There is no doubt that the travel industry is an ever-evolving world.  In order to fully comprehend the public’s perception of modern travel and the role technology has played over the years, we must hop on a time machine and take a trip to the past.  Actually, 150 years to the origin of modern tourism to be exact, which was accomplished by 28-year-old Darren Kingman, a Creative Marketing Associate for Builtvisible, alongside Hotelclub, an established brand in the travel industry.

Although no time machine was actually constructed for this great exploration, a month-long research was conducted by cross-referencing information found by flipping through the pages of journals, documented history and reputable websites, birthing an immense inforgraphic on the differences in travel over the last 150 years.

“We wanted to compare opinions of people today and the experiences with that of a time period considered the dawn of modern tourism, the 1860s,” says Kingman.

Significantly, it was this era that inspired Thomas Cook to arrange the first all-inclusive holiday for travelers.  Even publications by Karl Baedeker and photos of destinations captured by Francis Frith were making headlines with exclusive information about travel, undeniably influencing modern-day tourism. And with websites like Hotelclub.com making the process of elimination easier when choosing that ideal destination constantly flooding the web, looking to the past to uncover the challenges and similarities of the future is a must.

The research conducted profoundly demonstrates that customer concerns have always plagued the industry with food and delays a constant annoyance among frequent flyers.  Even Kingman was tickled by the fact that some situations have remained the same while discovering the evolution of travel.

“Foods on planes is notorious for being some of the worst you can get, so reading about the Victorian travels and their troubles with food, such as the lack of tea, was definitely entertaining,” said Kingman.

“Similarly, delays are something we all go through from time to time, and in fact, we don’t realize how good we have it today.”

Nevertheless, the more technological advancements become integrated, some problems have decreased over time.  For instance, facing the eye of a storm would have cancelled an excursion about 150 years ago.  Now, weather patterns can be studied and different routes can be taken in order to reach a destination by sea safely.  And with smartphones quadrupling as a camera, compass, pocket watch, and storage for books all on one device, technology has drastically transformed the face of travel within the last couple years, let alone since the dawn of modern tourism.

However, with the good comes the bad, leading Kingman to acknowledge the more travelers want to jet set to further destinations, the more fuel is required to keep the industry afloat.

“Before starting this project, I had no idea how fuel efficiency had changed. Researching for this section of the infographic was particularly interesting.  We require just 1/5 of the fuel, but consumption has increased 40 times,” exclaimed Kingman.

“This is due to both a larger population, and because we’re traveling much farther per year.”

As space tourism slowly makes its way onto the forefront of futuristic travel, Kingman believes that in-air travel will dynamically slow down.  He also adds that the rise of cutting-edge advances will one day create a hassle-free experience for all travelers, which will shy countries and airports away from the "nightmare journeys" they’ve been labeled by disgruntled passengers.  But until then, there will always be room for improvement.

“It’s uncomfortable, the food isn’t great and we want to leave on time.  This has been the general consensus throughout history — and will likely continue to be the way into the future,” said Kingman.

“If there’s one thing this research as taught us, it’s no matter what type of advancement we make, we’ll always have something to complain about.”