One third of travellers anticipate greater spend in the coming twelve months, according to a recent study by TripAdvisor. It was revealed that one in three global travellers intend to increase their spend in 2016 with half of respondents (49%) raising budgets as they felt their family deserved it; a third believing it will be advantageous towards their health and well-being; and a quarter planning to visit long-haul destinations.
It was further determined that most travellers choose a holiday destination based on the culture and society they are likely to experience there - almost half (47%) of respondents chose this as their greatest influence. However, it was also found that hotel special offers have a significant impact on determining a choice of destination with one in two travellers choosing this as an influence. Additionally, traditional word-of-mouth still plays an integral role in helping hone those holiday choices - the survey found that 29% of respondents had picked a destination after a recommendation from a friend or family member.
When it comes to booking accommodation, the survey revealed that the majority (63%) of respondents would not choose a hotel without air-conditioning and nearly half (46%) would not go without Wi-Fi.
Helen Egan, director of global industry relations at TripAdvisor, commented: "Value is key for global travellers in 2016... [they] expect essential amenities, such as Wi-Fi, to be included in the price of their hotel and more than half say special offers can play a big part in their choice of destination."
With the increase in spend predicted, it was found that three-quarters of hoteliers have an optimistic outlook on profitability in the coming months and that nearly half (47%) of hoteliers are planning to raise room rates in the New Year.
The TripBarometer study is the largest traveller and accommodation survey in the world, analysing the responses from approximately 44,000 travellers and hoteliers worldwide in order to forecast travel trends for year ahead.
