Smarter, kinder, safer: The future of travel
November 11, 2020
With few facets of our lives and world unchanged by the unparalleled impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, travel too will be forever re-shaped.
With few facets of our lives and world unchanged by the unparalleled impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, travel too will be forever re-shaped.
Innovation within the travel industry will accelerate faster than ever to respond to marked shifts in travel expectations and behaviours. Booking.com has combined research from more than 20,000 travellers across 28 countries with insights from proprietary search and endorsement to reveal its predictions for the future of travel – in the coming year and beyond.
With over half (53%) of global travellers responding that they won’t be comfortable traveling until a Coronavirus vaccine or treatment is in place, it may be a long time before we experience the world as freely as we did previously.
However, when travel does resume, booking.com predicts we’ll see the following trends…
Bye Bye 9 to 5: We’ll see a rise in travellers extending their holidays to stay an extra week or two, to work remotely and maximise on new flexible working policies.
Vital Value: The financial legacy of COVID will see a rise in travellers looking for a more valuable, yet price conscious experience.
Impact Awakening: The impact Coronavirus has had on the environment will inspire more travellers to make more sustainable travel choices.
Familiarists not Tourists: We’ll see domestic travel continue to grow in popularity as travellers prefer to stay closer to home.
The pandemic will also alter the type of trips most are likely to take in the coming year. Based on the research into Brits’ travel preferences, booking.com has also revealed five emerging trip types for 2021:
Breakaway Bubbles: 61% of travellers will use travel as an opportunity to reconnect with loved ones.
Relaxury: Just being able to get away and relax will be the real luxury of 2021, as opposed to checking in to a luxurious villa of 5-star hotel.
Weekend Wonders: To minimise disappointment, there will be an increased demand for a quick trip as over half of UK travellers want to take shorter breaks in 2021 than they did in 2019.
Food for Thought: Local travel is on the rise, and with culinary delights on the top of travellers’ lists, it’s likely that they will use this as a new way to explore the world.
Solace in Solo: The solo travel trend is also likely to gather even greater momentum as people’s thirst to travel, which was stymied by the pandemic, and desire to have some ‘me-time’ will nudge them to take the plunge to travel on their own in 2021.
