This wide-ranging, international sentiment study examines the purchasing behaviour of travellers and the influence their spending has across industries. It also offers advice for marketers looking to capture the attention of this important group of consumers.

Key findings:

Travel is a non-negotiable expense

  • Globally, leisure travel accounts for the largest share of consumers’ annual discretionary budget, with travellers allocating nearly one in five discretionary dollars (19%) to leisure trips, matched only by dining (19%). This is higher than shopping (18%), home improvement (14%) or entertainment (13%).
  • In the face of global economic uncertainty, respondents seem prepared to absorb higher costs to keep travelling, with 78% of planning to spend more or at least the same on travel as last year.
  • Where travellers are tightening their belts, cost savings look likely to fall across other categories, with three quarters of those planning to reduce discretionary spend avoiding cuts to any travel plans.
  • Almost all respondents (95%) said they would rather decrease spending on other categories to save for a future vacation.

Travel influences spend extends across multiple categories

  • The vast majority of travellers make purchases from a range of categories when preparing for a trip, from clothes (89%), to luggage (72%), to electronics (62%). Importantly, these are not one-off purchases, with respondents buying these items at least 2-3 times in the past three years before travelling.
  • This mindset continues in-destination, with 63% claiming shopping is an important part of their travel budget and 62% agreeing that shopping is an important way to spend time while travelling.
  • Only 4% of travelers surveyed don’t usually shop during leisure trips, while 20% ranked shopping as the activity they spend the most on while traveling.

Those who travel more, spend more

  • Frequent travelers (defined as those who are planning 3 or more trips over the next 12 months) are especially enthusiastic consumers. Not only does this group plan more trips, but they typically spend more on accommodations per night than occasional travelers - 41% will book accommodations priced at over $200/night, 71% higher than occasional travelers.
  • Over half (53%) of frequent travelers will spend more on travel in the next 12 months than they did in the past year, compared to 38% of occasional travelers.
  • When compared to the average respondent, frequent travelers made purchases more consistently across every spend category, even accounting for income levels and budget.

Downloand the Report

About Tripadvisor

Tripadvisor, the world's largest travel guidance platform*, helps millions of people each month** become better travelers, from planning to booking to taking a trip. Travelers across the globe use Tripadvisor's website and app to discover where to stay, what to do and where to eat based on guidance from those who have been there before. With more than a billion reviews and contributions, travelers turn to Tripadvisor to find deals on accommodations, book experiences, reserve tables at delicious restaurants and discover great places nearby.

Tripadvisor LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tripadvisor, Inc. (Nasdaq: TRIP). The subsidiaries of Tripadvisor, Inc. own and operate a portfolio of travel media brands and businesses, operating under various websites and apps.

* Source: SimilarWeb, unique users de-duplicated monthly, November 2024
** Source: Tripadvisor internal log files