Research by VisitBritain has found that almost 70% of travellers are tempted to visit a specific new location if they have looked at holiday pictures of the place taken by friends and family on social media.
The research highlights the importance of social media in the travel industry, with photos by friends and family being joined by online reviews as key factors that help travellers decide whether to visit a location or not.
Three-quarters of those surveyed said they read online reviews before deciding whether to visit a location, with around 20% writing reviews after they'd visited somewhere.
The news comes as separate research by Emarketer found that mobile bookings were becoming more and more popular in the US.
Currently 44% of digital travel bookings in the US take place on a mobile device, but next year this is expected to increase to 52%, making mobile the majority digital travel booking medium.
The rise has been attributed to improved mobile optimisation by travel booking websites, making it simpler and easier for mobile users to book their holidays from their mobile devices.Â
