After surveying almost 4,000 Australians, Luxury Escapes has released its annual ‘Travel Trends’ report, which reveals a portion of the nation’s outlook on travel in 2024 and the destinations, experiences, and ambitions defining their year ahead.
Generation X (born in the mid-to-late 1960s and late 1970s to early 1980s as ending birth years) and Baby Boomer travellers (born from 1946 to 1964) contributed significantly to the Luxury Escapes report, who comprised 83 per cent of respondents, 70 per cent of whom were female.
So, what kind of luxury escapes are they planning for 2024 and beyond?
The travel boom(ers) continues into 2024
Continuing to make up for lost time post-pandemic, nine in ten Australians surveyed said they plan to travel domestically or internationally in 2024, with 74 per cent of Aussies primed for two or more holidays.
For more than half of Australians surveyed (56 per cent), travel strongly tops their discretionary spending list, with food and experiential tourism being the most popular travel trends of the year.
Travel remains the top discretionary spend despite cost of living pressures
Despite cost-of-living pressures, travel remains the number one discretionary item for the majority (56 per cent) of Australians surveyed, with three-quarters (72 per cent) of respondents saying they planned on spending the same or more on travel in 2024 versus the previous year.
With many surveyed likely benefitting from rising interest rates on savings, these Australians also said they are particularly keen to splurge on room upgrades (65 per cent) and flight upgrades (61 per cent), with an average travel budget of between 8,000 and $10,000 per holiday.
Food Tourism and Experiential Tourism on the menu
Food tourism remains the number one most popular travel trend in 2024, with 58 per cent of survey respondents planning to sink their teeth into some foodie travel in the next 12 months. Food Tourism tied for the top spot with Experiential Travel, seeing more Australians than ever wanting to immerse themselves in a destination’s culture.
Wellness tourism continues to be popular, with 36 per cent of Australians keen to try this sector in 2024, while sustainable tourism disappointingly dropped down the preference list for these surveyed Australians.
Top domestic destinations for 2024
Domestically, the Whitsundays took out the most popular destination for sun-seeking Australian travellers, knocking Far North Queensland off the top spot from last year. Queensland also holds second place with the Gold Coast, while Western Australia’s Broome joins the list for the first time in third place. Sydney and Melbourne round out the domestic wish list, bumping Hobart out of the top five in 2024.
Top international destinations for 2024
Tried and true destinations remain the drawcard for Australian travellers as we return to much-loved global favourites. For the second year in a row, Bali retained the top spot for the most popular international holiday destination, with Japan a close second and Thailand, Vietnam and Italy rounding out the top five. For the third year in a row, Italy holds the title of all-time favourite travel destination for Aussies.
Cruising continues to ride the popularity wave
As travellers seek both relaxing and bucket-list travel, more Australians than ever are embracing cruising, with three-quarters of respondents (73 per cent) open to exploring a cruise booking in 2024.
Cruise providers are responding to the demand by extending bespoke offerings, including the family-focused Disney Cruises and the ultra-extravagant, adults-only Virgin Voyages Cruise range.
Commenting on this year’s ‘Travel Trends’, CEO and Co-Founder of Luxury Escapes, Adam Schwab, said, “The key takeaway from our 2024 Travel Trends survey is that the strong rebound in Australian travel after the pandemic looks like it’s here to stay.
“For the second year in a row, nine out of 10 Australian travellers plan to go on a holiday this year, and a huge 72% of people we spoke to are planning two or more getaways,” says co-founder and CEO of Luxury Escapes Adam Schwab.
You can access the full Luxury Escapes 2024 Travel Trends Report here.
