Travel Pulse: JANEEN CHRISTOFF
New research suggests that Americans are looking forward to family time and travel in 2021 more than anything else.
The 'What Matters 2021' survey for Agoda found that what Americans most want this year is to spend more quality time with loved ones (34 percent), being able to travel unhindered (20 percent) and doing things that matter or make a difference (16 percent).
Travelers around the world feel similarly to U.S. travelers. One in three travelers are looking forward to spending more quality time with loved ones.
Respondents 55 and over were the demographic most looking forward to traveling unhindered. Those between ages 25-54 were keen to spend quality time with family and friends, and youths (18-24) were most excited about making a difference in 2021.
The research also showed that American travelers are committed to traveling differently in 2021. They want to travel more with friends and family (29 percent), take more spontaneous trips (19 percent) and travel at a slower pace (16 percent).
“[Last year] was a year of survival and of making the best of it. Despite all that struggle and hardship, our research shows that there's a global desire for travel, connection, meaning and spending time with friends and family. Travel will resume eventually, because, ultimately, the human desire to travel is unstoppable," said Tim Hughes, vice president of corporate development, Agoda.
"At Agoda, we believe in the future of travel," he added. "Our research backs this up, confirming that travel is one of the top things people look forward to in 2021. More than that—people are committed to making a difference, traveling with people who matter, open to more unplanned, last-minute trips, and considering the environmental impact they make as they travel."