If your customers are between 56 and 74 and relatively well-to-do, expect them to travel more and spend more, says a new study from MMGY Travel Intelligence.
That’s no surprise to travel advisors, many of whom already have seen strong sales for the next 12 months. But it’s nice to have hard data nonetheless.
MMGY did not ask about the use of travel advisors in the most recent Portrait of American Travelers survey that came out this week; that question will be included in the Summer edition, they told TRO. But they did share data on past surveys with us. Spending among customers with household incomes over $50,000 is up about 33% from 2021, though still below 2019 levels, they said.
“Looking only at travelers with an annual household income of $50k+ for 2019, 2021, and 2022, here are the apples-to-apples travel spending intentions of those Americans (excluding any consideration of potential seasonal bias in the response data),” MMGY said:
- 2019 – $5,025
- 2021 – $3,304
- 2022 – $4,446
The quarterly Fall Edition of the Portrait of American Travelers survey of more than 4,500 adult travelers found that while 63% of US travelers intend to take a vacation in the next six months –a 10-point decrease from this time last year – Boomers and higher-income households planning to travel for leisure in the next 12 months will spend 37% more than those surveyed last year ($3,785, up from $2,758 in 2021).
“With these factors in mind, we’re predicting that overall leisure travel volume may decrease somewhat in 2023 while prices will likely increase,” said EVP Chris Davidson. “From a hospitality perspective, we expect leisure occupancy to decrease while the average daily rate (ADR) increases modestly. As a result, we’re anticipating a slight increase in revenue per available room (RevPAR) on a year-over-year basis in 2023.”
Other key findings reported in the study are:
- Culinary experiences are in. Six in 10 Gen Zs (56%) and Millennials (61%) are influenced by the quality of the culinary scene when choosing where to stay in a destination. Respondents in these age groups generally value authentic local food and beverage experiences much more so than traditional fine-dining experiences, such as those designated as Michelin-starred restaurants.
- Fewer travelers (18%) are planning Holiday trips this December compared to last year, down from 36% this year vs. 42% in 2021.
Social media continues to play an important role in travel planning, especially among younger generations. Four in 10 Millennials indicate celebrities and digital content creators have a great deal of influence on their travel decisions (38%).
