PHOTO: Gen-Z (photo courtesy Tempura/iStock/Getty Images Plus)
By JANEEN CHRISTOFF
Source: www.travelpulse.com, December 2020
It’s pretty clear that Americans are over being home and can’t wait to get back out, doing anything normal. After almost a year of staying at home, it does seem like there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
So when it comes to travel, is there a specific demographic that will lead the way to travel recovery? It makes sense that younger, more adventurous travelers will be the first out of the gate when travel returns in earnest.
Maybe nothing more clearly demonstrates this than recent statistics showing who would be interested in just taking sightseeing “flights to nowhere.”
These flights have had sellout success in places like Australia, Taiwan, Singapore and Japan. In the U.S., the flights haven’t taken off—yet.
Interest in these flights does lie with younger generations, with Gen-Z, Millennials and Gen-X leading the way, with 69 percent of Gen-Z and Millennials and 73 percent of Gen-X saying this is something that they would do.
While Americans are being urged not to travel at the moment, many people still intend to take a holiday trip. Younger generations lead the way there, too.
According to a recent TravelHorizons survey, plans for travel during the December holidays will be led by younger generations with 43 percent of Millennials planning a getaway. In comparison, only 26 percent of Gen-X, 19 percent of younger Boomers and eight percent of older Boomers will travel.
According to a Virtuoso survey, it is hard to find younger travelers that aren’t ready to go somewhere.
In a recent survey, the consortia found that 100 percent of 18-25-year-olds are ready to travel, while less than 50 percent of those 41 years and older are not.
Another group that will lead the way once vaccines and/or treatments for COVID are more widespread is the family market.
According to Misty Belles, managing director, global public relations for Virtuoso, pent-up demand will lead to a boom in multi-family travel.
“After being separated for so long, families will look to reunite and enjoy shared experiences to make new memories,” she said. “We’re already seeing increased demand for villas and private homes. Requests for these kinds of accommodations will continue to grow.”
Research from Destination Analysts also found that more than 31 percent of travelers are looking to take family vacations once it is safe to travel again.
One group that is usually a driving force of the industry, retirees, will be slower to come back. With more free time, older generations tend to spend more time—and money—exploring the globe. That is not the case at the moment, and this demographic could return slower than others.
“A survey of Virtuoso clients shows that retirees will be the slowest generation to return to travel, with only about 20 percent saying they would travel now, simply because they are classified as higher risk for Covid,” said Belles.
However, these travelers will return and, when they do, they will be looking to take those trips that they missed out on and to book dream trips that they were putting off but that will now be a priority.
