Key trends in consumer preferences and booking behaviors for travel

Understanding how consumers make their travel decisions – everything from the choice of destination and accommodation to when to travel and how to make the booking – is critical information for travel marketers.

And it's information that shifts over time, as consumer preferences and behaviors evolve.

To understand current trends in the online travel shopping experience, Expedia Group And Luth Research analyzed consumers’ online behavior in the 45 days leading up to booking a trip and survey results from nearly 6,000 respondents, both for seven markets: Australia, Canada, France, Japan, Mexico, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The results, published in Expedia Group’s “Path to Purchase” report, identify opportunities for brands to inspire, engage and convert travelers.

“Travelers are consuming way more content than ever,” said Rob Torres, Expedia Group’s senior vice president of media and affiliate solutions, in a discussion in the PhocusWire studio at The Phocuswright Conference.

“As a marketer you’ve got to not give up on any certain area because the reality is they are all important. And where people are going and consuming that content actually varies depending on what part of that journey they are on.”

Torres said recommendations from family and friends remain the top spark for planning a trip, but then consumers turn to other resources for inspiration, with social media at the top of the list at 77%.

Torres also discussed the findings related to the research, planning and booking phases of a trip and the role of loyalty programs and payment options.

Watch the full discussion below.