CEAV, the Spanish Confederation of Travel Agencies, and the consulting firm BRAINTRUST, which specializes in the tourism sector, in their joint market analysis that they have been conducting since 2020, provide us with some of the keys to how Spanish travelers will behave in the remainder of 2021 and who these travelers are who do have a clear intention to travel in the coming months.
Young people are less risk-averse and more willing to travel, while older people are much more cautious.
60.4% of Spaniards say they will take a trip this year, but who are these travelers?
By generation, 70.6% of young people (Gen Z and early millennials under 30) will travel, compared to 61.4% of late millennials (between 31 and 39), 62.5% of Generation X (between 40 and 56 years old), and 53.8% of baby boomers (over 56 years old).
By region, Castile and León, Madrid, and the Basque Country stand out as the most traveled.
The so-called undecided travelers, on the other hand, are mostly Baby Boomers living in Catalonia, Galicia, Valencia, and Andalusia.
Those who have decided not to travel for the remainder of 2021 are concentrated in two generations: late millennials and baby boomers.
As BRAINTRUST anticipated in previous waves of its Tourism Barometer, older generations of travelers are proving to be more cautious, even when fully vaccinated, while younger generations who are not yet vaccinated are taking greater risks, as we are seeing in the infection figures for this fifth wave.
Although we will make the same number of trips, the format does change compared to 2020.
Although, as we mentioned, the number of trips among those who have decided to go on vacation this year is similar to last year (1.8 compared to 1.9 in 2020), the format of these trips will change when compared to last year.
Spaniards' vacation trips will be concentrated in the months of July (24.3%), August (26.1%), and September (18.0%), although the duration of trips will be longer, increasing from an average of 10 days to 13 days in 2021.
The travel budget is also increasing thanks to the savings that Spaniards have accumulated during the strictest months of movement and leisure restrictions due to the pandemic. The budget has increased by 12.2%, with an average of €1,486 for all travel over the next six months.
There have also been changes in the format of travel in terms of companions when comparing the data with 2020. Although most trips are still taken as a couple (75.6%), family trips also remain steady at 46.2%, and there has been a slight decrease in solo trips (3.7% compared to 7.6% in 2020) in favor of trips with friends (18.5% compared to 14.3% in 2020).
The services for these trips in 2021 will be contracted mostly as individual services (63.9%), followed by dynamic packages with 15.9% and organized packages with 8.8%. Together, these three formats account for the majority of trips contracted, many of them through travel agencies.
For Ángel García Butragueño, Director of Tourism and Leisure at BRAINTRUST, "The results of the analysis reflect Spaniards' willingness to travel, spend more, spend more days away from home, and take more group trips. However, caution remains, as in addition to staying in Spain, there is greater use of travel agencies, with which travelers feel more secure and confident when traveling. The tourism industry has never stopped evolving, and in the last year it has had to do so at a rapid pace. It is also important to note that some of these changes are here to stay. In this context, agencies are an essential player given the complexity of traveling due to the different restrictions and regulations in each country around the world and in each region of Spain; only a travel agent can provide advice, security, and confidence to travelers in this regulatory chaos.
One in three Spaniards willing to travel have not yet finalized their vacation plans.
BRAINTRUST reports that, as of August 2, 60.4% of Spaniards intend to take at least one trip in 2021, 26.5% are still undecided, mostly due to concerns about the health crisis, and 13.1% say they will definitely not be going on vacation this year, in this case mainly for economic reasons. Focusing on those who will travel, the average number of trips to be taken does not vary much from last year, with 1.8 this year compared to 1.9 in 2020.
Of these travelers determined to take a vacation this year, 67.2% have already booked their trips (1.3 trips on average), however, 32.8% have not yet booked their vacations, either because they are still searching (23.1%) or because they are going to wait until the last minute to make their reservation (9.7%).
30.4% of Spanish travelers stated that, if it weren't for the pandemic, they would have chosen different destinations, of which 18.5% would have selected destinations within Spain, but 37.6% would have traveled to Europe, and 43.9% would have traveled to more distant destinations.
For Carlos Garrido, President of CEAV, "Spaniards have a clear travel profile, and neither the first nor the fifth wave of this pandemic is dampening their intentions and desire to travel. If we are learning anything from this whole situation, it is to adapt to change at all levels: social, personal, work, and, of course, leisure. Travelers are also adapting to the circumstances and restrictions of each moment, and although the way we travel has changed, the fact is that we continue to travel and enjoy getaways and vacations. The figures show that there are many travelers who want to travel this year and are still looking for destinations, accommodation, and activities for their vacations. Therefore, there is still room for recovery in the tourism sector if we manage to follow the difficult but necessary path of adapting to traveler demand.
