WebProNews

Today Microsoft launched a new Bing feature for travel, appropriately called Bing Travel. Microsoft says that 45% of people use a search engine to select a flight or hotel. This is the main inspiration for Bing Travel.

Bing Travel conducted a survey recently that found 52% of potential travelers search three or more sites before booking their airfare. 42% of travelers spend between one and four weeks weighing their travel options, and 17% spend over a month.

Key features of Bing Travel include:

- A price predictor
- A rate indicator
- Travel deals
- Comparison flight and hotel search
- Fare alerts
- Original travel editorial content

"Bing Travel has a simple goal: help people make smarter, more informed decisions regarding travel," said Hugh Crean, general manager of Bing Travel. "Travelers face plenty of challenges -- from airport security and luggage restrictions to finding their hotel in an unknown city or trying to speak a foreign language. Researching and booking travel should be simple and easy, and now Bing Travel is here to help."

With Bing Travel, Microsoft wants to reduce the amount of time consumers spend searching for travel info. Let's just hope that the info is as relevant and accurate as it could be. Bing has already proven to have some issues in other areas, but it is still in its infancy.