Dropped into Seville the other week to grab a bit of winter sun.. and to see the best mate, of course. It’s a simply incredible city, just brimming with history, culture and stunning architecture. I have been reading a wonderfully poetic book on Don Juan recently, and walking around Seville, you could just sense the passion of the town as the author had so wonderfully conveyed.

What struck me en route to Andalucia though, was how all of my prep for the trip was done digitally.. or to be more precise, on my phone. Instead of grabbing a book or picking up a travel sup, I used the excellent Wikitravel. I downloaded apps for the language and attractions and pinned everything on the phone’s map. I’ve always been a huge advocate of digital within PR, but it struck me on this particular trip, quite how much scope there is for digital within the travel and tourism sector.

In the recent interviews I have been to, the mere mention of digital brings the almost now-standard response of “Ah, digital.. We’re all over Facebook and Twitter.” But the fact is, is that digi has already superseded social media. Facebook and Twitter, whilst continuing to be fantastic conversational tools and now the industry standard (for want of a better phrase - it’s late okay!) We have seen laptop sales drop significantly in the last year as people embrace tablets and mobile internet usage is now more common than ‘traditional’ computer usage - as PR’s we should now be creating content with mobile at the heart of use.

Sure, for this particular trip my location was pre-determined by the availability of free accommodation and the chance to kick a German’s arse at Pro Evo (an activity that never gets old by the way) but my decision on how to spend my free time, where to eat, what to visit etc was determined not by brochures, journalists or travel websites.. but, largely, by UGC - wikitravel, independent apps etc.

Australia have recently focussed their marketing budget on social media but for many European cities, such as Seville, the real value in digital will not be through ‘traditional digital channels’ but by adding the interactive element to their visit.