On the first day of summer, a new survey—by way of Finn Partners’ global Travel/Lifestyle Practice—shares some insight into the psyche of the American traveler. Many of us, of course, have plans to travel this summer.
A full 61% of travelers report that they are more spontaneous and likely to take risks on vacation than at home. Unsurprisingly, millennials (defined as people under 30) were the most likely to feel this way, with 78% of those surveyed declaring their “Vacation-Versions” more spontaneous.
The survey also revealed that 36% of single travelers (51% of men and 25% of women) think they’re more likely to make a “romantic connection” with someone they just met while away from home. Meanwhile, more than half (54%) of people in committed relationships declared that they like their spouse/partner more after a trip together. Just 8% said/admitted that they like their spouse/partner less.
Another big revelation: 23% of all the people surveyed admitted that they “secretly resent those colleagues” who use all their allotted vacation days. And when asked whether an “unlimited vacation” time policy would change how much vacation they take, the majority of respondents (73%) said that it would have little or no effect.
Said Gail Moaney, founding managing partner at Travel/Lifestyle Practice: “…while it can be tempting to disregard such insight as frivolous, the impact of how travelers fundamentally change who they are while on vacation can be a serious business for the tourism industry that, to capitalize on, will require more collaboration between marketing professionals and the academic researchers conducting groundbreaking studies like Columbia University’s recent report The Dark Side of Going Abroad.”
Below are the full results of the survey: