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Q1 Traveler Insights: Planning ahead for 2024 travel

Drawing on our first-party data from Q4 2023, we take a look into how travelers are behaving when searching for and booking travel.

author
Richard Kocher

February 13, 2024

Traveler research Travel trends

Each quarter, we deliver our traveler insights, which provide a deep dive into Expedia Group’s exclusive first-party traveler search and booking data to show shifting demand patterns and changing traveler behaviors.

 

Looking at the data from Q4 2023, we see that travelers are planning ahead for trips this year and showing strong interest in international destinations in Asia Pacific (APAC) and Paris, France. Additionally, findings from GWI’s January 2024 Zeitgeist Study show that 67% of consumers say they’re planning to travel more or the same amount in 2024 than they did in 2023. Travelers that recently visited Expedia are even more bullish, as they are 95% more likely to travel significantly more in 2024.**

 

Travelers are also planning to increase their budgets in 2024 — with 26% of consumers, and 35% of those who recently visited Expedia, saying they’ll be spending more on travel this year.**

 

Read on for more insights and takeaways.  

Search volume sees strong end of year spikes

Travelers showed strong enthusiasm for travel toward the end of 2023, especially around the holidays. Global search volumes spiked during the last week of the year — a trend we also observed in 2022 — with a 25% increase in search volume week-over-week (WoW).* This growth in global search volumes at the end of the quarter was led by a 35% increase in both Latin America (LATAM) and Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), which can likely be attributed to travelers searching for trips and travel deals on Boxing Day.

 

We also saw a 10% WoW global search volume increase in travel searches during the week of Cyber Monday and Travel Tuesday, as well as an almost 15% increase in North America (NORAM).

Takeaway

Target travelers with seasonal deals

As we look ahead toward spring and summer travel, set yourself up for success by targeting and reaching travelers who are looking for travel deals, especially around certain holidays or seasonal sales. Members Only Deals are a great way for hotels to stand out by offering promotions while connecting with high-value One Key™ rewards members.

APAC cities show major search increases

Travel demand for APAC has grown significantly in recent quarters, following a slower recovery trajectory post-pandemic. According to November 2023 flight data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Asia Pacific airlines had a 63.8% rise in November international traffic compared to November 2022 — the strongest year-over-year (YoY) rate among the regions.

 

Our Q4 search data supports this trend as several APAC cities saw strong YoY travel growth in terms of search volume, including Guangzhou (85%), Hong Kong (35%), and Shanghai (35%).  We saw strong global interest for APAC from all four super regions, with notable YoY search increases to various APAC cities. As interest for international travel continues to grow with 20% of consumers, and over 30% of all Expedia travelers, planning international vacations in 2024, this further highlights the region’s increase in popularity among travelers outside of APAC.** 

YoY search volume increases to APAC:
  • NORAM to Guangzhou (65%), Kyoto (55%), and Osaka (50%)
  • EMEA drove double-digit increases to Hong Kong (100%), Osaka (70%), Kyoto (50%)
  • LATAM to Tokyo (85%)
  • APAC drove double-digit increases to Shenzhen, Macau, Guangzhou, Beijing, and Shanghai

Takeaway

Connect with travelers through advertising

More travelers are looking to visit APAC especially now that the region is fully open and exchange rates are more favorable for travelers visiting Japan. With this in mind, APAC travel brands and providers should optimize their listings to attract travelers and ensure they are targeting visitors from different regions searching for their destination. Our advertising solutions can help your brand target and connect with hundreds of millions of travelers around the world through a variety of advertising formats — from native and sponsored listings to display and custom campaigns — and effectively capture demand.

Travelers plan ahead for 2024

Although we saw travelers planning for both the short term and very long term in Q3 2023, longer term planning trended up in Q4. Notably, searches in the 180+ day window increased globally by over 15%, driven by a more than 70% increase in EMEA and a 10% increase in NORAM. International searches in the 61- to 90-day and 180+ day windows also increased by over 10% QoQ as travelers began planning for early and mid-year trips in 2024. The continued growth of longer search windows emphasizes that traveler intent remains strong, with many planning for trips months in advance.

Takeaway

Expand booking windows

With travelers already planning for mid-year vacations, make sure your availability and pricing is set well ahead of key travel dates so you can capitalize on early bookings. Vacation rental property owners can expand their booking windows using our calendar tool to capture demand from travelers booking trips far in advance.

Paris sees search increases for summer 2024

Travelers are also looking ahead toward summer in Paris, France and are planning to stay longer in-market. In Q4 2023, future searches for travel to Paris in July and August increased by over 20%. And, during July 26 – August 11, 2024, length of stay increased for visitors from across all regions. This was led by a nearly 25% YoY increase from travelers visiting from NORAM and LATAM, indicating visitors are intending to stay around Paris for an extended period of time.

Takeaway

Optimize listings

As travelers are eagerly planning their Paris vacations, hotels and vacation rentals in the area should optimize their listings to attract guests. Including key details in your listing, including nearby attractions and transportation options, can appeal to travelers looking to book convenient lodging.

Top destinations

In addition to quarterly search volume and window data, we look at the top searched destinations to see where travelers are going. In Q4 2023, travelers opted for warm weather getaways as the weather turns colder in the Northern Hemisphere, while other travelers are leaning into the colder weather by planning ski vacations in vacation rentals.

 

Looking at the global top 10 list of searched destinations, Orlando, Miami, and Punta Cana jumped in the rankings. For the top destinations by region, Cancun and Fort Lauderdale rose in the rankings for NORAM, while Buenos Aires rose for LATAM.  We saw this flock to warm weather destinations in trending country data as well. U.S. travelers searching for tropical destinations increased during Q4, with triple-digit QoQ search increases from the U.S. to St. Lucia, Aruba, and Curaçao. Looking forward, findings from the GWI January 2024 Zeitgeist Study also supported this trend as 46% of those who recently visited Expedia said they are planning a beach or water vacation this year.  

Top searched destinations by region

*New top 10 destination

For APAC Travelers
  • Tokyo, Japan
  • Sydney, Australia
  • Seoul, South Korea
  • Melbourne, Australia
  • Osaka, Japan
  • Gold Coast, Australia
  • Fukuoka, Japan
  • Taipei, Taiwan
  • Incheon, South Korea
  • Bangkok, Thailand
For EMEA Travelers
  • London, England
  • Paris, France
  • Istanbul, Turkey
  • Dubai, UAE
  • New York, New York
  • Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • Madrid, Spain*
  • Rome, Italy
  • Barcelona, Spain
  • Manchester, England*
For LATAM Travelers
  • Mexico City, Mexico
  • Sao Paulo, Brazil
  • Cancun, Mexico
  • Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  • Buenos Aires, Argentina
  • Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
  • Mazatlan, Mexico
  • New York, New York
  • Orlando, Florida*
  • Playa del Carmen, Mexico
For NORAM Travelers
  • Cancun, Mexico
  • Orlando, Florida
  • Las Vegas, Nevada
  • Los Angeles, California
  • New York, New York
  • Miami, Florida
  • Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
  • Chicago, Illinois
  • Fort Lauderdale, Florida*
  • Boston, Massachusetts
Warm-weather destinations including Orlando, Miami, and Punta Cana jumped in the global top 10 list of searched destinations as temperatures cooled down in the Northern Hemisphere.

On the Q4 top searched vacation rental destinations list we saw several ski destinations make the list for NORAM and EMEA, including Breckenridge, Colorado joining the NORAM list at no. 6 and Gérardmer moving up in the EMEA rankings.*** Meanwhile others continued to flock to warm-weather destinations including Florida, Tennessee, and California.

Top searched destinations for vacation rentals

*New top 10 destination

For APAC Travelers
  • Melbourne, Australia
  • Sydney Australia
  • Gold Coast, Australia
  • Sunshine Coast, Australia
  • Perth, Australia
  • Busselton, Australia
  • Adelaide, Australia
  • Nelson Bay, Australia
  • Brisbane, Australia
  • Auckland, New Zealand
For EMEA Travelers
  • Paris, France
  • London, England
  • Frankfurt, Germany*
  • Rome, Italy
  • Berlin, Germany
  • Gérardmer, France
  • Málaga, Spain
  • Albufeira, Portugal
  • Adeje, Spain*
  • Norderney, Germany
For LATAM Travelers
  • Ubatuba, Brazil
  • Guarujá, Brazil
  • Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  • Bertioga, Brazil
  • Praia Grande, Brazil
  • São Paulo, Brazil
  • Cabo Frio, Brazil
  • Florianópolis, Brazil
  • Búzios, Brazil
  • São Sebastião, Brazil
For NORAM Travelers
  • Gatlinburg, Tennessee
  • Panama City Beach, Florida
  • Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
  • Destin, Florida
  • Key West, Florida
  • Breckenridge, Colorado*
  • Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
  • San Diego, California
  • Sevierville, Tennessee*
  • Santa Rosa Beach, Florida
Popular ski destination Breckenridge in Colorado was a top searched vacation rental destination among NORAM travelers as they looked to book lodging for winter sports trips.

Takeaway

Lean into seasonality to appeal to travelers

With travelers booking trips based on weather, including warm-weather getaways and vacations centered around winter sports and activities, use seasonality to your advantage. Whether you’re a sunny locale or winter wonderland, highlight the seasonal benefits of your property or destination in your advertising to drive more demand. Vacation rental property owners should also look at setting competitive seasonal rates to take advantage of booking opportunities and maximize revenue potential.

 

For more up-to-date traveler data and trends to support your 2024 strategies, as well as a comprehensive view of 2024 traveler trends, visit our Research & Insights page.

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A headshot of Richard Kocher

Richard Kocher

Senior Director, Media Insights & Planning

 

Richard is senior director of Media Insights & Planning. His team is responsible for mining Expedia Group’s exclusive first-party search and booking data and market insights to inform partners’ strategies, product selection, and audience targeting. Prior to overseeing the global Media, Insights, and Planning team, Richard led Business Development and Account Management teams in display and sponsored listings across EMEA and APAC. He has postgraduate degrees in Anthropology from the University of Sussex and Business Administration from Warwick Business School – and lives with his family in Redmond, Washington.

 

Read more posts by Richard

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