Tripadvisor Reveals Fall Travel Index: Australia’s Recovery Bolstered by Increase in Domestic Travel

Broome, Byron Bay and Hamilton Island are among the fastest recovering APAC destinations since last year

Tripadvisor, the world's largest travel platform, today released findings from its Seasonal Travel Index for Fall, providing travellers with insight into where Australians are traveling to this autumn as tourism markets continue their path to recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent Tripadvisor site data shows that globally, domestic travel for the fall season (September 1 - November 30, 2020) continues to gradually recover, with nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of all travellers planning domestic fall getaways. Of those travellers, 79 percent of them are planning a September trip - the busiest fall travel month.1

Outdoor adventures, which have gained popularity since the beginning of the pandemic, are continuing to interest travellers this fall. In fact, 41 percent of Australian travellers are more likely to consider outdoor or nature trips and 38 percent are more likely to consider road trips now, compared to before the pandemic2.

Fall Travel Trends:

• Most popular: Broome is leading year-over-year recovery in Australia this fall. While outbound travel is still down year-over-year (YoY), domestic travel is recovering the quickest YoY this season based on searches for hotel bookings.
• Destination type: Australian travellers are more keen to visit beach destinations or take trips where they can explore the outdoors, and are less interested in central city getaways. This has resulted in destinations like Broome, Hamilton Island and Byron Bay seeing significant year-over-year increase in travellers planning to visit this fall.
• Trip purpose: Australian travellers surveyed indicated that relaxation, enjoying nature and trips that allowed them to escape from the daily routine were at the top of their list for their next trip.
• Hotel type: While luxury hotels over-index for domestic travellers in the Americas, quaint hotels stand out in EMEA and green hotels stand out most in APAC
• Trip length: Travellers are looking for short getaways with 55 percent of fall travellers booking two to five night stays, and 36 percent booking short one-night stays.
• Last-minute travel: Fall travellers are booking more near-term trips, often less than a week in advance
• Safety first: Across the globe, safety remains critical. Sixty-eight percent of global travellers say safety and cleanliness of establishments are important when traveling locally.

"Despite the disruptions that COVID-19 has brought upon travel this year, it's heartening to see that 67 percent of Australian travellers continue to express that travel is important to them, even if they can't experience the world like they used to," said Jane Lim, VP for Global Markets at Tripadvisor. "We're seeing travellers booking staycations and weekend escapes domestically, getting creative with their trips and exploring what's around them where they can. This fall, we're seeing a rising trend of travellers looking to relax and rejuvenate, as well as making memories with family and friends."

Top APAC Destinations for Fall 2020, based on year-over-year recovery

Beach and outdoor destinations in APAC gain interest and jump in rank year-over-year.

1. Broome, AU
2. Puncak, ID
3. Kuantan, MY
4. Sentosa Island, SG
5. Port Dickson, MY
6. Bandung, ID
7. Jakarta, ID
8. Singapore, SG
9. Hamilton Island, AU
10. Byron Bay, AU

Other travel insights:

• Travellers are more budget conscious: Domestic travellers across the globe are searching for hotel stays less expensive than last year.
• While more travellers are viewing luxurious resorts and all-inclusive properties, campgrounds and farmhouses are recovering the fastest year on year and since last week.
• Traveling with your pet is an amenity with promising signs of recovery, and supporting the outdoor trend, hiking is recovering faster than any other amenities offered by hotels across the world year on year.

Methodology

1. Fall travel trends based on Tripadvisor platform hotel search and booking data for fall stays (September 1 - November 30, 2020), ending week of August 24-30, 2020.

2. Tripadvisor Traveller Sentiment Survey of 1,447 respondents in the U.S., UK, Italy, Australia, Japan and Singapore from August 31 - September 2, 2020.