1. Travel Perceptions Study
P R E S E N T E D B Y P a u l a F r o e l i c h , E d i t o r i n C h i e f , Y a h o o T r a v e l | A p r i l 7 , 2 0 1 5
@ P f r o | @ Y a h o o T r a v e l
2. 2 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
23%
18%
7%
25%
19%
8%
Gender/Age Distribution
Males 18-34
Males 35-54
Males 55+
Females 18-34
Females 35-54
Females 55+
Field Dates
Survey fielded on-network
from
December 12-15, 2014
Males
<35
48%
35+
Looked at Food content on Yahoo
47%
Females
53%
52%
Sample requirements:
• 2005 respondents
• US residents
• Have traveled for leisure at
least once in past 3 years
Methodology
3. 3 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
Males
Looked at Food content on Yahoo
47%
Females
53%
Recommendations from friends/family is the top influencer for booking a trip, and
online is overwhelmingly the preferred way to do so
Over half travel with significant others, and most prefer to take self-guided tours
Most use social media while traveling, with Facebook being the lead outlet by a wide
margin
More than half have traveled alone, and without a significant other
The majority of those with paid vacation days are happy with the number they have,
and over half use all or most of them
Key Findings
4. 4 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
Males
Looked at Food content on Yahoo
47%
Females
53%
9% 20% 22% 21% 16% 9% 3%
Last week Last month Last 3 months Last 6 months Last year Last 2 years Last 3 years
Last Traveled Within…
Over two-thirds traveled within the last six months
Average Trips Per Year
Travelers take
4.0
trips on average
per year
3.0
are domestic
trips
1.0
are international
trips
Men have taken a
trip within the last
week more so than
women, while
women are more
likely to have taken
a trip within the
last 6 months or
year
<35 are more
likely to have
taken a trip
within the last
week, while 35+
are more likely to
have taken one
within the last 2
years
5. 5 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
61%
46%
44%
43%
41%
40%
36%
26%
22%
16%
3%
2%
Visiting friends/family
Experiencing something new
Quiet time/relaxing
Seeing something I have never seen before
Taking time for myself
Adventure
Returning somewhere I love
Food
Connecting with other cultures
Sports/activities
I rarely if ever travel outside my city or town
Other
Travel Motivations
Women are more
motivated by
visiting
friends/family while
men are more
motivated by
adventure and
sports/activities<35 are more
motivated by
experiencing
something new,
adventure, food,
connecting with
other cultures, and
sports/activities
Over half travel to visit friends and family
6. 6 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
Friend or family
recommendations
48%
Travel review
sites
14%
Ads
7%
Article/videos on
a website/blog
6%
Travel books
5%
Posts on social
media
4%
Magazine articles
4%
Travel agent
3% Other
9%
Almost half are influenced by friends and family
Women are
influenced more
by friends/family,
and men are most
influenced by ads
and travel agents
<35 are influenced
by articles/videos
on websites/blogs
and post on social
media more than
35+ are
Most Influence on Decision to Book a Trip
7. 7 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
77%
19%
13%
6%
Online
Over the phone
Via a travel agent
Other
Online is the preferred method to book travel
Usual Travel Booking Method
Men book
through the
phone or
through travel
agents more so
than women
<35 are more
likely to book a
trip online or
through a travel
agent versus
35+
8. 8 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
7%
25%
34%
16%
5%
13%
Spur of the moment
One month
2-3 months
4-6 months
More than 6 months
It depends on the trip
One-third plan travel 2-3 months before a trip
Advance Travel Planning
Women are
more likely than
men to plan
travel more than
6 months out, or
depending on
the trip
<35 are more likely
to plan travel one
month before,
whereas 35+ are
more likely to plan
more than 6
months before
9. 9 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
53%
31%
31%
20%
18%
12%
5%
Spouse/significant other
Children
Friends
Parents
Other relatives
Usually travel alone
Co-workers
Over half travel with significant others, and almost one-third
with children or friends
Usual Travel Companions
Men are more
likely to travel
alone or with
coworkers, while
women travel
more with any
kind of family
member
<35 are more
likely to travel
with parents,
other relatives,
friends, or
coworkers
10. 10 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
47%
35%
27%
27%
24%
22%
14%
11%
4%
Mid-priced hotels
At a family member's home
Motels
Luxury hotels
At a friend's home
Bed and Breakfasts
Vacation rental by owner
Hostels
Other
Almost half prefer to stay in mid-priced hotels
Travel Accommodations
Women are
more likely to
stay at a family
member’s
home than
men
<35 are more likely
to stay at all
accommodation
types, with the
exception of mid-
priced hotels or
motels
11. 11 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
65%
50%
30%
16%
10%
3%
Credit card
Cash
Savings
Points/rewards/sweepstakes
Parents
Voluntourism
Credit card and cash are the top payments to fund travel
Men tend to use
credit cards and
participate in
volunteerism more
than women;
women are more
likely to use their
parents to fund
their travel
35+ use credit
cards to fund
their travel
more so than
<35
Payment for Travel
12. 12 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
Less than
$500
18%
$500-$999
20%
$1000-$2999
28%
$3000-$4999
18%
$5000-$9999
12%
$10,000+
5%Less than
$250
12%
$250-$499
22%
$500-$999
30%
$1000-$4999
33%
$5000+
4%
About half spend between $250-$1000 on a vacation
Amount Spent on Average Vacation Amount Spent on Travel per Year
Men are more likely
to spend over $1000
on an average
vacation or on travel
throughout the
year, whereas
women are more
likely to spend less
than that
<35 tend to spend
less then $1000 on
an average
vacation, but their
older counterparts
tend to spend
more than $1000
13. 13 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
Facebook is the most used social media outlet while traveling
Social Media Used (Among Those Who Use It While Traveling)
Men tend to
use Twitter and
Flickr more,
while women
use Pinterest
more
<35 are more
likely to use
Twitter,
Instagram,
Pinterest, and
Tumblr more than
35+
92%
34%
34%
19%
11%
4%
4%Other
69%
of travelers use
social media while
traveling
14. 14 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
38%
15%
14%
12%
10%
8%
3%
Personal safety
Language barriers
Health issues/proper medical care
Possible political unrest
Being physically uncomfortable
Natural disaster
Other
Personal safety is the biggest travel concern when traveling
abroad
Biggest Travel Concerns When Traveling Abroad
<35 are more
concerned with
language barriers
and natural
disasters, whereas
35+ are more
concerned with
personal safety and
political unrest
15. 15 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
24%
21%
17%
11%
7%
7%
7%
3%
2%
I don't get angry on a plane
Rude passengers
Cramped space
Crying baby
Rude flight attendants
Haven't traveled by plane before
Ticket prices
No/bad food
Other
Though a quarter do not get angry on a plane, rude
passengers are the largest causes of air rage
Biggest Travel Annoyances
Women more
than men
have never
traveled by
plane before
<35 are more likely
to be annoyed by
rude flight
attendants, ticket
prices, and bad food.
By contrast, 35+ are
more likely not to get
angry on a plane
16. 16 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
More than half have traveled alone or without a significant
other
Solo Travel
58%
of travelers have
traveled alone
Those who have
traveled alone
have taken an
average of 10.9
trips alone
Never
20%
Once in a
while
34%
Frequently
20%
Do not
have
significant
other
26%
Traveled without Significant Other
7% have lied to their significant
other about going on vacation
Men tend
to lie
more than
women
<35 are
more
likely to
lie
17. 17 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
All of them
38%
Most of
them
28%
Some of
them
30%
None
5%
The majority are happy with the number of paid vacation
days they have, and use at least some
Paid Vacation Days
73%
of employed
travelers have paid
vacation days
through their work
84%
of those with paid
vacation days are
happy with the
number they have
Vacation Days Taken Past Year
(Among Those Who Get Paid Vacation)
12% have lied to their boss to take a
vacation (11% never had a boss to lie to)
35+ are more
likely to use
all their
vacation
days
<35 are
more
likely to
lie
18. 18 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
New York is the most unfriendly city, with Los Angeles and
Paris nearly tying for second
Most Unfriendly City
31%
15%
14%
9%
6%
6%
4%
3%
3%
2%
9%
New York City
Los Angeles
Paris
Hong Kong
São Paulo
Tokyo
San Francisco
London
Rome
Sydney
Other
Men tend to
think Rome is
more
unfriendly
than women
do
<35 tend to
think Hong Kong
and Sydney are
more unfriendly
than 35+ do
19. 19 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
Las Vegas is the most overrated city, followed by New York
and Miami
Most Overrated City
28%
18%
14%
11%
7%
6%
3%
2%
2%
2%
5%
Las Vegas
New York City
Miami
Paris
Dubai
Honolulu
London
Vaitape, Bora Bora
Rome
Sydney
Other
Men say Dubai
and Sydney are
more overrated
than women do,
while women say
Las Vegas is more
overrated
<35 say Rome
and Sydney are
more overrated
than 35+ do
20. 20 Yahoo Confidential & Proprietary
My dream trip would be to go to South
America and stay in an all inclusive resort by
the beach and I would rent a car and travel
throughout the city and go to surrounding
countries.
– 33, F
Take my grandsons and daughter to
Disney World in Florida. We can lodge at
my brother’s house and he would take us
sight seeing too.
– 50, F
Dream Vacations
Verbatim Comments
Lying on a Caribbean
beach with a fruity
drink with an
umbrella in it.
– 32, M
I would take the honeymoon we
never got with my husband to
Ireland. It would be at least 10
days in Ireland and we would
drive ourselves around and stay
at bed and breakfasts and kiss
the Blarney Stone. We would
visit castles and pubs and try
new foods.
– 37, F
I would love to visit Africa. Not only for volunteer work and to
make a difference in someone's life, but to experience something
completely different. A safari is definitely something I am looking
forward to. I would love to go to Morocco to ride camels, see
Marrakech and try new cuisine. I am willing to try and learn
anything new and exciting.
– 23, F
Travel to
Alaska on a
cruise with my
wife and
daughter.
– 50, M
A scuba diving live-aboard trip to the
South Pacific for 10 days or more.
Destinations could include the
Solomon Islands, Palau, Indonesia,
and Thailand.
– 57, M
Backpacking
through
Europe.
– 35, F
A month long rock
climbing and sight
seeing trip to Yosemite
National Park including
an experienced
guide/climbing partner
to show me the best
places/routes to climb
and places to visit.
– 31, M