WeChat: Your Travel Companion
This series of articles are brought to you by WeChat – the new way to connect.
Scarves, snowballs, and sleds…the drop in temperatures may have you thinking about a winter getaway. Whether you prefer hitting the slopes (or warming up on the beach which I highly doubt you would be if you are in New Zealand), chances are you will use social media to help plan out your trip.
There has been research that has shown that more than 44% of leisure travellers in Asia-Pacific have used social media platforms for travel advice and inspiration, whether it’s looking up the best hotel, finding your way around your destination, or just finding out the top things to do and see from locals or other travellers. That’s more than double the percentages for travellers who did the same in the US and Europe.
Social apps are now making it even easier to not only plan your trip but also make new friends along the way. As one of the world’s fastest growing social communication app, WeChat is quickly becoming a top way for travellers to make new connections.
Here’s a quick look at a few ways it can help you create a more memorable trip:
- Break down the language barrier: Leave the phrase book at home and use WeChat’s new translation feature to communicate in more than 20 languages. Travelling to somewhere more remote? Use the animated stickers to create your own conversation.
- Make new friends: Want to see an attraction but don’t want to go alone? WeChat makes it less intimidating to make new friends with the “People Nearby” feature, which connects you with nearby users. You can also use the “Friend Radar” location-based service to find and connect with friends who might be staying near you.
- Ease the pain of long trips: Keep yourself entertained for hours on the road or in the sky with WeChat’s social games – or even challenge a few nearby passengers to join in on the fun.
- Share your favourite spots: Found a great store or surprising spot? Use the real-time location feature to share it with friends or even discover new places and local hotspots from others who have been there.
- Simplify your chats: Forget trying to type in everyone’s details – Use the QR code scanner to quickly add your newest friends to your contact list and create group chats to keep in touch with everyone at home quickly and easily. With WeChat, you can talk to up to 100 friends at once.
WeChat is available free for download on Android, BlackBerry, iOS, Symbian and Windows operating systems. For more information about WeChat and to download the app, please visit www.wechat.com
