Guest Post: You’re giving travellers data... but you’re missing the real opportunity

Co-founders Boris Bijlstra and Thijs van der Wijk of Hubby eSIM, spill the beans on reclaiming in-destination journey

eSIM is taking the travel industry by storm. And it should, because mobile internet is now non-negotiable.

Travel brands are perfectly positioned to provide this. But if all you’re offering is “data, with a discount”, you’re missing the bigger play and counting pennies on the dollar. Because the real value of eSIM isn’t the connectivity. It’s what that connectivity unlocks for you.

Think beyond the top-up

Yes, top-ups generate revenue. But the smartest travel brands? They’re not chasing the extra gigabyte. They’re building always-on, branded, digital touchpoints.

They’re embedding themselves into the trip itself. And they’re finally closing the gap between booking and experience.

When a traveller connects via your eSIM, they’re doing more than going online. They’re opening a channel. How? A live, branded, in-pocket tool that stays with them during their entire trip. It’s the moment most travel companies could never reach — and now you can.

This Isn’t a product. It’s a platform.

eSIM is quickly becoming one of the only reliable ways to reach travellers in-destination.

Inbox? Muted.

Apps? Diluted.

But the eSIM? Installed. Trusted. Active. Connected.

That makes it more than just an ancillary. It’s a game-changing engagement layer at the intersection of experience, marketing, and loyalty. At the core of what seamless travel means. And most importantly, it’s something your customers actually use.

Reclaiming the in-destination journey

For years, the tour operator and OTA industry has focused primarily on pre-departure and post-departure experiences. But after the plane takes off, the traveller enters a "black box", a lost opportunity for brands to continue building a relationship.

The in-destination phase is now the next frontier in travel, and it’s time to reclaim it. This is the moment where travellers are experiencing the product they’ve paid for, yet travel brands have had little influence during this critical period.

The eSIM is your entry point. It’s the only tool allowing you to bridge that gap and create meaningful engagement in real-time, while the traveller is still on the journey.

Imagine the power of sending a timely message like, “Your transfer is on the way”, or offering a “Skip the Line at the Colosseum” deal the moment the traveller steps into Rome.

This is how you drive upsells, build loyalty, and enhance the experience in a way that’s not intrusive, but incredibly valuable. It’s the opportunity to own the moment and control the digital experience of your product.

Here’s how travel companies are winning with eSIMs

⚡️ Reviews at the right time

→ Trigger a review prompt when their data runs out, not in some email graveyard two weeks later.

⚡️ In-destination feedback

→ “Did your transfer go smoothly?”

→ “Need help finding the hotel?”

→ It’s not noise; it’s support, when and where it counts.

⚡️ Behaviour-based personalisation

→ Who topped up in Italy but skipped France?

→ Who clicked your tip about Tokyo cafés?

→ That’s zero-party data; real insights, no surveys.

⚡️ Real-time upsells that convert

→ A food tour after landing in Hanoi.

→ A lounge pass when a delay hits.

→ Relevant. Timely. Frictionless.

The eSIM is the Trojan Horse

Travellers install it for data. You use it for everything else. It gives you permission. And with that permission, you move from app to life, from transaction to relationship. That’s what the future of travel looks like:

Not just pushing offers, but creating presence.

The real challenge isn’t adoption. It’s imagination. Too many companies still treat connectivity as someone else’s product — something to resell, another line item, another click. But the eSIM isn’t the destination. It’s the door. And it’s time more of us stepped through it.