
The results of TravelAwaits‘ 2023 State of Travel Survey are in, and they show travel is surging for those aged 50 and up.
“It’s always exciting to see where our readers, travelers aged 50+, are planning to visit,” said Missy Glassmaker, senior vice president of TravelAwaits. “This year, the number of folks who are ready to explore both domestically and internationally is amazing. After realizing a world without travel during the COVID-19 pandemic, I don’t expect this trend to change for years to come.”
We surveyed our readers about their 2023 travel plans. Responses were collected between November 27 and December 19, 2022, through our newsletter, Facebook communities, and on-site promotion.
So let’s jump right to it. Here are some key findings from TravelAwaits’ 2023 State of Travel Survey.
Planned Number Of Trips In 2023
Our first question: “How many trips do you plan on taking in 2023?” The big takeaway? People are packing their year with travel.
Just 5 percent of the respondents said they only plan to take one trip this year. Twenty-two percent plan to take two, and 24 percent said they plan on taking three. There was a dip at four trips (17 percent) and five trips (8 percent) but a huge uptick at the highest answer on the scale, with 24 percent of our readers planning to take 6 or more trips.
If you’re aiming to travel more in the coming 2023, you might want to set some goals. TravelAwaits’ own Louisa Rogers shared hers.
Length Of Trips In 2023
We also asked our readers how many days their longest trip in 2023 will be. As you may expect from a group of people who enjoy reading about travel, their responses were heavily skewed toward longer trips.
About 9 percent of respondents said their longest trips will take between 1 and 6 days. Nineteen percent set a maximum of 7–9 days, and 21 percent think they’ll top out at 10–12.
Here’s the big one: A whopping 52 percent of respondents said their longest trip this year will be 13 days or longer.
If you’re one of the long haulers, road-tripping may suit you. Clayton McKibbon rounded up our readers’ favorite road trips from 2022.
Domestic, International, Or Both Types of Travel?
Another key question in the 2023 State of Travel survey asked readers whether they plan to travel domestically, internationally, or both. The responses yielded another striking distribution.
Nearly 23 percent of respondents indicated they plan to only travel domestically this year. Slightly less than 7 percent only plan to travel internationally this year.
What is noteworthy, however, is the number of TravelAwaits readers who indicated they plan on both types of travel in 2023: 70 percent of them said they will be traveling domestically and internationally this year.
Everyone surveyed, of course, was happy to share where they plan to go. Here are their top international destinations.
Know So You Can Go
Whether you’re planning a domestic trip, an international trip, or both types of travel, be sure to read our travel news on your favorite destinations, activities, and interests.
For more 2023 inspiration, consider: