The newly released Skyscanner APAC Travel Trends 2020 Report reveals unique insights into Indians’ travelling habits. Slow Travel and JOMO (Joy of Missing Out) Travel are top of travellers’ priority lists for the year ahead. Global travel expert Skyscanner has highlighted key changes in the way in which travellers are engaging with the world beyond their borders.
Skyscanner is in a unique position to identify such trends, with over 100 million monthly users. Its APAC Travel Trends 2020 Report is based on billions of data points, comparing the October 2017 to September 2018 period with that of October 2018 to September 2019. The results reveal not only the latest global travel insights but provide a detailed understanding of the booking preferences of individual countries. Paul Whiteway, Senior Director at Skyscanner APAC commented, “2019 was all about solo trips and micro escapes, but the leading travel trend for 2020 will be Slow Travel, which saw growth of 38% for Indian travellers opting to travel more slowly in the coming year.
2020 is the year to ditch being in a hurry. Travel is no longer about seeing everything on a pre-set list and returning home exhausted. It’s about taking the time to stand and stare – to truly connect with the location and its people. Slow Travel has its roots in the Slow Food Movement. Enjoying the experience of connecting with your travel companions, taking unscheduled, leisurely walks and simply resting whenever the mood takes you is what Slow Travel is all about. As a result, 2020’s travellers will be returning home refreshed and rejuvenated, their inner balance restored.”Closely linked with the Slow Travel trend is that of JOMO travel, which saw growth of 27% between 2019 and 2020. JOMO – ‘joy of missing out’ – travel is all about escaping the hustle and bustle of modern-day life.
2020’s JOMO travellers will be seekingout less crowded cities around the world, travelling off-season and, most importantly, not spending a single second wondering about how their trip might look on social media. The focus is entirely based on the experience itself and the delight to be found in discovering somewhere new.
One area of increasing importance to Indian travellers is sustainable travel.
Skyscanner reports that “we can and must do everything in our power to make better travel choices and preserve the world for generations of future travellers” and it seems that a growing number of travellers agree. Sustainable travel saw a growth of 58% between 2019 and 2020, according to the latest figures.
The Skyscanner report also showcases the breadth of the global outlook that Indians have when considering their travel destinations. While the three most popular destinations were Bangkok (Thailand), Dubai (UAE) and London (United Kingdom), the top 10 list included Singapore, Denpasar, Kuala Lumpur, New York, Toronto, Paris and Colombo. Skyscanner’s data also reveals the top three emerging destinations: Phuket (Thailand), Male (Maldives) and Istanbul (Turkey).
These three destinations have shown the biggest year-on-year growth in bookings, at 139%, 76% and 34% respectively. Nairobi (Kenya), Seoul (South Korea), Budapest (Hungary) and Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in Vietnam also registered double-digit bookings volume growth, further emphasising the diversity of travel experiences that Indian travellers are seeking in 2020.
