Holiday Booking Behaviours in early 2022
January is the month to book holidays for the coming year, but with the pandemic being a constant shadow over our heads, the travel industry has been on shaky ground. However, this month in the UK, holiday bookings surged and demand increased after COVID testing rules for international travel were relaxed by the government. Not only this, but many more potential travellers are feeling optimistic that 2022 will be the year with no restrictions or cancellations placed on their travel plans.
Jet2 has said demand had returned to "around pre-Covid levels", earlier in the month, with The holiday company saw a "huge spike" in bookings, and EasyJet said its bookings rose almost 200%, while Tui said it experienced a "strong uptick".
Alongside this, research has been seeing many new trends in travellers since the pandemic changed the priorities, values and behaviour of travellers. What’s interesting is that the staycation, and holidaying locally is still a strong contender in these statistics.
Wellbeing & contentment: Expedia’s research, which polled 12,000 travellers across 12 countries, uncovered that travellers want to embrace the Greatest Of All Trips mindset by seeking out excitement/exhilaration (41 percent). Priorities are also shifting to focus on staying present and mindful; for example, more than a third (36 percent) are searching for a sense of contentment and mental wellbeing on their next trip, and nearly a quarter (24 percent) plan to spend less time on their devices to be more present.
And, according to Accucentre’s research, the market for "integrated wellness" expected to grow 1.3 trillion by 2024 . Consumers want a more holistic approach to their health, whether that’s access to fitness facilities at a hotel, or taking care of their mental wellbeing by minimising stress during a journey, and this fits into the shifting mindsets for travellers really considering their wellbeing on their next trip.
Sustainability: Travellers post-COVID are also looking for sustainable experiences; combining their own need for wellness with that of the planet, with 86% of consumers saying they want to travel more sustainably.
Supporting the local economy: Throughout the last year, we’ve all seen how the pandemic has refocused people’s attention on their local communities, but it will also impact on travel, as this shifting trend reshapes all sectors of the industry—from car rentals to flying patterns to where people choose to stay. We’re seeing staycations and domestic travel will becoming priority for leisure travellers over the short term.
Staycations and travelling locally
To really dig deep into the above trend of staying local, in Google’s 2021 Search Results data, there was a +100% YOY increase on searches such as ‘getaways near me’.
We know that 68% of travellers aren’t planning to fly domestically or internationally for their next trip, and the Global Travel Trends Report indicated that 72% of respondents agree that they are passionate about travelling to destinations to help boost tourism revenue and the local economy. 77% agree they want to be more conscious about supporting small, local businesses while travelling.
The time for going on holiday locally is riper than ever before. We’ve just launched a continuation of our TV campaign with our client, Away Resorts, a UK located holiday park operator . The campaign is titled ‘Something for Everyone’, and is timed perfectly considering these shifts in this year’s travellers.
Taking this into account, with once international-bound travellers considering staycations, Away Resorts’ TV creative shows that they really do have something for everyone. The creative is cheeky and fun, showing the families that like their energetic activity filled holidays, and then the ones who want ultimate relaxation. The campaign really highlights that Away Resorts is the perfect holiday park for the 72% of us wanting to travel more locally.
Overall, we can see that these monumental changes in the travel industry are here to stay for now, and will shape the industry for this year and further. But one thing is certain, in the UK- people are optimistic about holidays and plenty of us are booking.