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Malaysia has a reputation for being a football crazy nation, and once every four years, the frenzy goes into overdrive – TV stations televising 24/7 football matches from past to present, overcrowded mamak stalls with chairs and tables that spill-over onto the streets, and the sudden spike in medical leave the morning after a big game – these are sure signs that the Football fever has hit!

But are you among those who would rather catch the flu than watch a game of football (much less the five weeks of straight football!)? No need to go to such drastic measures—Agoda has some suggestions on where to go to escape the football madness. You’re welcome!

1. Koror Island, Republic of Palau

Head to the South Pacific island of Palau where abundant marine life, volcanos and epic waterfalls are the main attractions. Palau also wins bonus points for not having national football team. Check out the  Palau Royal Resort for beach views and vibes.

2. Baler, Philippines

You’ll likely meet more surfing fiends than football fans in Baler, also known as the ‘birthplace of surfing in the Philippines’.  Home to sandy beaches and epic waves, plus scenic winding mountain roads and hiking excursions, this island won’t get a ‘red card’ from you. Bright and breezy Costa Pacifica Resort on Sabang Beach is the ideal basecamp.

3. North West Cape, Western Australia

The North West Cape in Western Australia is home to the Cape Range National Park and Ningaloo Reef, where you’ll encounter exotic wildlife that don’t care about ‘games of two halves’.  Sal Salis, an exclusive safari camp surrounded by only bush and beach, makes an ideal basecamp for exploring the area.

4. Galle, Sri Lanka

Renowned for its cricket, rather than football, enjoy the gentle pace and laidback streets of Galle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There’ll be no penalties for shopping on this trip. Fort Square Boutique Villa, which is conveniently located in Galle’s city center, is worth a visit.

5. Pangkor Laut Island, Malaysia

You won’t risk being ‘offside’ with your own private island. Pangkor Laut Resort is made up of 140 villas and 8 estates on privately-owned 300-acre island, offering complete privacy amidst gorgeous ocean views.

6. Raja Ampat, Indonesia

For a truly ‘off the grid’ experience, head to the Raja Ampat, where the lack of internet and Wi-Fi mean you will easily lose track what day it is, let alone whether the football is still on. At the Waiwo Dive Resort, you can kick back and relax with massages and yoga classes.

agoda , one of the world’s fastest-growing online travel booking platforms, has predicted that 2018 will see consumers looking for a simpler way to book their travel accommodation. Whilst many major travel industry players continue to deliver complex products and loyalty programs, independent travelers will instead choose companies that deliver streamlined travel experiences through leveraging effective technologies.

Omri Morgenshtern, Chief Product Officer at agoda, comments: “Consumers today expect to get well-digested information quickly. They don’t have the time or patience to do things a service can do for them. They will look to offerings that add value by simplifying the way they travel – from researching destinations to ordering room service. At agoda we are committed to drilling down to the basics so that our customers can experience the properties and services they want without weeding through unnecessary complexity.”

Here are agoda’s predictions for the travel industry in 2018:

Simplification wins over “buzzword” technology

The last few years has seen plenty of hype around developments in AR and VR, with some working to apply these interactive experiences to the travel space. Whilst the benefits of these new opportunities should be explored, there has been little consumer demand for such experiences, and the hardware isn’t advanced enough to provide real value.

In 2018, agoda will focus on leveraging technology that can save consumers time, rather than concentrating efforts on hyped up technology. For example, expect to see travel providers continue to develop solutions that use AI to increase personalisation of travel experiences.

“At agoda we’ve already been leveraging AI to deliver the best customer experience, from using it to deliver personalized accommodation recommendations to AI-enabled chat bots. Expect to see more of this in 2018”, said Morgenshtern.

The emergence of ‘anti-rewards’ programs

Given the amount of choice and competitive pricing in the travel industry, added benefits and rewards are more important than ever. However, according to a CapGemini Study, 90 per cent of social media sentiment around rewards programs is negative. 33 per cent of this sentiment cites the lack of a seamless multi-channel customer experience, whilst 44 per cent is around the lack of reward relevance, flexibility and value. And this is no surprise – most consumers rarely understand what benefits they will be getting with many of today’s rewards programs, or how to get them.

In an effort to replace these nebulous rewards programs with more straight-forward incentives, agoda launched Gift Cards, a simple way for customers to earn immediately usable agoda cash value credit for future bookings. Under this new rewards program customers know how much Gift Cards they will receive before they make any booking. This gets credited to their agoda account after a completed booking.  Unlike other loyalty programs – where you need to accumulate a minimum number of points before you redeem – you can use your agoda Gift Cards credit as soon as you receive it, without any minimum spend or other restrictive conditions.

In the first year of launching Gift Cards agoda has awarded millions of dollars (USD) of cashback credit. As the market becomes increasingly saturated, consumers will look to rewards programs more than ever to decide where their loyalty lies.  

Travel as an integrated experience

Year-on-year, agoda has seen a 60 per cent overall increase in the use of its mobile app, for both researching and booking travel, suggesting consumers increasingly prefer an easy, on-the-go experience. In 2016, about 40 per cent of agoda’s bookings globally were done through mobile. Fast-forward one year later, and that has increased to 50 per cent.

With the rising success of multi-functional apps such as WeChat in China, in 2018 this trend is set to catch-on throughout the rest of the world to feed the increasing need for a more integrated travel experience.

This year, agoda launched an integrated tool called ‘agoda Reception’ to further support customers after they have made their booking. The new feature will enable agoda customers to access reception and room services, arrange transport to and from the property, as well as to discover nearby attractions – all without leaving the agoda app.

Millennial as a mindset, not an age bracket

With the term ‘millennial’ beginning to take on meaning beyond just one’s age, in 2018 there will be a shift towards millennial as a mindset. agoda’s global Travel & Tech Study showed that regardless of whether a traveler is a millennial or not, what interests them is the same. For example, the top two preferred travel activities are seeking out nature or scenery (67 per cent for millennials vs. 72 per cent for non-Millennials), and food and dining (67 per cent for millennials vs. 70 per cent for non-Millennials).

People of the millennial mindset often live a fast-paced and demanding lifestyle, and as such, expect everything at their fingertips. Mix this with the desire to have unique, shareable experiences and we will see a rise in demand for new types of travel, delivered seamlessly.