Data from Tripadvisor shows a year-over-year increase in sustainable travel experience bookings. What’s more, 66% of Tripadvisor users say they are willing to pay more for sustainable travel.
The types of eco-conscious travel activities that are on the rise include eco-tours (up 8%), wildlife and nature opportunities (up 13%) and farm-to-table experiences (which have grown a remarkable 80% since 2022).
Travelers also say they want to have authentic travel experiences representing local culture and communities (66%), prioritize buying from local shops and makers (60%), are interested in prioritizing local restaurants and in-season dining options as they travel (43%) and are willing to pay more for eco-friendly products (62%).
Our Analysis: Booking Behavior May Be Catching Up to Intent
One struggle that the travel industry continues to face in making sustainability progress is when travelers claim to want eco-friendly options, but then they do not follow through on that preference when it comes time to book.
However, Tripadvisor’s data — which shows a year-over-year increase in bookings of sustainable experiences — may be marking a shift in which clients begin to put their money behind their morals. Such a change would represent a new era of opportunity for travel advisors to upsell more eco-conscious offerings and recommend more sustainably minded destinations and companies.
Tripadvisor also found that 47% of users are likely to research a destination’s sustainability initiatives prior to booking a vacation. Advisors with expertise in this area might not only attract new clients by saving them the time and effort of doing their own research, but might also make valuable recommendations to the clients who are willing to pay for eco-friendly options but are not actively working to find those opportunities on their own.
