Top six travel predictions show trends for the New Year
Beacon Staff Reporter
Generation vacations or “parental piggyback” holidays where entire families travel together to save money may be popular in 2013.
The travel experts at Cheapflights have put together their top six travel predictions for 2013, predicting everything from ways to save to digital detoxing, and creating a fun list of expected trends.
The ‘Parental Piggyback’ holiday comes in at number one. The Parental Piggypack is the strategy of joining forces to find extra savings, and with cash tight and no end to the recession in sight, most people are still going to be watching the pennies in 2013.
Cheapflights travel predictions show that 2013 will see the ‘bank of mum and dad’ move into the holidays market in a big way, where extended family groups will jet away together to save cash. For overworked parents and grandparents complaining that they never see their grandchildren, this could be the only means to get an affordable full two-week break in the sun.
For grown-up kids with active parents, a shared ski trip or activity can work too. A social family breakfast and some early skiing and you might even be able to ‘slope off’ in the afternoon, letting everyone get some me time.
The second of the travel predictions is the Facebook “place-book” holiday inspiration trend. This digital way to go will have people visiting virtual holiday albums of their friends in 2013. Those who can’t get away will browse through friends’ pictures of blue skies, bronzed bodies, white sandy beaches, the pictures of the hotel, and even the breakfast buffet.
Switch to Twitter to get a running commentary on that sightseeing option, take a look at dinner options on Pinterest, or check out some alternatives and take a look at how fellow travellers got on checking-in to the five-star resort.
300 million images are posted to Facebook every day and holiday photos are a major generator of ‘likes’ — and envy. Little wonder that surfing social networks can be a handy way to get holiday inspiration, get a genuine opinion on that hotel, and perhaps find that out-of-the-way boutique hideaway in the sun that (almost) no-one else knows about. For these reasons the travel gurus at Cheapflights think “Placebook” holidays will be all the rage in 2013.
And on the flipside…Digital Detox is the third of the travel predictions. In 2013, digital detox is increasingly on the travel to-do list. As technology and social media become increasingly pervasive, so too does our need to make a conscious decision to turn them off from time to time.
With Wi-Fi access on planes and mobile data networks covering more and more of the world, tuning out and taking a break from the steady stream of information is harder to do, but more important than ever. Many resorts and cruise ships are turning off their wireless signals and satellite dishes and attracting waves of visitors, whose thumbs twitch for a day or two but who, in the end, recharge themselves like never before.
The bag-a-bargain abroad (baba) holiday is number four. Combine cheap holidays with bargains from abroad to save with cash-strapped travellers looking for maximum bang for their buck in everything they do, the prediction is an increasing focus on baba holidays — for the uninitiated, that’s “bag a bargain abroad.”
Sports and events tourism is five on the travel precidtions list. The 2012 Olympics in London opened a lot of eyes to event tourism — the once-in-a-lifetime chance to experience a huge sporting spectacle, take in your favourite band in a unique location, or watch your team in that crunch match abroad.
The New Year sees the 100th anniversary of the Tour de France — a great opportunity to witness this incredible sporting spectacle. In football there are some juicy cup ties in The Champions League, with Manchester United facing Real Madrid at the Bernabeu — and Celtic lining up against the mighty Juventus.
The “shove the triple dip – I’m going a proper trip” holiday splurge surge is number six. There are three groups who may be opting for a bit more of a ‘holiday splurge’ than the rest of us this year.
The ‘let’s not wait until it’s too late-ers’: If you’re a parent-to-be like the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, now might be the perfect time to get away and have a chilled-out break to somewhere exclusive -with plenty of pampering and me-time included.
The ‘pent-up demand demanders’: They’ve had no foreign holidays for three years but after being frugal with their funds, 2012 was a trigger. Like an Olympian out of the blocks we expect to see people sprinting for the line to destinations that made the headlines in 2012 — with London key amongst them.
The ‘lump sum-ers’: recently retired or made redundant, on a career break, maybe they’ve just downsized their house — or just decided it’s time to get out of a rut. Either way they are in the market for a big ‘once in a lifetime’ trip; off on safari in Kenya or a visit to the spectacular Iguazu Falls.
The ‘let’s go do before they are two’ crowd: Travel becomes a bit trickier after your children turn two; suddenly it’s pricier, they’re more mobile and that’s before mention of the ‘terrible twos’.