Big Data has become rather a mainstream topic.

It is often portrayed as a sort of panacea that promises to solve all problems in many sectors, including tourism.

However, in the travel industry, big data really is strategic: it is useful for understanding trends, optimizing marketing, deciding where to allocate resources and time.

In this panel we consider two very real situations.

Boxever, which takes big data left behind on the web by people while booking a flight or a holiday, and uses it to optimize the sales process and, in particular, to get to know their customers better.

Andalucia Lab is an example of a region that uses big data to optimize marketing and communications, analysing what emerges to decide where to allocate their budgets in support of Destination Andalusia.