by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 5:00 PM ET, Wed December 27, 2023
As one year winds down and another emerges on the horizon, experts far and wide begin issuing predictions about what the next 12 months are likely to have in store.
This is especially true for the travel industry, where consumer preferences and priorities are constantly evolving in response to a variety of inputs and factors. For the coming year, some of those pressures and factors include global warming, regional conflicts and our increasingly digitally-dominated lives.
With 2024 mere days away now, travelers are already busy booking their upcoming getaways, which gives industry experts a glimpse of the travel trends that are starting to take shape.
From set-jetting to slow life trips and a significant uptick in wellness-driven travel, theres a variety of intriguing developments emerging.
TravelPulse talked with travel experts and insiders to dig into what 2024 holds in store. Heres what they had to say.
Acting on Sustainability
The term sustainability is hardly new for the travel industry. Its been a hot topic for years, particularly post-pandemic. But 2024 may be the year that travelers far and wide really begin to focus on the issue, says Travelzoo Senior Editor Gabe Saglie.
Theyll begin to define and adopt deliberate personal actions, however small, that tangibly showcase mindfulness and respect for the destination they visit and its people C and ultimately, reduce their carbon footprint, says Saglie.
Think of it as small personal actions for a big collective impact including carrying reusable water bottles and shopping bags, using public transportation more frequently, and making a point of shopping at local businesses in destination.
You can also expect to see more travelers opting for lesser-known destinations to help decrease overtourism in the coming year and traveling off-season.
Turning these small things into conscious decisions when planning and executing travel will gain momentum and more and more of us will use things like social media to share our actions to inspire others, says Saglie.
To help facilitate such meaningful action, Travelzoo recently announced its latest global initiative. Dubbed #travelfortomorrow, the initiative is designed to inspire travelers to pledge to take concrete actions toward sustainable travel in 2024 and beyond.
Cooking class, Sri Lanka. (Photo Credit: Lauren Breedlove)
Immersing in Culinary Travel
The coming year will also find travelers increasingly focused on culinary-related globetrotting experiences. A growing number of travelers are seeking culinary and wine experiences that connect them to the local culture and traditions of destinations in 2024, says Sam Seward, managing director of Exodus Adventure Travels.
There is more focus on experiences that enliven the senses when visiting a destination, Seward explained to TravelPulse. Culinary travel has evolved as people want to learn and absorb the culture of a destination through their food and beverage experiences.
This growing trend includes travelers taking part in private hosted dinners, exploring open-air food markets and other intimate interactions with local guides and residents. Exodus is meeting that demand by adding new tour options like Parma to Florence: Italys Culinary Highlights and Sicily Food Adventure.
A 2024 travel trends report from Hilton also identifies this growing development, pointing out that travelers interests when they reach their destinations are
evolving to include an increased focus on great food and beverage and connecting with people and local cultures.
"Dining, culture, and connections are inspiring leisure travel decisions
as people increasingly prioritize the purchase of experiences over
things," says the Hilton report. "Next year, foodies will reign supreme, with culinary experiences
prioritized globally and across generations. In tandem, people will
travel to learn about other cultures, learn about their own culture and
connect with others."
A traveler practicing yoga. (photo via Wellness Travel University)
Wellness Travel Prioritized
A development that began surging on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic, wellness travel grew even more popular in 2023 and is expected to continue to skyrocket in the year ahead.
2024 will likely be the year when more Americans deliberately fold self-care into their travels, says Saglie. More and more Americans are realizing that to maximize a vacation, conscious strides have to be made to relax and recharge, to disconnect, to prioritize personal well-being.
The industry will respond in kind, focusing on, and promoting, curated experiences such as a re-invented spa culture, outdoor experiences, and farm-to-table eating.?
Tour guide giving directions to a small group of tourists (Photo Credit: Getty/AleksandarNakic)
Active Travel Shaping Choices
Demand for active travel experiences will reach an all-time high in 2024, predicts Seward.
Popular options include cycling, hiking, wildlife, and cultural small group tours where people can have an enhanced sense of accomplishment, engagement and fulfillment, says Seward.?North Americans are seeking extraordinary experiences with memories that last a lifetime, and travel is becoming the new social currency.
Matt Berna, president of the Americas for Intrepid Travel, echoes this prediction, pointing out that when the global pandemic forced us all indoors, it drove a
huge boom in outdoor adventures as people looked for ways to stay
active. This interest has continued long after the pandemic has
subsided and it's increasingly shaping travel choices.
In Intrepid's case, that has translated to a significant uptick in travelers booking walking and trekking tours.
Globally,
Intrepid saw a whopping 445 percent increase in sales year-over-year in
its walking and trekking range, says Berna. With more people
continuing to want to get outside and enjoy nature, we are introducing
more walking and trekking itineraries for 2024 that will allow travelers
to do this, while exploring incredible landscapes all over the world.
More Shoulder Season Getaways
Spring and fall are known in the travel industry as the shoulder seasons meaning they are windows in time when travel crowds have lightened, flights and hotels are more affordable, and temperatures are milder.?
But with the COVID-19 pandemic driving an increase in remote workers, more and more people have been freed to travel year-round, including during the historically slower and more budget-friendly shoulder season.
Add into the mix the brutal heatwaves that swept across much of Europe and beyond this past summer, and it becomes clear that shoulder season travel will continue to be a popular choice.
After a summer of extreme heat and overcrowded destinations in 2023, travel will increasingly move to the shoulder seasons in 2024, says Berna. Intrepid has seen consistent growth in fall and spring bookings in Europe since 2018 increasing by 56 percent and 70 percent in 2023 compared to pre-pandemic levels and we expect this to continue.
Longer Itineraries
Yet another development that may have something to do with being cooped up for years, travelers are planning far lengthier vacation itineraries these days and that trend is expected to gain even more momentum in 2024.
?A real trend weve been seeing is people interested in traveling for longer and choosing multi-country trips, Wilderness Travels Director of Product, Scott Abbott, tells TravelPulse. That has meant either adding time on their own before, or after, planned tours, booking two to four trips back-to-back-to-back, or a preference for our longer and more in-depth trips."
Wilderness Travels has seen a particular spike in trip offerings that are 26 days or longer and the company expects that to accelerate in 2024 as travelers seek to experience destinations in greater depth and continue to prioritize travel experiences in their lives.
Passion First, Destination Second
More than ever, travelers are letting their passions lead when deciding on where to go next and how to travel, choosing the destinations that best allow them to undertake and participate in activities that interest them.?
A good example of this is the explosion in eclipse-related travel for 2024 and beyond or viewing wildlife, especially if youre interested in a particular species, such as snow leopards, jaguars, or whale sharks," says Abbott. These are things you cant do everywhere, so increasingly we see people choosing travel to places where they can pursue their passions.?
Sicily is one of many destinations that are part of the set-jetting trend. (Photo Credit: iStock/Getty Images Plus/Leonid Andronov)
Set-Jetting
Call it silver screen sightseeing or set-jetting (as Expedia has dubbed this development) consumers will continue to book travel in 2024 based on the backdrops from their favorite television shows and movies.
Set-jetting or planning trips inspired by TV shows and movies is influencing travel now more than ever. More than half of travelers say theyve researched or booked a trip to a destination after seeing it on a TV show or in a movie, says Expedias Unpack 24: The Trends in Travel Report.
Whether you choose to believe it or not, travelers say TV shows influence their travel decisions more than Instagram, TikTok, and podcasts, according to Expedia.
Perhaps Exhibit A on this front should be the small-screen drama White Lotus, which launched in 2021 on HBO and was a runaway hit. The show triggered a frenzy of travel to its filming locations, which during the course of the first two seasons included Hawaii and Sicily. Similarly, the show Yellowstone treated fans to a steady stream of stunning Montana backdrops.
According to data from Expedia, some of the set-jetting destinations to watch in 2024 include:
- Thailand: As seen in White Lotus season 3
- Romania: As seen in Wednesday season 2
- Malta: As seen in the film Gladiator 2
- Paris: As seen in Emily in Paris
- Scottish Highlands: As seen in Outlander season 8
- London, Bath, and Windsor UK: As seen in Bridgerton and The Crown
- Florida Keys: As seen in the new series Bad Monkey
Dry Tripping
Think Dry January and Sober October as the inspiration driving this trend, says Expedia.
In 2024 zero-proof holidays are expected to take over our travel feeds, says the travel platforms 2024 trends report. More than 40 percent of respondents say theyre likely to book a detox trip in the next year.
Additionally, half of travelers say they would be interested in staying at a hotel that offers easily accessible alcohol-free options.
Slow-Life Travel
And one last trends report to dig into for 2024this one from Pinterest titled Pinterest Predicts, says slow life travels will be all the rage next year.
The report, based on the planning activities of 482 million Pinterest users, says people are planning trips that take it extra slow and allow for catching up on rest. Interest in these types of trips is up 60 percent, according to the report.
Gen Z and Millennials will retreat to laid-back locales that offer the opposite of a jam-packed itinerary, says Sydney Stanback, Pinterest's global trends and insights lead.
The experts at Lonely Planet foresee a similar development, which theyve labeled Slow Sojourns.
More travelers are looking to immerse themselves in the destinations they visit rather than ticking off activities from a packed itinerary, says the Lonely Planet rundown on what to expect in 2024.
Familiar Places in Unfamiliar Ways
Lastly, in 2024, travelers will continue to plan visits to bucket list destinations, but will do so with a slightly different spin.
Travelers want to experience these destinations in new and unique ways that arent on the radar' for that destination, says Abbott.
Weve seen a growth in demand for customization and private journeys in familiar places and weve even developed group experiences that facilitate this like our Hikers Journey to Machu Pichu?and Treasures of Mont Blanc,?which take guests to well-loved places but provide a completely different experience using alternative trails, cultural encounters, and destinations to see a new side of these places.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
