People have been stuck in their homes for about two years now. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed everything. Now that the danger has lessened somewhat, it's no surprise that people are hoping to travel again. According to recent data, people are Googling like there's a summer travel boom coming. Read on to know more about it.
The Searches
Alphabet's
earnings call happened late Tuesday. The company noted that query growth on
Google for categories like islands and beaches rose 27% in the first quarter
compared to 2019 (the pre-pandemic time). Also, vacation rental queries rose by
37%. Global searches for passports online also rose by 80%, and inquiries for
travel insurance also doubled.
The GDP
Estimate
Also, the World
Travel & Tourism Council stated that the US travel and tourism industry might
make up $2 trillion in US GDP contribution this year. If that happens, it will
surpass pre-pandemic levels by 6.2%.
Americans
Plan Some Fun
A Summer Travel
Survey organized by Vacasa recently
unveiled that 63% of Americans plan to travel this summer. It also found that
85% of those summer travelers plan to vacation more than they did last year.
Travel to
Europe Might Increase
Data from
Allianz Partners revealed that travel to Europe from the US might increase by 600%
from last year.
The Hiccups
Though the travel
demand is expected to go up, the industry is dealing with hiccups like high
airfares, rising gas prices, increased room and car rental rates, and staffing
shortages.
More
Advertisements
To lure
travelers, states and cities across the US are investing more in advertising
campaigns.
Busiest
Season Since 2019
According to the
results of a recent survey conducted by Longwoods International, travelers are
once again starting to plan vacations in earnest. It could mean that this
summer travel season will potentially be one of the busiest since 2019.
Amir Eylon,
president and CEO of Longwoods
International, shared his take when he stated, "Barring some new
setback, the much-awaited shift in mindset among American travelers from "pandemic"
to "endemic" travel finally may be underway."
Popular
Destinations
This summer,
Americans looking for a vacation will likely head to Europe, Mexico, the
Caribbean, and Canada. Travelers will seek more off-the-beaten-path locales to
avoid the crowds during this year's summer vacation.
Friendly
Advice
If you plan to
travel this summer, too, then you should ensure that you take the help of a
travel advisor or expert to help you plan a vacation you will love. It is also
a smart idea to get travel insurance as new variants of COVID-19 are still
popping up in different parts of the world (like China), and the COVID-19
threat is still there.
It would also be
good to plan every step of your vacation to avoid uncertainties or overbooked
hotels or flights, as you are not the only one with plans for this summer. Again,
it would help if you planned everything well in advance to avoid facing on-the-spot
rejections.
Sources:
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/google-summer-travel-105209391.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAMgp1ygNawmYXQ6QAIoRBpTNVJA836jV1Tp976Yt4r0QzgHmuFoHkBFHLzKfSMx9cSjMTCsE7GuVHw2I6e0pqfWfeU4CUwggqnD8JpRIUivYNU1P9WxU8bBahG7nlKbWlgfkp4zJtdhMr9eLeWHcre9ypY1LEih0gEylsuqTIZbR
https://www.travelpulse.com/news/impacting-travel/what-google-search-data-tells-us-about-summer-travel.html
https://www.travelpulse.com/opinions/column/on-the-verge-of-a-summer-travel-boom.html