After two peak travel seasons of closed borders, and a forecast of a third La Nińa, Aussies are still buzzing with travel excitement, according to new research* from leading digital travel platform Booking.com.
The ‘Spring of Yeah’ study reveals that travellers will lose their inhibitions, with 64% of Aussies throwing caution to the wind in favour of saying ‘yeah’ to every travel opportunity that comes their way!
Booking.com revealed key themes of ‘matters of the heart’, ‘unplug and unwind’ and ‘long stay away’ across travellers down under, finding:
- Aussies are valuing ‘peace of mind’ and ‘quality time’ with loved ones over ‘luxury’ in their post-pandemic life
- 80% of Australian travellers would rather pay for their own vacation and completely unplug than secure an all-expense paid trip by working on their vacation part-time
- 85% of Australian travellers want to go somewhere they can relax and disconnect for their spring holiday
- 77% would go away this spring in order to be completely removed from their daily routine
- Aussies say a week-long trip with just their partner is preferred over a longer, more luxurious trip with the in-laws (83%)
After 2 years of limited travel, Aussies are now looking to fully immerse themselves in vacation time, with 60% opting to take one long vacation over shorter, more frequent trips away this spring. To get to this, 45% of Aussies would happily go holiday free all year, just to save all their annual leave for a longer time away during spring.
Booking.com Spring Search Data
Australia – Domestic
- Gold Coast
- Sydney (+27)
- Melbourne (+12)
- Brisbane (+2)
- Cairns (+2)
- Perth
- Port Douglas (+1)
- Canberra (+41)
- Noosa Heads
- Hobart (+7)
Australia – International*
- Seminyak
- Singapore
- Legian
- Canggu
- London
- Paris
- Ubud
- Kuta
- Queenstown
- Nusa Dua
Methodology: Top destinations searched per nationality with check-ins in October. Search period was between 8 and 21 August 2022 and compared to searches on the same days in 2021.
Booking.com ‘Spring of Yeah’ Research
Matters of the Heart
Australia is a down-to-earth bunch, favouring peace of mind and quality time with loved ones over luxury and no budget restraints.
- 80% Australian travellers would rather pay for their own holiday and unplug than secure an all-expense paid trip by working on their vacation part-time as an influencer
- 83% Australian travellers would rather go on a week-long trip with just their partner than experience longer, luxurious trip including the in-laws
- 65% Australian travellers would prefer to stick to a limited budget travelling for a week with their favourite person over a month-long solo trip with an unlimited budget
Unplug & Unwind
Some say travel is the best form of escapism – and Australia believes it!
- A staggering 85% of Australian travellers want to go somewhere they can relax and disconnect for their spring holiday and a further 77% would go away this spring in order to be completely removed from their daily routine
- 28% of Australian travellers are prioritising staying away for an extended period of time to truly disconnect from daily life
- 80% of Australian travellers would rather pay for their own holiday and switch off entirely over working part-time as an influencer to secure an all-expense paid trip (20%)
- If Australian travellers could go anywhere this spring, 25% would opt to minimise decision-making by going to an all-inclusive resort. 12% would take it one step further, opting for a cabin in the woods – the ultimate stay to disconnect from daily life
Long Stay Away
- 61% of travellers are more likely to stay in the same accommodation for a longer period of time this spring than ever before
- To fully submerge themselves in holiday time, 60% would opt to take one long holiday over shorter, more frequent trips away this spring
- 46% of Australians would happily go holiday-free all year, just to save all their annual leave for longer time away during the spring
- When it comes to travelling this spring, of anything, 10% of travellers are most excited at the prospect of getting to extend their accommodation stay by two weeks or more
- 33% Australian travellers would be willing to take unpaid leave in order to travel for a longer period of time this spring
METHODOLOGY
*Research was commissioned by Booking.com and independently conducted among a sample of 11,187 adults (aged 18+) across 11 countries, 1013 of which were from Australia. The survey in Australia was conducted online in August 2022.
