Optimism about travel intent continues to rise in the U.S. as new research from MMGY Global suggests adults are thinking much more positively about travel than they were throughout this past year.
MMGY’s just released Portrait of American Travelers Survey suggests the top states of interest among U.S. travelers over the next two years are Hawaii (64%), Florida (62%), California (53%), Colorado (50%), Alaska (49%) and New York (49%). It is also important to note that some destinations – Portland, Seattle and Washington, D.C. – have experienced large decreases in interest, which is likely the result of extensive political and social unrest that occurred in these destinations throughout the past year. There is some interest in international destinations. However, it remains relatively low with only 19% of leisure travelers indicating that they are likely to take an international trip in the next six months – down from 24% in January 2020.
Road trips continue to be the most likely form of near-term vacation travel. Three in 5 U.S. adults (62%) expect to take at least one leisure vacation during the next six months with the preferred mode of transportation being personal car, while 2 in 5 (38%) say they will take a domestic flight. Looking further out to the next 12 months, 4 in 5 (81%) U.S. adults expect to take at least one trip.
Travel intentions, spending expectations
The intent to take a vacation during the next six months decreases with age and increases with household income. Active leisure travelers – those who intend to travel within the next 12 months – expect to take 3.7 overnight leisure trips this year and spend an average of US$2,415 on those trips. Gen Xers and Boomers intend to take fewer trips than Gen Zs and Millennials, but these seasoned travelers intend to spend more overall.
Though travelers are ready to spend on vacations, they are also anticipating travel deals. Perceptions around the affordability of travel have far surpassed pre-pandemic levels (up 29 points), and this metric was the only component that did not take a significant dip throughout the pandemic as travelers expected travel companies to slash prices given reduced demand.
Corporate business travel demand has historically driven fare and rate strength. However, MMGY Global’s CEO Clayton Reid foresees a unique and historic shift in this dynamic ahead. “MMGY Global believes the next six months will see a unique environment whereby weekend leisure travel demand is so significant that it pushes leisure demand to weekdays, thereby displacing traditional corporate travel. We are calling this ‘reverse compression.’ We think trip volume will not only be led by leisure demand but that fare and rate strength will also come first from consumers and second from business, even in market environments and periods where that just doesn’t happen,” Reid said.
Sustainability and travel
Fifteen percent of active leisure travelers indicate a travel service provider’s focus on sustainability and environmental considerations greatly impacts their travel decision-making. This sentiment is more evident among younger travelers who showed greater willingness to pay more for travel brands that demonstrate environmental responsibility than their older counterparts.
Though the intent to spend more with travel companies that demonstrate environmental responsibility declines the older the traveler segment, 83% of active leisure travelers overall indicate they are open to changing some aspect of their travel behavior to reduce their impact on the environment. For example, visiting destinations in the off-season to reduce overcrowding and using less single-use plastics while traveling appear to be changes most are willing to make.