![[PR] PR_Ascott and Vimut Hospital_2024](https://www.traveldailynews.asia/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PR-PR_Ascott-and-Vimut-Hospital_2024-400x265.jpg)
Taipei tops the list of 2024 destinations of the year – Tour tourism and set-jetting among 2024 leading trip types – 68% of Singapore travellers expected to adopt generative AI in 2024
SINGAPORE — Today, Expedia unveiled Unpack ’24, a comprehensive look at what’s motivating travellers and where they’re going next year. Based on the company’s unmatched first-party travel data, plus a global consumer survey of 20,000 travellers, Unpack ’24 includes new travel trends for 2024, from top destinations to what’s next in travel tech.
“At Expedia Group, we have extensive first-party travel data that we use to enhance and curate experiences for our travellers. These insights shape our travel forecasts, revealed in Unpack ’24, enabling our travellers to be the first to discover and book the most desired trips before they become well-beaten paths,” said Jon Gieselman, president of Expedia Brands. “From travelling for events like Taylor Swift or Beyoncé performances, and the rising allure of destinations like Perth, Palermo, and Paros, these trends begin to define the travel landscape in 2024.”
The 2024 Set-jetting Forecast: For 2023, Expedia predicted travellers would turn to television sets and movie screens for travel inspiration. They did, and the trend shows no signs of stopping in 2024. More than half of travellers say they’ve researched or booked a trip to a destination after seeing it on a TV show or movie, and 1 in 4 admit that TV shows and films are even more influential on their travel plans than they were before. In fact, travellers say TV shows influence their travel decisions more than Instagram, TikTok and podcasts.
Expedia search data indicates a similar trend. Following the release of “Wednesday” on Netflix, Expedia saw a 150% increase in travel searches for Romania. Searches to Paris increased 200% after “Emily in Paris” debuted its previous season.
In line with the global trend, 61% of Singapore travellers have researched or booked a trip to a destination after seeing it in a TV show or movie. One-third (34%) affirm that the influence of TV shows and movies on their travel plans has increased in the past 12 months. TV shows and streaming services (39%) are said to be more influential than TikTok (33%) when it comes to travel decision-making for Singapore travellers.
Given the popularity of this travel trend, Expedia compiled its first-ever Set-jetting Forecast predicting what entertainment-inspired destinations travellers will head to in 2024, based on upcoming show and film releases and travel data from the Expedia Group platform.*
- Romania inspired by “Wednesday” season 2.
- Paris inspired by “Emily in Paris” season 4.
- Korea inspired by “Squid Game” season 2.
- Thailand inspired by “The White Lotus” season 3.
- Malta inspired by the new “Gladiator 2” film.
- Scottish Highlands inspired by the remaining seasons of “Outlander.”
- London, Bath and Windsor, UK inspired by the new season of “Bridgerton” and “The Crown” season 6.
Destination Dupes: The “dupe” trend — affordable alternatives to popular products — that has flooded TikTok feeds is now taking over travel. Expedia’s 2024 destinations of the year are destination dupes — places that are a little unexpected, sometimes more affordable, and every bit as delightful as the tried-and-true destinations travellers love.
The 2024 destination dupes all experienced a notable uptick in searches[i] over the past year. In fact, global searches for the Top 5 destinations on the list more than doubled YoY.
- Taipei (dupe for Seoul) – 2,785%
- Pattaya (dupe for Bangkok) – 250%
- Paros (dupe for Santorini) -195%
- Curaçao (dupe for St. Martin) – 185%
- Perth (dupe for Sydney) – 110%
- Liverpool (dupe for London) – 95%
- Palermo (dupe for Lisbon) – 90%
- Quebec City (dupe for Geneva) – 60%
- Sapporo (dupe for Zermatt) – 40%
- Memphis (dupe for Nashville) – 15%
Tour Tourism: In 2023, the cultural impact of the Eras and Renaissance tours was undeniable, driving ticket sales but also travel and tourism. Expedia predicts that Tour Tourism will continue to thrive in 2024. Nearly 70% of survey respondents say they are more likely to travel to a concert outside their own town, with over 40% saying they’d travel for a concert as an excuse to visit a new place. In a new twist to Tour Tourism perhaps driven by ticket prices, 30% of travellers say they would travel outside of their home city for a concert because tickets were cheaper elsewhere. Unexpected places on Expedia’s list of top tour tourism destinations are Kuala Lumpur, Edmonton, Canada, and Mexico City.**
Similarly, among Singaporeans, 65% say they’d travel to watch their favourite artist perform live. Fans are willing to travel outbound to catch their favourite artist if tickets are cheaper elsewhere (44%) or are sold out in Singapore (28%).
Gen Gen AI: While generative AI tools like ChatGPT took centre stage in 2023, only 6% of travellers used it to plan their trip.[ii] In 2024, Expedia Group predicts the “generation of generative AI” travellers will come of age and fully embrace this tech throughout their travel journey. In fact, survey data reveals that half of travellers are interested in using generative AI to plan their next trip, and the percentage is even higher among Singaporeans (68%).
What drives this trend is Generative AI’s ability to simplify planning and shopping through a conversation. Nearly 40% of travellers say they would use this tech to find the perfect stay, 35% would plan activities and things to do, 33% would compare flight options, and 20% of travellers would change or cancel their travel plans.
Notes:
*Set-jetting stats:[iii]
- The first two seasons of “The White Lotus” drove a 300% increase in travel demand to Hawaii and Sicily.
- Following the release of “Wednesday” on Netflix, Expedia saw a 150% increase in travel searches for Romania.
- Expedia saw a 200% increase in searches to Paris after “Emily in Paris” debuted its previous season.
- Searches for Richmond in London increased by 160% after season 2 of “Ted Lasso” aired, and they doubled after season 3 aired. U.S. fans accounted for 65% of searches, followed by Australians, Canadians, Brits, and the Japanese.
- Searches for Chicago increased by 45% following the first season of “The Bear.”
- Searches for Norway increased by more than 65% after “Succession” aired its final season.
**Tour Tourism stats: Expedia analysed the average daily rates for accommodations in cities around the world with major arenas and music venues that will host the world’s hottest pop and rock stars in 2024. Below are 10 affordable destinations where fans can snag a hotel room for less than S$205/night on average — often less than the price of the concert ticket.[iv]
Some big-name artists who will be stopping in those cities on tour next year include: Coldplay, Taylor Swift, Madonna, Metallica, Olivia Rodrigo, the Jonas Brothers, and the Foo Fighters.
Global List:
- Kuala Lumpur – average hotel night S$124
- Edmonton, Canada – average hotel night S$147
- Mexico City, Mexico – average hotel night S$162
- Warsaw, Poland – average hotel night S$162
- Birmingham, UK – average hotel night S$173
- Houston, Texas – average hotel night S$178
- Antwerp, Belgium – average hotel night S$191
- Tokyo, Japan – average hotel night S$201
- Perth, Australia – average hotel night S$202
- Detroit, Michigan – average hotel night S$203
Methodology
The research was conducted on behalf of Expedia Brands (Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo & Wotif) by OnePoll, a global strategic research firm. The survey was conducted online from September 12–October 5, 2023, across North and South America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific using an amalgamated group of best-in-class panels. The study was conducted among 20,000 respondents across 14 countries, among adults who are planning domestic or international travel in the next three years. OnePoll is an MRS (Market Research Society) Company Partner, has corporate membership of ESOMAR, and is a Member of the British Polling Council.
[i] Based on global flight data on Expedia POS from Sept. 1, 2022 – Aug. 31, 2023
[ii] Planes, Trains, and Large Language Models, NRG Thought Leadership Report – May 2023
[iii] Based on global search data on Expedia and Hotels.com for hotel stays for each show 90 days post-air date compared to the same dates the year before
[iv] Based on average daily rate for hotels on Expedia global POSa from 1 Sept. 2022 – 31 Aug. 2023
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
