The State of Travel in 2016

Skift have just released their latest research on the “State of Travel in 2016”, the report covers everything from the latest developments in the industry to changes in travellers’ choices of destinations, this comprehensive report identifies each aspect of global travel in 2016. Let us take a look at some of its highlights:

Top Emerging Global Destinations in 2016
This may come as a surprise but the top destination in 2016 was found out to be Tulum in Mexico. This was followed by Cartagena (Colombia) and Porto (Portugal). The capitals of Russia and India ranked 5th and 7th, respectively.

Global Business Travel Spending and Growth Forecast
2015 saw an unprecedented growth in the travel industry. There were positive signs of development in the sector. Total travel spending in 2015 was a whopping $1.25 trillion up by 6.5% in 2014. In 2016, it still rose to an incredible 6.9% which is a sure sign of things to come. Whether it is business or leisure, people are willing to spend more and more on travel.

Fastest Growing Markets for Business Travel Spending (Forecast from 2016-2026)
Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, was found to be the fastest growing market for business travel with an increase of 9%. Other nations, like China and Zambia, were not far behind with a growth rate of 8.8%. This expansion of spending was also witnessed in countries, such as Ukraine, Tanzania and Cambodia.

Factors That Influenced Travellers’ Booking Decisions
Skift also discovered several factors that proved to be influencers for booking decisions of travellers. The most important factor was found to be ‘Convenient Schedule’ (33%). ‘Price’ proved to be the second greatest influencer with 27%.
With 20%, ‘Travel Reward Points’ was found to be the third most important factor. Other influencers that affected travellers’ booking decisions included, ‘Brand Loyalty’ (7%), ‘Seating Options’ (4%), ‘Deals from the Airline’ (3%), ‘Free Perks’ (2%) and ‘Others’ (2%).

Summary of Events in the US
A total of 11,427 events took place in the US in 2015. The highest number of events were related to Business Services (1,048). Other top industry sectors in which events took place included, Consumer Goods, Education, Food etc.
California was found to be the state with the most number of events (1485). Texas and Florida do not lag far behind and come 2nd and 3rd, respectively. New York with 546 events was found to be the 5th top state by number of event happenings.

The above highlights very accurately describe the state of travel in 2016. Many patterns can be evidently seen and that can be quite helpful in making future predictions. Travel agents and marketing strategists can use these insightful numbers to make travel easier and better.