhaps discover a new hobby, be it horse riding or scuba diving. There is hardly anything you can’t find on the internet these days. Besides live events, you can book a wide range of leisure activities online, e.g. virtual fitness classes, online cooking classes, even virtual guided tours, online escape rooms or online concerts.
Benefits of online booking
You may wonder why you should go online to organise your trip, although this applies to almost all activities you book online, not just travel. The main reasons are: it will save you money and time – both priceless!
Here is a list of other reasons why you should take advantage of planning trips and other e-leisure activities online:
- Convenience
The Internet has no timetables and is independent of human customer service workers. It means that you can plan your trip at any time (even at night) at any place, be it home, a break at work or a café. Even the device doesn´t matter (phone, computer, tablet). The only thing you need is an internet connection.
- Endless options where to choose from
Traditional travel agencies will offer you the hotels they work with, leaving out a variety of other options that are not on their list but may be the best for you. On the Internet, you can find practically any hotel in the world (nowadays, their online presence is a must if they want to stay in the market). The same goes for transport tickets: you can choose any company, the best time and departure and arrival point for you. This advantage leads us to the next one.
- Compare prices and access to offers and deals
Nowadays, some platforms allow you to compare prices for the same service on different websites. You can also check the price directly with the service provider (official website of the hotel/airline/bus company).
Note that many companies offer special discounts for online bookings. Believe it or not, buying a bus or train ticket online is often cheaper than on the spot, especially at large stations with numerous intermediary vendors.
You may get a last-minute discount or deal often offered for online bookings.
When you book hotels and flights online, you often collect loyalty points, which you can redeem for souvenirs, future discounts, or even free flights and hotel stays.
Some websites offer discounts on additional services, such as car rentals, museums, tickets, etc. For example, if you book a hotel in Rome online, you may be offered a special price for a ticket to the Colosseum.
- Control over your booking
When you book online, you can manage it online as well. It means that to make any changes or cancellations, you don’t need to go to any office or make long phone calls to customer service to assist you with this process. Note that here you should always pay attention to the cancellations and modifications policy when making a booking.
- It may be the only way to make your reservation
Some hotels operate with a booking department, which is unavailable around the clock if you want personal assistance. If you call reception outside business hours, you may not be able to make a direct booking but be directed to a web portal to do so.
Let us not forget that leisure is not limited to travel. What if you want a ticket for a concert/show of your favourite singer/band or a sports event in a city far away from you or abroad? Usually, tickets for internationally known artists sell out within a few hours. The only way to get a ticket is to hunt it down online.
- Easy way to know what others think
You will not deny that when you hesitate about something, you often seek someone else’s opinion, experience and advice. All the major booking platforms offer customer reviews. They are especially valuable when you are choosing a hotel or restaurant. While you cannot rely completely on these reviews, they can give you a better idea of the service and perhaps some specific aspects that are of great importance to you (location of the hotel, cleanliness, soundproofing, quality of the food, the attitude of the staff, etc.).
In summary, online booking makes you your own travel agent, allows you to book from anywhere at any time, gives you control over your booking, monitors and compares prices to find the best deal for you and provides you with valuable reviews.