Men spend less time booking trips than women. Younger travellers tend to start their planning later. And 59% of travellers begin researching their next trip between one and three months before departure.
Those are just a few of the findings in the latest TripBarometer1 survey from TripAdvisor. Together with independent research firm Ipsos, TripAdvisor asked 36,000 travellers how they plan and book their vacations – and discovered four booking behaviour trends and six distinct traveller personas.
Four behaviours based on how travellers book their trips:
- Flight bookers (48% of respondents):
- Book flight and destination first.
- Are destination-orientated – they travel mostly to experience different cultures.
- Are most common among those taking longer vacations, in which flights are often more expensive.
- Hotel bookers (29% of respondents):
- Start by researching and booking accommodations.
- Make decisions based on price, and prefer family-friendly destinations.
- Travel for just a weekend break in half of all bookings.
- Mavericks (13% of respondents):
- Book quickly and don’t spend as much time on research.
- Tend to be business travellers, or go on long vacations.
- Are creatures of habit: 17% choose destinations they visit every year.
- Balanced bookers (10% of respondents):
- Combine their interest in cultures with their desire for good travel deals.
- Invest time researching destinations.
- Travel for about as long as other travellers.
Six travel personas based on attitude, booking preferences, age, and income:
- Value seekers are those who say, “We want to make the most of our vacation.” Often travelling with children, they have a medium income and fall mostly into the 25-34 age group. They particularly value TripAdvisor to help them find deals, babysitting services and kid clubs — and they tend to research on their smartphones. Beach holidays are a favourite for people in this group.
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