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Understanding tomorrow’s traveller: U.S. consumer survey reveals associated Travel Tribe
Debbie Iannaci
Director, Corporate Communications, North America, Amadeus IT Group
How do U.S. travellers view themselves when it comes to travel? A brief survey of some 800 U.S. travellers has revealed that most of them (67%) identified with the characteristics of Simplicity Searchers, or those who seek ease and transparency, without the hassle of managing too many trip details themselves. This tribe of travellers, which was one of the six we identified in our recent report Future Traveller Tribes 2030, takes full advantage of relaxing and pampering themselves while on vacation, with the assurance of their safety and enjoyment.
Our survey also found that U.S. travellers are looking for rest and relaxation above all else. They are most eager to unwind from their lives on vacation. Of those surveyed, 45.4% of respondents agreed that the favourite part of their most recent trip was unwinding from the feeling of being overworked, which they preferred, versus engaging in pursuits of adventure, culture, or enrichment. This was reiterated with 42.7% saying that their guilty pleasure is to flip the “off switch” when in-flight – a trend especially true for travellers aged 55-64 with 49% saying they prefer to switch off while vacationing.
As airlines continue to implement Wi-Fi and extra amenities in-flight, our survey found that U.S. travellers prefer to use these amenities in an assortment of ways:
- 5% of all respondents said their in-flight guilty pleasure is checking their email
- 23% of the males surveyed prefer to pay more for extra legroom and amenities, compared to only 16.2% of females, who would rather prep and read about local gems at their destination
When it comes to taking the perfect Instagram shot while in-flight, 10.8% of the females surveyed cited this as their guilty pleasure, while only 3.3% of the males reported the same.
When booking a personal trip in the past year, the majority of U.S. travellers surveyed were more likely to book a specific destination tied to an event. The highest percentage of respondents (25.1%) claimed that events often drive their destination selection, compared to 23.6% of respondents who rely on peer review sites and social media and 20% of respondents who seek trip packages and bundled deals to make destination decisions.
When thinking about the future of travel, the majority of respondents (38%) are excited most about mapping technology, enabling a more hassle-free journey and use of digital maps to track and share their activities on the go. Among the age groups surveyed, 47.4% of respondents (ages 65+) are the most excited to use mapping technology.
Fill out our questionnaire to find out which Travel Tribe you belong to and let us know if any of the results above surprise you!
Tags
North America, Research