Travel Trend Predictions for 2024
Wednesday 3rd January, 2024 by Host & Stay
2024 is shaping up to be an exciting year of travel with clear trends emerging! From ‘cool-cationers’ to ‘bleisure’ trips, we’ve highlighted the top 8 travel trends we expect to see this year. Keep reading to find out more…
1. The rise of the ‘cool-cationer’
We’re seeing a new travel trend emerge for 2024 and this is the rise of the ‘cool-cationer’. This new traveller is swapping holidays in the sunshine for stays in cooler climates. Online travel giant Booking.com has found that 43% of UK travellers will be using their holidays to enjoy colder climes. From snowy destinations to UK stays, cool-cationers are looking for a relaxing break whilst travelling more sustainably.
This key trend has emerged following record-breaking temperatures worldwide making sunny holidays less appealing for many travellers. In fact, a staggering 42% of UK holiday makers reported that climate change will impact their travel plans for 2024 and two out of five travellers say they will use their holidays to enjoy cooler places as temperatures rise at home.
2. ‘Bleisure’ trips are growing
The number of people working remotely has increased over recent years and we don’t expect this to slow down any time soon. Because of this, there has been a rise in the ‘digital nomad’ – those who travel freely whilst working remotely.
Today the industry also refer to this type of travel as ‘bleisure’ trips where people blur the lines between business and leisure. Whether it’s a solo adventure, a retreat with friends or a family getaway, we expect this trend to continue with more and more people combining holidays with work.
Want to capitalise on this growing travel trend? Ensure your property has WiFi and a laptop friendly workspace so guests can set up their own ‘workstation’ during their stay.
3. ‘Set-jetter’ travel to continue to surge
As predicted in our 2023 travel trends, film and TV locations inspired a lot of stays last year and this ‘set-jetter’ traveller trend will continue for 2024. More and more holiday makers are using their favourite shows and films as the backdrop for their getaways.
Online travel agency Expedia have found that searches for destinations have spiked due to popular shows and films. For example Hawaii and Sicily each saw searches spiked by more than 300% following the hit show The White Lotus. The leafy suburb of Richmond in London saw searches surge by 160% as it provides the backdrop to the Apple TV+ show Ted Lasso. Searches for Yorkshire were also up 105% due to the BBC drama Happy Valley!
4. Water-centric travel is on the rise
Booking.com research has found that a whopping 74% of UK travellers feel more relaxed when they are holidaying close to water. That’s almost three quarters of all UK travellers so we’re expecting coastal towns and villages to remain popular in 2024.
What’s more, 28% of travellers said they’d be interested in finding stays specifically for water activities. As wild swimming and cold water immersions have become more popular in recent times, we expect to see a new water-centric travel trend begin to rise.
If you have a holiday home close to water, it’s worth ensuring you have any water related amenities selected on your listings where suitable to maximise your property appearing in filtered search results.
5. Holiday makers are prioritising outdoor amenities
When it comes to bookings in 2024, we expect to see outdoor spaces emerge as a key deciding factor for holiday makers. From alfresco dining to hot tubs, tennis courts to swimming pools, outdoor amenities are in great demand.
Research by the online travel agency VRBO has found that 42% of travellers are looking for homes with outdoor amenities so if you have an outdoor space at your property, we’d recommend to make the most of it to maximise your bookings in 2024.
6. Multi-generational holidays are increasing
Multi-generational holidays were a key travel trend around a decade ago but this changed when travel paused in 2020 due to the pandemic. However we’re predicting multi-generational stays will become more and more popular throughout 2024.
The short term let industry is perfectly catered for multi-generational holidays as self-catering holiday homes allow families to stay together in one place. As well as spending quality time with loved ones, it also offers a more cost effective way to holiday as families can split the cost across the group. This is especially important in the current UK financial climate as we’re seeing that guests are looking for the best experience on a more modest budget.
7. Tour tourism to soar
Last year we saw how impactful music events can be for our industry and we expect this gig tripping trend to continue. More and more people are keen to travel to see their favourite bands and artists especially when tickets are so sought after.
Popular artists like Taylor Swift, Foo Fighters, Olivia Rodrigo and Bruce Springsteen are performing this year so tour tourism is sure to have an impact in 2024!
8. The sustainable traveller is here to stay
Environmental concerns have been a topic of conversation for many years now but we’re really seeing this come to the forefront now. The World Travel and Tourism Council have found that 69% of holiday makers are actively looking for sustainable travel options and we can only see this number increasing in the future.
Today travellers are prioritising greener practices and looking to travel in ways which reduces their impact on the environment. This includes choosing eco-friendly holiday homes, supporting local businesses and choosing destinations which promote sustainable tourism.
If you’d like advice about holiday letting in 2024, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Whether you’re interested in purchasing a short term rental or you own an existing holiday home, our friendly team are always on hand to help.