What: Flight Cancellations, Record COVID-19 Cases Led to a Choppy End to 2021
New data from Destination Analysts, collected Dec. 26-28, shows a promising outlook for 2022, despite a bumpy holiday travel season with a record number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and a high number of flight cancellations. The Omicron variant of COVID-19 impacted holiday travel for 32.9% of respondents, leading 50.7% to postpone their trips and 43.5% to cancel. Despite this, U.S. travelers identifying as “ready-to-travel” actually increased: 77.9% say they are looking to travel heading into 2022 (up from 76% as of Dec. 13, 2021).
Why It Matters: Despite Omicron's Threat, Travel Attitudes Are Improving for 2022
Although Omicron is more transmissible than other variants of COVID-19, it isn’t impacting tourism as much previous surges — the number of people avoiding conferences/conventions and international travel has declined, and fewer respondents say Omicron is impacting their overall interest in travel.
However, it’s important to note that COVID-19 isn’t leaving the conversation anytime soon. Nearly half (46.3%) of respondents believe the pandemic will be “worse” or “much worse” in the next month, and consumers’ confidence in the ability to travel safely has dropped 10 points since Nov. 12. Travel advisors will need to continue to gauge clients’ current comfort levels and make sure they are informed of any COVID-19-related restrictions and changes.
Fast Facts
- Omicron is not affecting local sentiment toward tourism in the same way as Delta or the original viral strain did; just 38% of those surveyed say they don’t want tourists in their communities now.
- Sixty-one percent of U.S. travelers say they are enthusiastic to learn about new travel experiences, and 35.5% are ready to spend on travel now (with 57.5% prioritizing spending on travel in the next three months). The average U.S. traveler will spend $3,912 on travel this year.
- More than 30% of U.S. travelers expect to take more leisure trips in 2022 than 2021. Most respondents (75.8%) will prioritize having fun while traveling.
- In the first quarter of 2022 alone, 46% of respondents say they will take at least one leisure trip, and 11.1% say they will take at least one business trip.
The Details
Destination Analysts
