The role of social media sites in trip planning and destination decision-making processes

The main aim of this study was to examine the influence of social media sites on trip decision making process as well as to investigate the most used social media sites during trip planning through a review of literature. This study was based on an extensive review of literature from a range of peer reviewed papers on social media and tourist destination planning. A number of sources were accessed such as Science Direct, Google Scholar, Emerald Insights Journals, Institutional Repository, Scopus, JSTOR, Taylor & Francis, SAePublications, Sabinet, and ProQuest, while articles from tourism organisations such as the World Tourism Organisation were also consulted. The sources were thus used as part of data collection procedure and were critically examined for information related to social media and travel decision-making processes. The objectives of the study were achieved through literature findings which demonstrated that social media sites are used at each stage of trip planning but are predominantly used at the information search stage and after trip for experience sharing. The review of literature also shows that social media sites are now being considered as the most reliable sources of information following recommendations from family and friends. It is critical for tourism business owners to be present in social media sites to connect with prospective customers. They also need to understand the types of social media sites frequently used by tourists in different regions and to ensure that content regarding their attractions and services is always accurately posted on those sites.