A new report by Carlson Wagonlit Travel forecast a sharp rise in mobile bookings in the next three years. Both travelers and travel managers said they expect mobile bookings to increase significantly, reaching 25% of online transactions by 2017.

Just over half of all travelers (54 percent) and nearly two-thirds of travel managers (65 percent) surveyed by Carlson Wagonlit Travel consider the ability to book by mobile while on the go "important" or "critical."

There are some differences, however, between regions and traveler profiles. Travelers in Asia Pacific and Latin America place more importance on mobile booking on the go (62 percent considering this feature "important" or "critical") compared with in North America (55 percent) and Europe, Middle East and Africa (45 percent). Employees who travel most often consider on-the-go booking to be the most important.

Travelers do not necessarily use their mobiles to book or change bookings at the last minute while traveling. Data provided by consumer app WorldMate shows that only about a third of its mobile hotel bookings are made in the 24 hours before checking in, and this figure has decreased over the years, from 55 percent in October 2008 to 36 percent in October 2012. On the other hand, more and more mobile hotel bookings are made at least a week in advance: 40 percent in October 2013 and 37 percent in 2012, compared to 14 percent in 2018.

For comparison, corporate travel bookings made through traditional channels (online booking tools or travel counselor) in October 2013 involve a dramatically smaller share of lastminute bookings (only 1 percent in the last 24 hours, according to CWT global transaction data) and a higher share of bookings made at least one week in advance (62 percent). Corporate travel bookings made via mobile devices are expected to come somewhere in between, with a higher share of last-minute bookings compared to traditional channels but a lower share compared to consumer mobile apps.