What: MMGY Shares Insights About Hispanic Travelers
MMGY has released findings from a new study identifying the needs, concerns and behaviors of Hispanic travelers in the United States. Vistas Latinas: A Landmark Study on U.S. Travelers of Hispanic Descent is MMGY’s second study of groups underrepresented in the travel industry, following The Black Traveler: Insights, Priorities and Opportunities.
Why It Matters: U.S. Hispanic Travelers Accounted for 13% of Domestic Travel in 2019
The report is the first travel research of its kind to examine this fast-growing demographic group — which, according to the 2020 Census, now represents a population of 62.1 million people in the U.S. — and reveals how factors including identity, language, culture and age impact travel behaviors, decisions and preferences.
According to the study, U.S. Hispanic travelers spent $113.9 billion on domestic leisure travel in 2019, accounting for 13% of all domestic leisure travel that year. With that much spending power, it’s a market the travel industry should be paying attention to.
Travel sellers should also note that representation and inclusion are key issues for Hispanic travelers: 57% say they are more likely to visit a destination that embraces Hispanic cultures and celebrates Hispanic business and cultural contributions, and 52% are more likely to travel somewhere that includes Hispanic representation in destination advertising/marketing materials.
Fast Facts:
- According to the study, 80% of Hispanic travelers prefer to identify as Hispanic, while 25% prefer Latino/Latina and 3% prefer the term Latinx (respondents could choose more than one answer).
- Hispanic travelers are predominantly consuming all forms of media in English.
- An overwhelming majority (93%) of respondents travel with their family; among them, 59% go with immediate family, 30% with parents and 28% with adult siblings.
- The top three domestic destinations among this group for overnight travel are California (21%), Texas (15%) and Florida (14%), states which also have the highest number of Hispanic residents.
- Most respondents (85%) have visited the country/territory of their family heritage; 15% return more than once a year and 22% go yearly.
- Seventy-one percent say they want to experience other Latino cultures and destinations even if it’s not where their own family originated from.
- Six in 10 Hispanic travelers say they want to learn more about their own origin and history.
- Of those surveyed, most (83%) said they were born in the United States. Half indicated that their family originated from Mexico, while a quarter said they were of Caribbean heritage (Puerto Rican, Dominican or Cuban).
- All proceeds from the sale of the Vistas Latinas study will be donated to Travel Unity, a nonprofit focused on increasing diversity in travel through individual and community empowerment.
What They Are Saying:
“It is more important than ever to understand the nuanced behaviors and needs of travelers in underrepresented communities,” said Clayton Reid, CEO of MMGY Global. “For our company, our clients and our partners in the Vistas Latinas study, it is crucial to have this data in order to grow the travel industry and ensure people from all walks of life and with different interests feel included.”
The Details
MMGY Global
