Greece is the third most popular destination for young Americans aged 18 to 25 and the fourth most popular destination for young Canadians, according to the StudentUniverse survey.
StudentUniverse is a Boston-based technology company that manages the largest youth and student travel marketplace. The company has a network of global partners that regulates terms and prices for its members. With operations in the US, UK, Australia, Canada and the Philippines, StudentUniverse enables students and young people to travel more. Acquired in 2015, StudentUniverse has since been a wholly owned subsidiary of Flight Center Travel Group, one of the world’s largest travel companies.
The consumer research platform Attest conducted a survey with a sample of people aged between 18 and 25 years old. A total of 4,000 young people from the 4 countries, which were USA, Canada, UK and Australia, where StudentUniverse operates.
The general trends of the younger generation
Some of the findings from the survey relate to the mental wellbeing of young travellers, with 93% agreeing that travel experiences can have a positive impact on their mental health with 89% reporting that they return from holiday feeling less stressed and in a more positive mood. This generation wants an alcohol-free holiday. A whopping 80% of respondents said they would take a holiday without alcohol. In addition to improved health, respondents noted that abstaining from alcohol has a number of benefits, including cost savings and prevention of potentially dangerous situations.
At the same time, younger travellers, who have not yet entered the workforce or have recently been hired, have started to see travel not only as a holiday opportunity but also as a basis for their careers, taking advantage of professional opportunities. Of those surveyed, 78% expressed an interest in business travel and 87% believe that travel will improve their employability. In addition, 86% noted that they would work or volunteer in something related to their future career. Respondents also said that travel helps improve interpersonal communication and provides a broader understanding of how to interact with people from different cultures. In addition, those already in the workforce are looking for opportunities to combine work and leisure travel.
Young people’s concerns about the environment are growing, with a small minority of student travellers (13%) saying they would not travel by plane because of emissions and a further 21% claiming to know someone who refuses to travel by air. More importantly, almost a quarter (23%) said they were willing to pay an optional carbon offset fee at the time of booking. This is an unprecedented development.
As a generation that has grown up with technology, it’s a fact that just over half (51%) of respondents said they trusted AI-generated travel planning, but only 21% said they actually used a chatbot to configure a trip. Most importantly for travel advisors, 92% said that in the event of an issue they would prefer to speak to a real person and 87% said they would be disappointed if they could not contact a real person.
Social media has a big impact on the young audience and motivates them to take various actions at the same time. For example, 88% said they are active on TikTok and 60% said they turn to the platform as their first choice for travel inspiration. In addition, 88% follow at least one travel influencer with 40% reporting that they have booked a holiday as a direct result of content featured on TikTok.
The most popular countries for young American travellers are:
1. Italy
2. Japan
3. Greece
4. United Kingdom
5. France
6. Spain
7. Australia
8.Canada
9. New Zealand
10. Brazil
The most popular countries for young Canadian travellers are:
1. Italy
2. Japan
3. United Kingdom
4. Greece
5. France
6. Australia
7. Spain
8. USA
9. Germany
10. New Zealand
