Q4 2014 Global travel insights - Skift · Q4 2014 Global travel insights. soj. ... is one of the greatest religious observances in Islam. Millions of people ... was likely because

© 2015 Sojern, Inc. All rights reserved.

Issue 08 // October to December 2014

U.S. WEST COAST OFFICE

118 2nd St., 3rd floorSan Francisco, CA 94105

U.S. EAST COAST OFFICE

135 Grand St., 6th floor New York, NY 10013

U.S. MIDWEST OFFICE

810 S 169th Street Omaha, NE 68118

EMEA OFFICE

18 Soho SquareLondon, W1D 3QL

SINGAPORE OFFICE

#04-01 The Quadrant, 19 Cecil Street Singapore, 049704

Q4 2014

Global travel insights

sojern.com | [email protected] | call us at 877 976 5376

P. 2


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Online Travel Overview 3

Global Travel Insights 4-5

Peak Seasonal Travel Trends

Hajj (Pilgrimage to Mecca) 6-7

Thanksgiving 8 Sidebar: Cyber Monday Booking Trends 8

Holidays Outbound Travel 9-10 Sidebar: European pre-Christmas trips 10

Analysis: Travel Intent Vs. Actuality 10-12 US Booking December 11 EU Booking December 12

Special Report: Q4 Last-minute Bookers: US/EU 13-16

Impact of World Events

Russia/Ruble (EU) 17

Cuba (US/LATAM) 17

Copa America Preview (LATAM) 17

Q3 Trends Updated: Brazil and SE Asia 18 Sidebar: Travel to Japan from China 18

Q4 Outbound Travel 19-22

Summer 2015 Travel Forecast

Summer Travel Forecast for the US 23

Summer Travel Forecast for Europe 24

Appendix

Glossary 25-26

Methodology 27


P. 3


ONLINE TRAVEL OVERVIEW

Sojern analyzed domestic and international travel behavior worldwide with an emphasized focus on four regions: Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America. Airline searches and bookings from over 600 million traveler intent profiles were analyzed to better understand how online consumer travel trends are changing.

Provided in this report is an overview of the global market during Q4, followed by an analysis of the seasonal travel peaks during the quarter, punctuated with deeper-dives into microtrends, including last-minute travel and the impact of Cyber Monday deals on travel bookings. Highlights include the impact of political and economic events, like the weakening of the Russian ruble and US-Cuba detente, and how they affected travel trends during the last quarter of 2014.

The data provided in this report is based on search and booking behavior provided by major airlines, OTA’s, meta-search, and other travel service providers.


P. 4


Q4 GLOBAL TRAVEL INSIGHTS

The fourth quarter of 2014 was marked globally by a surge in regional travel volume prompted by major holidays. In October, Saudi Arabia welcomed an influx of over two million Muslims traveling for the Hajj from the Middle East, Asia, North Africa and Europe. Traffic into the Mecca gateway airport Jeddah more than doubled during the weeks preceding the Hajj.

In December, travel in Q4 was at its all-time peak, but mostly domestic or regional, with the exception of Latin America travelers, who looked to travel to North America almost as much as they did within their own region. Europeans traveled mostly regionally and flocked to cities with established traditional Christmas markets.

Other factors that shaped travel and travel planning were currency fluctuations, political and diplomatic changes, and online Cyber Monday deals.

The free fall of the Russian ruble (more than a 50 percent loss against the dollar this year) resulted in an overall decrease in outbound travel from Russia. Travelers from China and South Korea exhibited an increased interest in the country, potentially encouraged by the weaker currency.

In the US, 62% of searches made in 2014 for 2015 summer travel were for international destinations. A stronger US dollar will likely further encourage Americans to travel internationally in the upcoming year. One of the destinations where Americans will likely look to in greater numbers is Cuba. The recent diplomatic detente between the two countries already prompted a 360% spike in travel searches to the Caribbean nation on the day of the White House announcement.

United StatesSpain

GermanyUnited Kingdom

Italy Turkey

FranceRussia

IndiaMexico

Top 10 Global Destinations


P. 5


Q4 GLOBAL TRAVEL INSIGHTS

December

November

October 32%

26%

42%

75%

16%

4% 5%

4+ Travelers3 Travelers2 Travelers1 Traveler

8+ days

6-7 days

3-5 days

0-2 days

31%12%

28%

29%

60+ DAYS

31-60 DAYS

22-30 DAYS

15-21 DAYS

8-14 DAYS

3-7 DAYS

1-2 DAYS

0 DAYS

11%31%

13%11%

12%11%

5%6%

Search Lead Time

searched trip durationsearched party size

searched month of travel


P. 6


PEAK SEASONAL TRAVEL

In Q4, holidays had the biggest impact on travel trends globally. In October, there was the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, a grand-scale travel endeavor that brought millions of religious travelers to Saudi Arabia. In November, Thanksgiving marked a peak travel period in North America. The December holiday season was the busiest travel period of the quarter globally.

OCTOBER: THE HAJJ BRINGS BUSIEST WEEK OF THE YEAR FOR JEDDAH, GATEWAY AIRPORT TO MECCA The pilgrimage to Mecca, also known as Hajj, is one of the greatest religious observances in Islam. Millions of people from around the world came to Mecca between October 2 to 7 to observe this tradition.

Saudi Arabia Generates Large Portion of Hajj TravelSaudi Arabia is the top origin country for flights into Jeddah airport, which is the main gateway for the Hajj pilgrimage. The week leading up to the start of Hajj is the busiest week of the entire year for flights into Jeddah from other cities in Saudi Arabia. The three Saudi Arabian cities in the top 10 origin cities account for 20% of all searches into Jeddah.

The Muslim countries Morocco, Turkey, Sudan, and Bahrain are the top countries for flight searches to Jeddah following Saudi Arabia. A few European countries with sizeable Muslim minorities also contribute to the influx of searches, with Spain coming in sixth.

SeptemberAugustJuly

35% 37%

28%

Q3 Search Volume

DECEMBERNOVEMBEROCTOBER

32%26%

42%

Q4 Search Volume


P. 7


Top Search Countries for Hajj Weeks 2014 by Share of Annual Search Volume

Trips searched on and near the dates of Hajj tend to be for a longer duration compared to the rest of the year. Twenty-four percent of trip searches are for 11 days or more, more than double the amount seen on non-Hajj weeks, which typically sees more 2 to 3 day trips and only 11% of travelers searching for a more lengthy trip.

London is the only city from a country that was not predominantly Muslim in the top 10. The city is home to a large Muslim community.


Rank Country Percentage of Annual Search Volume Covered by Hajj Weeks

1 Saudi Arabia 11%

2 Morocco 10%

3 Turkey 10%

4 Sudan 10%

5 Bahrain 9%

6 Spain 9%

7 Egypt 9%

8 Thailand 9%

9 Austria 8%

10 Netherlands 8%

Rank City

1 Riyadh

2 Dammam

3 Cairo

4 London

5 Istanbul

6 Dubai

7 Abha

8 Jakarta

9 Alexandria

10 Casablanca

Rank of Search Volume During Hajj Weeks by City


P. 8


NOVEMBER: THANKSGIVING SEES US TRAVEL SURGE, LAST-MINUTE BOOKINGS, AND SHORTER TRIP DURATIONSIf Thanksgiving break seemed more hectic for Americans this year, it was likely because a scramble for last-minute flights brought a surge of Thanksgiving travelers. A two-fold incidence of last-minute travel over the average quarterly rate occurred the day before Thanksgiving, marking the highest peak of last-minute travel all quarter.

Thanksgiving Travelers Take Shorter Trips, Mostly SoloFewer travelers took an extended break for Thanksgiving if they flew to their destination. Only 10% of travelers booked a trip six days or more in duration, while the majority opted to book trips ranging three to five days in duration.

The prevalence of mid-length trips could be attributed to high percentages of solo travel and low percentages of group and family travel. Only 8% of travelers booked trips for groups three or more and 71% flew solo.

Unusually low gas prices may have swayed more travelers to take road trips in November, especially if traveling in groups.

New York CityChicagoDallasLos AngelesSan FranciscoMexico

Top 5 Destinations

trip duration

CYBER MONDAY BOOKING TRENDS Global holiday travelers booked their flights later than they initially searched in Q4 and sought to take advantage of Cyber Monday deals.

Cyber Monday kicked worldwide flight bookings with Americans responding the most dramatically to Cyber Monday. Europeans saw less dramatic, but still significant, results with a 32% increase in flight bookings on Cyber Monday and a 25% increase week over week.

Europeans were booking travel well into the last week of November while Americans were celebrating Thanksgiving, which likely contributed to the more pronounced Cyber Monday spike from US travels.


6+ days

3-5 days

0-2 days

14%10%

76%


P. 9


DECEMBER: THE WEEKEND PRECEDING CHRISTMAS IS THE YEAR’S MOST POPULAR FOR TRAVEL WORLDWIDETravelers were on the move the weekend preceding Christmas and on a global scale. December 19 and 20, the Friday and Saturday before Christmas, were the most sought after travel days of the entire quarter.

While travel volume in December increased, the nature of it was mostly domestic or regional with the exception of travel originating in Latin America. More LATAM travelers sought to travel outside of their region around Christmas compared to the rest of the year. North America (the US and Canada) was their top international destination, presumably because of family ties with the US, especially in cities with large Latin American communities such as Miami.

Thirty-four percent of Europeans looked for short getaways in December, presumably due to the close proximity of attractive destinations.

Travelers in Asia-Pacific exhibited a similar pattern in December with 40% looking for short trips. Short trips from Asia-Pacific travelers this time of year may be more likely because many of the APAC countries don’t celebrate Christmas. Q1 travel is likely to see increased trip durations from the region due to Lunar New Year.

December Travel Destinations by Region

Long and short vacation searches in December


Origination

NORTH AMERICA LATAM ASIA-PACIFIC EUROPE

Des

tinat

ion

NORTH AMERICA 75% 41% 6% 6%LATAM 12% 45% 1% 4%

ASIA-PACIFIC 4% 1% 80% 7%EUROPE 5% 11% 13% 78%

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA 4% 1% <<<<1% 5%

8 or More Days0 to 2 Days

EUROPEASIA-PACIFICUSLATAM

28%

38%34%

40%

26%

34%

25%

16%

Intra-regional travel


P. 10


Q4 peak travel dates are consistent globally with the exception of travelers in the US, who were more willing to travel on Christmas Eve than their European and Asian counterparts.

ANALYSIS: TRAVEL INTENT VS. ACTUAL TRAVEL BOOKINGSWhile travel searchers by and large took to Q4 holiday travel searching well in advance, actual booking trends tell a different story. For example, 54% of US travelers searching to travel in December did so 30 or more days in advance. However, 74% of those who booked for December travel in Q4 did so in the same month. A last grab for flights was likely spurred by a late Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday.

US travelers also tend to search aspirationally, looking for longer trips than they ultimately book. While only 16% of searchers looked to take short trips this holiday season, 35% actually booked them.

FOR THE LOVE OF GLÜHWEIN: TRAVEL TO EUROPEAN CHRISTMAS MARKETS In Europe, late November and early December travel got an extra boost from the world famous Christmas markets held in several European cities. During the first week of December in particular, Europeans flocked to cities with established traditional Christmas markets like Berlin, Barcelona and Vienna. Searches for travel across the Alpine and Pyrenees regions also spiked by 47% week over week.


Top Destinations by number of searches during the weekend of 5 December 2014 across Alpine, Pyrenees & Germany region *

BerlinBarcelonaVienna MunichFrankfurt-am-MainHamburgZurichCologneGenevaMilan

*93% of searchers come from Europe

BookedSearched

8 or more days6 to 7 days3 to 5 days0 to 2 Days

16%

35%32%

25%

18%

13%

34%

27%

Duration of Searched and Booked Trips for US December Travel

Party sizes are less impacted from search to booking. However, this holiday season saw an uptick in actual couple travel over searched couple travel (19% and 16% respectively) and a slight decrease in group travel for parties of four or more from search to confirm (6% and 3% respectively).


P. 11


US travelers largely avoided mid-length trips (three to five days) in favor of either short or long trips: 35% took trips two days or less in duration while 27% stayed at their destinations eight days or more.

Seventy-four percent of travelers flew out solo, while 19% of those who travel chose to do so in a couple. Group and family travel remained high with 7% of all travel.

December Trends for US BookersUS bookers traveling in the month of December took advantage of Cyber Monday to book flights. The week before December saw peak departure dates on December 19 and 23 as travelers flew out before Christmas day.

US Bookings in Q4 for December Travel

Party Size for Booked December Trips


8%

18%

74%December

November

October


75%

19%

4% 3%


P. 12


December Trends for EU BookersEU travelers were the early birds this quarter with 48% booking for December travel in November. Only 23% of Europeans booked their December trips in that month. Europeans also traveled earlier than their US counterparts. December 5 was a peak travel date during the month. Other popular days to depart were December 12, 19 and 20.

European travelers looked to take short and long trips rather than mid-length trips this December. Thirty-four percent took trips two days or less in duration and 26% took trips for eight days or more. Only 27% took mid-length trips (three to five days) and 13% booked trips six to seven days long.

Party Size for Booked December Trips


EU Bookings for December Travel

December

November

October 29%

48%

23%


73%

19%

4% 4%


P. 13


SPECIAL REPORT: Q4 LAST-MINUTE BOOKERS

US Q4 Last-Minute BookersLast-minute bookers traveled overwhelmingly for leisure - only 18% looked to travel for business this quarter. They also traveled primarily domestically (88% in Q4). Last-minute bookers in Q4 were largely male, making up 60% of all last-minute bookers.

November 26, the day before Thanksgiving, was the peak travel day for US last-minute travelers. On that day, Sojern saw double the incidence of last-minute bookers traveling over the quarterly average. The peak days US last-minute bookers bought tickets were November 19, 20, 24, 25 and 26 and December 16, 17,18, 19, 22 and 23.


International TravelersDomestic Travelers

88%

12%

Leisure TravelersBusiness Travelers

18%

82%

Business/FirstCoach

99%

1%

Female

Male60%40%


P. 14


Top 5 Destinations in Q4 for Last-Minute Bookers

New York

Chicago

Miami

Los Angeles

Dallas


Booked Trip Duration (Days)

Booked Party Size

Q4 last-minute bookers booked longer trips at the end of the quarter rather than the beginning. In December, 26% of last-minute bookers snagged trips lasting eight days or more - 14% higher than trips booked in October and November. Group travel also saw a slight increase in December.

December

November

October8 or more days

6 to 7 days

3 to 5 days

0 to 2 Days49%

47%43%

31%31%

21%

8%10%10%

12%12%

26%

December

November

October

4+ travelers3 travelers2 travelers1 traveler

17% 16% 17%

78% 79% 77%

3% 3% 4% 2% 2% 2%


P. 15



EU Q4 Last-Minute BookersEU last-minute bookers were more likely than Americans to take an inter-regional trip. Fifteen percent booked travel outside of Europe in Q4. Business travel was also much higher in Europe than the US. Thirty-five percent of trips were for business while 65% were for leisure.

Last-minute bookings in the EU peaked throughout the quarter compared to the US, where last-minute bookings centered around the holidays. Peak travel for EU last-minute bookers occurred on October 13, November 7, and December 2. The peak booking days for EU last-minute bookers were October 6, November 4, and December 1.

Inter-Regional TravelersRegional Travelers

85%

15%

Leisure TravelersBusiness Travelers

35%

65%

Business/FirstCoach

97%

3%


P. 16


EU last-minute bookers saw high proportions of solo travel. Eighty-two percent of last-minute bookers in Q4 flew solo. Like US travelers, EU last-minute bookers saw little variation in party sizes throughout the quarter, but had higher proportions of solo travelers.

Like US last-minute bookers, EU last-minute bookers booked longer trips at the end of the quarter rather than the beginning. In December, 20% of last-minute bookers took trips lasting eight days or more, 6% higher than trips booked in October and November.

Top 5 Destinations in Q4 for Last-Minute Bookers

Barcelona

Izmir

Berlin

London

Antalya

Booked Trip Duration

Booked Party Size

December

November

October8 or more days

6 to 7 days

3 to 5 days

0 to 2 Days59%

61%56%

19%20%

18%

6%6%6%

14%14%

20%

December

November

October

4+ travelers3 travelers2 travelers1 traveler

16% 14% 15%

81% 81%83%

2% 2% 3% 1% 1% 1%



P. 17


IMPACT OF WORLD EVENTS

THE DOWNFALL OF THE RUBLE: BAD NEWS FOR EUROPEA tumbling Russian ruble shifted travel patterns to and from Russia in Q4. Facing a weakened currency, Russians are searching less and less for trips. Outbound searches in December were down 38% over last year. If the trend continues, markets in Europe and Asia are likely to see fewer hotel rooms filled by Russians in 2015. Winter ski resorts in Europe are likely to feel the pressure first with Asian summer hot spots not far behind.

On the flip side of the coin, Chinese and South Korean travelers are taking advantage of the ruble’s fall, seizing the opportunity for an affordable trip to Russia. On December 16, the day Russian Trading System declined 12%, searches from China and South Korea to Russia jumped 86% overnight, accounting for a two-fold increase week over week.

CUBA RISING: EMBARGO RELAXATION SPURS RUSH OF TRAVEL SEARCHES On December 17, following the White House announcement that more travel restrictions had been lifted for US nationals to travel to Cuba, searches for travel from the US to the island nation jumped 360% over the previous day, and continued to increase for the next few days, reaching a 446% increase on December 18 (compared to December 16th). The top three cities looking to make travel plans to Cuba were New York, Los Angeles and Miami.

Prior to the White House announcement, there had been no single significant changes in booking trends all year from the US to Cuba.

On a smaller scale, similar effects were visible across the globe. Relaxation of the US embargo on Cuba incited curiosity from Canadians and some Europeans. Already a top origin country for holidays in Cuba, searches from Canada spiked by 40%. Searches also spiked from a handful of major European countries, up 20-30% day on day.

CHILE EXPECTS A GLOBAL AUDIENCE AT COPA AMERICAThis year, Chile is hosting Copa America from June 11th to July 4th and the travel appetite around it is already tremendous. Searches to Chile for Copa America dates surged four-fold after the group draws on November 24. The top five countries searching for travel to Chile around Copa America were the US, Brazil, Colombia, Spain, and the UK.

The popularity of soccer in Latin American culture is reflected in the search traffic for travel to Chile during Copa America. Thirty-eight percent of all searchers came from Latin America. European soccer fans weren’t far behind, making up more than a quarter of total searchers.

Another reason Chile’s hospitality industry can look forward to hosting Copa America is that soccer fans stretch out their trips around sporting events - almost three out of four (74%) of searches were for trips six days or longer.

The Soccer Fans Who Are Planning to Watch Copa America Live

Domestic(Chile)

Colombia

Brazil

Mexico 6%

25%

23%

19%

The Soccer Fans Who Are Planning to Watch Copa America Live

p17

LATAM SEARCHERS

Italy

France

Germany

UK

spain 21%

18%12%

11%5%

european SEARCHERS


P. 18


TREND UPDATES: TRAVEL TO BRAZIL AND SOUTH-EAST ASIA As we reported in our Q3 Travel Insights, Brazil saw a significant travel boost from the World Cup during summer 2014. After experiencing a slowing period that took effect immediately following the World Cup, Brazil’s tourism appears to be gaining momentum again. December marked the beginning of summer in Brazil and the South American destination is attracting more visitors to its coasts. Seven percent of LATAM searchers in Q4 looked to fly to a beach destination in Brazil.

American interest in Brazil remains high following the World Cup. Eight percent of all searches to Brazil in Q4 came from the US. With the dollar holding strong, Brazilian hospitality brands should target Americans who are likely to spend more in Q1.

The real winner this summer season is the hotel industry. Searches for hotels surged four-fold in November and continued to grow into December, marking a strong start for Q1 performance.

SouthEast Asia Travel UpdateSingapore saw a returning interest from Chinese travelers in Q4; however, overall interest in Southeast Asia remained lower with other nationalities through the middle of Q4. Searches to Southeast Asia were down 17% in November from October. December showed some returning interest from worldwide visitors with 43% of Q4 searches being made throughout the month.

TRAVEL FROM CHINA TO JAPANChinese travelers remained interested in Japan in Q4. The proportion of Chinese searches to Japan in Q4 increased 7% over Q3. With Lunar New Year approaching, increased interest and follow-through travel from China to Japan in Q1 is expected.

IMPACT OF WORLD EVENTS


P. 19



75%

18%

4% 3%

Q4 OUTBOUND TRAVEL

Party Size Searched Duration Searched

Search Lead Time

Q4 EUROPE OVERVIEW

Largest Searching Originations

Most Searched Destinations

London London

Zurich Paris

Munich Barcelona

Madrid Berlin

Barcelona Bangkok

Asia

Largest searching originations

most searched destinations

OVERLAPPED

8+ days

6-7 days

3-5 days

0-2 days

31% 35%

23%11%

60+ DAYS

31-60 DAYS

22-30 DAYS

15-21 DAYS

8-14 DAYS

3-7 DAYS

1-2 DAYS

0 DAYS

24%28%

9%9%

12%11%

5%2%


P. 20


Q4 OUTBOUND TRAVEL


77%

16%3% 4%


Search Lead Time

Q4 NORTH AMERICA OVERVIEW



New York Miami

Los Angeles Las Vegas

Chicago New York

Boston San Francisco

Washington DC Los Angeles

Q4 north america Overviewp20



OVERLAPPED

8+ days

6-7 days

3-5 days

0-2 days

30%20%

35%15%

60+ DAYS

31-60 DAYS

22-30 DAYS

15-21 DAYS

8-14 DAYS

3-7 DAYS

1-2 DAYS

0 DAYS

24%31%

10%9%

11%9%

4%2%


P. 21


Q4 OUTBOUND TRAVEL


77%

15%4% 4%


Search Lead Time

Q4 LATAM OVERVIEW



Sao Paolo Miami

Mexico City Cancun

Bogota Orlando

Caracas Madrid

San Juan/Tijuana Mexico City

spain



OVERLAPPED

8+ days

6-7 days

3-5 days

0-2 days

46%

24%

19%

11%

60+ DAYS

31-60 DAYS

22-30 DAYS

15-21 DAYS

8-14 DAYS

3-7 DAYS

1-2 DAYS

0 DAYS

28%30%

9%7%

10%9%

4%3%


P. 22


Q4 OUTBOUND TRAVEL


78%

15%4% 3%


Search Lead Time

Q4 ASIA-PACIFIC OVERVIEW



Hong Kong Hong Kong

Singapore Singapore

Incheon/Seoul Sydney

Sydney Bangkok

Bangkok Denpasar (Bali)



OVERLAPPED

8+ days

6-7 days

3-5 days

0-2 days

34% 37%

20%9%

60+ DAYS

31-60 DAYS

22-30 DAYS

15-21 DAYS

8-14 DAYS

3-7 DAYS

1-2 DAYS

0 DAYS 2%

33%27%

7%8%

9%9%

5%


P. 23


SUMMER 2015 TRAVEL FORECAST

Summer Travel Forecast for the US: More International Travel On the HorizonPossibly boosted by a dollar that has been getting stronger over the past few months, early US searchers are more likely to look at traveling abroad. Of those who looked in 2014 for travel between June to September 2015, a whopping 62% considered international destinations, with Europe and the Caribbean being the most sought after locations.

Just over a quarter (26%) looked to Europe for summer sun, with London by far the most popular city and Paris and Dublin just behind. Other European hotspots that lured early American searchers were Barcelona and Athens.

Eighteen percent of US searchers looked to go to Latin America, of which 13% looked specifically for Caribbean destinations with Cancun in Mexico and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic in the lead. Couples in particular looked to hit the beach in Cancun this summer, followed by Montego Bay, Punta Cana, Las Vegas and London.

Top 10 Cities Searched by Early US Travelers

1. London6. Honolulu

2. Cancun7. New York City

3. Paris8. Los Angeles

4. Las Vegas9. Seattle

5. Orlando10. Punta Cana


P. 24


7.2. EUROPEAN SUMMER: NEW HOTSPOTS EMERGEWith the US dollar on the rise, travel from Europe to the US is likely to drop slightly. Regionally, Europeans are traveling as much as ever, discovering new trendy locations closer to home.

Spain remains the number one destination country for British and German travelers, having already topped the charts for early birds. Iceland, which was a top 10 city for German early birds – trendsetters when it comes to traveling – is a top search hotspot for 2015.

A revitalized Milan is hosting the 2015 World Expo this year, helping move the needle for tourism to Italy, which finds itself again on the upswing in travel planning for the coming summer. It doesn’t hurt that the New York Times recently named the North Italian city number one on its list of 52 Places to Go in 2015. Outside of Europe, Australia is also seeing a rise in interest for summer travel plans.

Big city destinations — think New York, Bangkok, Los Angeles, and Sydney — are trending higher for solo travelers than for groups and families. Party destinations Ibiza and Las Vegas also top UK traveler charts, while the French head to New York City and Los Angeles.

Top 10 Cities Searched by Early European Travelers1. Mallorca6. Bangkok

2. Alicante7. Barcelona

3. Los Angeles 8. Ibiza

4. Malaga 9. San Francisco

5. New York City10. Miami


P. 25


APPENDIX: GLOSSARY

Sojern’s analysis highlights a number of consumer travel trends, including:

Searched Destinations: The destinations potential travelers are looking up

Top Traveled Destinations: The destinations to which travelers are actually going

Origination Cities: The cities people are traveling from

Metro Areas: The urban regions served by designated airport(s), as defined by the respective country's government bureau

Trip Types: The reason why people are traveling (business or leisure). Sojern uses an algorithm that analyzes many different variables to determine whether the trip is for business or leisure.

Trip Durations: The length of a searched or booked trip

Search Lead Times: The length of time between a search and departure date

Booking Lead Times: The length of time between a booking and departure date

Party Sizes: The number of people traveling on the same reservation

Traveler Intent: The intent to travel as defined by search data

Last-minute Booker: A traveler that books travel with 7 days or less to travel

Short-Haul Trip: A short-distance trip, usually regional

Long-Haul Trip: A long-distance trip, usually inter-regional

Sojern analyzed airline search and travel behavior from October through December 2014 to better understand changing global consumer travel trends. This report reviews Sojern’s findings and conclusions on broad international trends, seasonal travel and world events, and then focuses on four regions: Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America, and North America.


P. 26


REGIONAL COVERAGE

Asia-Pacific Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Cook Islands, East Timor, Federated States of Micronesia, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kiribati, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nauru, Nepal, New Zealand, Niue, Pakistan, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Vietnam

Europe Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Vatican City

Middle-EastBahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, Yemen

Latin America Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Saint Barthélemy, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos Islands, Uruguay, Venezuela, Virgin Islands

North America*Canada, United States

APPENDIX: GLOSSARY

*See Methodology


P. 27


To further illustrate the findings of the Travel Trends research, Sojern has created an infographic that can be accessed at www.sojern.com/infographic_travel_insights_q4_2014.php. Interested in additional details on Sojern, its research, product or services? Visit sojern.com or email the company at [email protected].

METHODOLOGYSojern’s quarterly insights reports are based on the rigorous analysis of more than 600 million traveler intent data points, obtained through Sojern’s unique partnerships with some of the world’s most renowned travel brands. The insights available through this analysis enable these brands to deliver the right messages to the right traveler at the right time through display, video, mobile, social, and boarding pass advertising.

Our analysis is based on regional areas and airports serving those regions. For the purpose of analyzing these regions, Europe includes Russia; Asia-Pacific does not include the Middle East but includes Oceania and Australia; North America includes only the U.S. and Canada; and Latin America includes Mexico, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. Sojern never shares or passes out personally identifiable information (PII) such as names, emails, or addresses.

All of the insights are based on very specific data sets as provided by Sojern's data partners. The data provided is not a complete view of all global traveler information as different data sources provide additional views of traveler behavior.

ABOUT SOJERNHeadquartered in San Francisco with key offices in New York City, Omaha, London, Dubai, and Singapore, Sojern is the world’s leading data-driven traveler engagement platform that delivers the most efficient marketing, distribution, monetization and insight solutions at scale. Since 2007, the company has helped top travel brands more efficiently and meaningfully engage with travelers to drive conversions, loyalty and monetization.

For more information, please visit sojern.com.

APPENDIX: METHODOLOGY

Documents

Q4 2014 Global travel insights - Skift · Q4 2014 Global travel insights. soj. ... is one of the greatest religious observances in Islam. Millions of people ... was likely because