Travel Trends 2024: The Travellers of the Future

In recent years, the service and marketing industries have shifted their focus from accommodating Millennials as the 'future generation' to now integrating Gen Z and Gen Alpha. Born from the late 1990s to early 2010s, Gen Z and the children of Millennials, known as Gen Alpha, are already making significant impacts and are considered the true 'travellers of the future'.

The industry is set on capturing the attention – and spending power – of these up-and-coming demographics of jetsetters, which makes sense given that Gen Z have risen to represent around one third of the global population.

A recent study by the European Travel Commission revealed that younger travellers are more likely to:  

• Return to, and add more value to, destinations over time
• Discover and actively seek out new, less-’popular’ travel destinations
• Incorporate technology into the planning of, and during, their trips
• Seek personal cultural experiences, benefits, and contribute to local communities in-destination

It should be noted that Gen Z is currently one of the highest spending demographics in the travel sector. Despite not being individually wealthy, their collective spending power heavily contributes to their travel experiences. This generation's strong alignment between their values and consumer behaviors further solidifies their influence in the market.  

Let’s take a look at how the ‘travellers of the future’ are changing the landscape of travel and tourism.

The impact of younger generations on travel trends

Did you know that Gen Z alone constitutes a spending power of around global spending power of $143 billion (a figure that is only increasing) and accounts for about 40% of all consumers? Or that Millennials and Gen Z consumers will make up 45% of luxury sales by 2025?

Digital-native travellers

The upbringing of Gen Z and Gen A in a digital era has resulted in their development during crucial formative years, constantly exposed to evolving and easily accessible technologies.

In terms of seeking out assistance from a travel provider, rather than doing things themselves, the likelihood of Gen Z doing so is influenced by various factors. However, among them all, Gen Z tends to prioritize technology integration, easy booking procedures, social environments that encourage connections with fellow guests, interactive communication with service providers, and personalized experiences.

In light of Gen Z's ability to meet their own needs through their technological proficiency, it is crucial for travel providers to find ways to engage with this constantly connected generation, such as through Online Travel Agencies (OTAs).

How to attract and accommodate ‘digital-native’ travellers:

• Highlight the benefits of using an agency over an OTA –  in your content, your communications or ads, your website, everywhere.
• Personalise all communications to the right audience, at the right time. Gen Z want individual experiences; use this to your benefit as a provider who can offer that.
• Ensure your approach is ‘mobile-first’ - whether it’s marketing or fighting for a spot on the top results in a search engine, what’s important to know is that 80% of Gen Z travellers use smartphones to research and book their travel. Compete with OTAs and be seen.
• Create engaging online content – you can’t book travel for customers who can’t find your services. Not only do you need to be seen, but younger travellers need to be convinced of why they should use an agency over an OTA. Convenience is everything – but personalisation is a huge motivator for this audience.
• Embrace technology and digital experiences – incorporate and promote tech-based recommendations, from hotels that offer AI powered air-con and mobile check-in to using a travel booking platform that has flexible payments – like our Booking Engine!

Travel influencers

Gen Z spends an average of 10.6 hours per day online, making them the most digitally connected generation, and in 2023, around 29% of Gen Zers were inspired to travel to a destination by TikTok. Meanwhile, around 54% of parents say their Gen Alpha child spends up to four hours a day on social media.

Many members of Generation Z and Millennials, more than their Gen X counterparts, find travel inspiration predominantly through online platforms. Social media, with its use of hashtags, geotags, and content sharing, provides a convenient way for users to discover and explore various destinations, attractions, and experiences worldwide. Travel businesses and influencers play vital roles in showcasing these destinations through engaging content, essentially serving as virtual tour guides for their audiences.

A recent study discovered that approximately 75% of travelers in the UK, US, Australia, China, and Japan utilize social media for travel inspiration. Leading the pack are platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Pinterest. Interestingly, 48% of travelers end up visiting destinations they stumble upon or are intrigued by on social media.  

Notably, during their searches, many users actively seek out new destinations, hidden gems, and unique travel experiences.

Research indicates that the largest source of inspiration for young travelers is television, news outlets, or movies at 64%, followed closely by recommendations from friends and family at 47%. These findings highlight the significant impact of social media on the preferences of the younger generation of travelers, surpassing even the influence of personal recommendations.

Build a positive online social presence to capture Gen Z travellers

And considering the prevalence and importance of social media in their travel-making decisions, it’s fair to say that Gen Z – and even Millennials - are travel influencers too.  

It is important to note that for every interaction your Gen Z customers have with your customer service, booking, pre-and post-travel experiences, they are highly likely to share their feedback online, whether positive or negative. Therefore, social media plays a crucial role in the success or failure of travel companies.

• What does your online presence say about you as a travel provider?
• Are you creating engaging content? Is it the right content for your audience?
• How do travellers know what value you provide, compared to OTAs?  
• Are you paying attention to what previous and existing customers say about you or your business?

What do travellers want? Experiential Tourism

A large proportion of Millennial travellers seek culturally immersive, experiential travel – a chance to ‘get under the skin’ of their destination and create personally fulfilling experiences.  

Generation Z is known for seeking unique experiences, and as the first digitally native generation, their travel preferences reflect a technology-first approach from the start of trip planning all the way to sharing experiences during and after their travels.  

Most of all, both demographics are proven (find stats) to want and prioritise:  

• Experiential travel – with a focus on authenticity in-destination.
• Wellness experiences – from holistic therapies to silent travel, wellness is driven by what wellness means to individual travellers, resulting in demands for bespoke experiences.
• Cultural and destination immersion  
• Niche travel – such as agri-tourism, eco-travel, halal travel, adventure travel and more.

The Gen Z demographic is increasingly showing a preference for authenticity in destination experiences. This shift towards experiential travel reflects a desire for bespoke, tailor-made travel experiences rather than the traditional 'one-size-fits-all' approach. Building on the cultural immersion focus of Millennials, Gen Z is leading the way in seeking experiences that align with their values. The trend is towards personalized, unique travel experiences that cater to the individual preferences of this generation.

From ‘set-jetting’ travel to luxury culinary tourism, solo travel and wellness tourism, such as ‘silent travel’, there’s no denying the fact that as well as being motivated by a desire for self-discovery, cultural immersion, and localised experiences, Gen Z are just as inspired by ‘on-screen’ destinations, social media and a keen social and environmental awareness.

In order to appeal to this future-focused generation of travelers, it is important to stay up-to-date on popular culture knowledge and have environmentally friendly recommendations readily available.

See our top 2024 travel trends here!

Sustainable Travel for the future

As evidenced by recent data, sustainable travel is a top priority for Millennials and Generation Z travelers. 82% of Millennials have expressed a strong desire for travel options that are environmentally friendly.

• Promote sustainable travel options – from hotels that are certified as sustainable (you’ll find these in our Booking Engine – to tours that have reduced their single-use plastic waste.
• Practice what you preach – many travel companies have signed the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism as signatories, or seek sustainability certification as part of the Sustainable Travel Agencies Certification.  
• Adopt sustainable practices in your day-to-day – a key example would be to use digital travel brochures.
• Support local causes – recommend locally owned restaurants, tours and own voices from a portfolio of trustworthy and sustainable travel products – like our Booking Engine!
• Invest in ‘regenerative’ schemes – much like our adjoining company Hotelbeds is dedicated to planting tens of thousands of trees in the Hotelbeds Forest!

Conscious travel is top of the demands list for many younger travellers, from sustainable travel practices and experiences that benefit local communities, to voluntourism and regenerative travel, alongside their undercurrent of desire for unique experiences.

Discover more about overtourism, and the importance of promoting sustainable tourism here.

The impact on Gen Alpha on modern familial travel

The growing utilization of travel technology and enhancements in travel accessibility across various demographics worldwide have created new opportunities for younger generations to travel more easily and affordably. This shift is transforming the expectations of younger travelers as travel becomes more convenient and economical, especially in regions with advanced travel infrastructures.

Given this, Gen A is expected to be the most mobile traveller yet.

This not only affects the future travel patterns of Generation A, but also their current impact on modern family travel. In fact, approximately 43% of families with Generation A children are influenced or inspired by them when planning a trip.

Although the older generations still play a key role in decision-making due to their ability to book trips, Gen A is actively sharing travel-related content on social media and indirectly influencing family travel decisions. Use this insight to provide experience-led recommendations to families with Gen A children.

A high number of families are prioritising inter-generational experiences and the needs of the family over the destination itself. Tech-inspired holidays are ideal for family and intergenerational travel as these experiences are engaging, accessible, sustainable, and memorable. Immersive experiential travel is fun for the whole family no matter the season.

While this is by no means an exhaustive list or overview of the impact of younger generations on travel, travel trends, and even wider traveller behaviour, it's certainly food for thought when you're considering how to attract, appeal and retain these all important travellers of the future.