2021 International Travel Recovery Trends: Flexible Terms a Key Factor

(Images:Ruksana Hussain)

How travelers want to book and when and where they want to go in 2021 is a hot topic right now, given the travel industry is still learning to cope with the changing face of the pandemic. As everyone approaches 2021 with hopeful anticipation and massive pent-up wanderlust, travel industry experts are looking into their crystal balls to predict what the new year will bring. Travelstride, a U.S. marketplace for all expert-planned travel adventures, shares its 2020 Travel Trend Report revealing the most interesting international travel behavior changes through the end of 2020 and predictions for 2021. ​

Particularly well positioned to identify emerging travel trends since the online marketplace works with nearly 1,500 global tour operators, cruise lines and local experts to offer its globetrotting community more than 50,000 trip options, the company has served more than 3 million travelers in the pasts ix years, sending them to 164 countries across all seven continents. After reviewing all this data and studying current booking patterns, Travelstride has identified some key international travel trends for 2021.

Longer, Deeper Stretches – After the hardships and sacrificed vacations of 2020, travelers are ready to book longer and more immersive trips. Since March 2020, Travelstride’s average trip length grew by 40% compared to pre-Covid bookings.   

Farther Flung - An increase in trip length can be attributed to the added time needed to visit more far-flung spots as travelers seek less populated, more outdoorsy destinations. 

Right Now or Much Later – As conditions continuously shift, booking windows have increased their variability, with trips either planned within weeks or plotted many months or even years in advance. Short term travelers seize the moment when the right aspects align and taking a last-minute trip makes sense for them. While others are planning their dream trip, such as an African safari, and want to ensure proper preparation and timing, as well as an ample post-Covid cushion. Travelstride saw inquiries for trips less than two months in advance increase as a percentage of total to over 30%, while those for trips six months ahead or longer increased as a percentage of total to 55% .  

Flexibility Rules The Day - Given the multitude of uncertainties that life now brings, travelers are requiring very flexible terms to book travel. At Travelstride, 100% of recent booking inquiries are going to operators with flexible cancellation policies. 

While many companies have loosened cancellation terms or offer savings to encourage bookings now, Travelstride has taken a leap forward and developed a brand-new product specifically designed to meet travelers’ needs in 2021 and beyond - FlexiPass By Travelstride. With super flexible booking terms, Flexipass By Travelstride provides a financially savvy, low risk option to commit to an epic trip now with the power to change it later. Partnering with more than 20 trusted global tour operators who ensure Covid-safe practices, travelers can choose from 2,000 high quality packaged journeys or even create a custom itinerary to destinations spanning all seven continents. FlexiPass launched December 2020 and is already garnering accolades and early adopter fandom. It achieved #1 popularity on Product Hunt, the tech industry’s leading platform for new product discovery, for launch day and maintains top trending status in the travel section, ahead of much larger brands like Airbnb. ​

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