The Vacationer posted Revenge Travel/Summer 2021 Travel Survey, conducted to find out how many Americans will travel this summer as well as how many plan to travel more to get "revenge" against Covid-19.
The survey included 535 American adults over the age of 18 and was conducted online using SurveyMonkey's interface/audience on our behalf on March 20, 2021. Eric Jones, Mathematics Instructor at Rowan College South Jersey, analyzed the survey.
Here is the survey: https://thevacationer.com/march-2021-travel-survey/
Here are the findings with a few key stats:
1. Do you plan on traveling this summer?
- Yes. - 67.72%
- No. - 32.28%
Key Takeaway: 67.72% of Americans over 18 or nearly 173 million people plan to travel this summer. When you add in children, this figure will surpass 200 million people. This is a substantial number of people that will be traveling as we continue to fight the pandemic.
Interesting Demographic Comparison - Nearly 11% more men than women state they plan to travel this summer. This is similar to our COVID-19 Vaccine Travel Survey where men were more comfortable traveling right now. Additionally, our May 2020 Survey also had the trend of men being more willing to travel during the pandemic.
2. Once the COVID-19 pandemic is officially over, how frequently do you plan to travel? (revenge travel)
- More than before COVID-19. - 25.00%
- Less than before COVID-19. - 16.98%
- Same as before COVID-19. - 58.02%
Key Takeaway: 25.00% of people plan to travel more than before COVID-19 once the pandemic is officially over. This is much more than the 16.98% that say they plan to travel less. Over the last year, there has been much discussion about “revenge travel”. That is people have restrained their travel desires so much during the pandemic that they intend to “make up for it” as soon as they can.
Interesting Demographic Comparison - People in the Mountain region which includes the states of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada are the most likely to travel more than before COVID-19 once the pandemic is over. 37.84% of people in this region stated they plan to travel more. These states tend to be more open and less populated than many other states. They also attract more adventurous people so it should be no surprise that they want to get out and travel more.
3. What would you be willing to do in order to travel normally and safely again with no restrictions? (Check All that Apply Except If You Are Checking the Last Choice.)
- Spend a night in prison - 16.79%
- Not see your best friend for a year - 22.01%
- Not eat your favorite food for a year - 24.25%
- Not exercise for a year - 23.13%
- Not have sex for a year - 18.10%
- None of these. (If checking this choice, check nothing else) - 38.25%
Key Takeaway: 61.75% of Americans or more than 157 million people would agree to either spend a night in prison, not see their best friend for a year, not eat their favorite food for a year, not exercise for a year or not have sex for a year to travel normally and safely again with no restrictions. Many people would agree to do more than one of these. It is evident people are craving to travel. They are even willing to do abnormal tasks to go back to normal.
Interesting Demographic Comparison - The survey shows that 10% more men than women would agree to spend a night in prison to travel normally and safely again with no restrictions. Conversely, 6% more women than men would agree to not have sex for a year for the same travel benefits. These data points seem to fit the stereotypes of men wanting to feel “macho” and craving sex more than women.
4. Would you have President Trump back another four years in order to travel normally and safely again with no restrictions?
- Yes, and I voted for him in 2020 - 27.99%
- Yes, but I did not vote for him in 2020 - 14.37%
- No, and I voted for him in 2020 - 7.84%
- No, but I did not vote for him in 2020 - 49.81%
Key Takeaway: Only 42.36% of people would agree to have Donald Trump back as president in order to travel normally and safely again with no restrictions. In 2020, Donald Trump won 46.8% of the popular vote in 2020. This means 4.44% fewer people that actually voted for him would take him back even if it meant the world could return to normal travel.
Demographic Stat: Alternatively, the youngest people that said they did not vote for Donald Trump are most likely to have him back to safely travel without restrictions. 16.80% of those aged 18-29 said this while only 12.05% over age 60 did. Younger people may be more flexible with who is in office if they can do what they want - travel.
5. How do you feel traveling now that Joe Biden is president?
- More safe. - 38.81% (nearly 100 million Americans)
- Less safe. - 19.78%
- About the same. - 41.42%
