Six trends that will change the way you travel this summer

The busiest travel season of the year is about to begin: Almost 44 million people in the US are expected to unofficially kick off their summers by travelling on Memorial Day weekend, a 4.1 per cent increase over 2019, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA).

“We haven’t seen Memorial Day weekend travel numbers like these in almost 20 years,” said Ms Paula Twidale, senior vice-president of AAA Travel, in a May 13 release. “We’re projecting an additional one million travellers this holiday weekend compared with 2019.”

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) also said on May 21 that it expects – for the first time – to screen more than three million passengers nationally in a single day “at some point this summer”.

Revenge travel may have tapered, but sky-high demand persists in tourism. 

It is not just in the US. Globally, tourist visitor numbers look to finally return to pre-pandemic levels in 2024, according to recent research from the World Economic Forum. 

If you are among the millions of people hitting the road in the coming months, here is a preview of some major industry changes that may affect your journey. 

AI will continue to shape your travels

Actress Scarlett Johansson

may not be playing the part of your Chat GPT-created travel agent

this summer, but as generative artificial intelligence (AI) keeps improving, so will travel planning tools that leverage the technology.

Look no further than Expedia Group, which on May 14 deployed an AI travel assistant app called Romie, which can both craft tailored itineraries and troubleshoot unexpected travel disruptions once you are on the road.

Invite the Romie chatbot into a text chain with your travel companions, and it can help find ideas everyone will love; Romie will also suggest restaurants, activities and other places to see in areas you are visiting, as well as answer general travel questions.

It is currently available to test on iPhones in the US, but you must join Expedia’s EG Labs programme on the app in order to access it. (Find that in your account settings.) As with any AI chatbot, it is worth double-checking automated suggestions.

Expedia’s product joins an ever-growing landscape of AI travel-planning tools; earlier in 2024, Booking Holdings released Ask Kayak and Kayak PriceCheck to help travellers find holiday ideas and quickly compare flight prices against 100 different websites. 

And do not forget about biometric technology, which is being implemented at global airports to hasten checking in or dropping off of luggage.

The most advanced example so far is a self-service variation on TSA screenings – done without the presence of human agents – currently being tested at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas.

Later in 2024, passport-free travel may become a reality: Singapore is preparing to let departing travellers use biometrics in lieu of physical ID to clear border control. 

Five-figure trips will soon become the norm

International trips are averaging more than US$9,000 (S$12,150) per person this summer, according to Florida-based Squaremouth, a travel insurance comparison engine. That is higher than ever – a 7 per cent increase over 2023. 

And as trip costs continue to climb, so does the price to insure them; Squaremouth research shows that travel insurance premiums have increased 22 per cent year over year, to more than US$600 in 2024. 

To bring travel insurance costs down, the company recommends insuring only expenses you are likely to lose if you should cancel your trip. 

For instance, if the penalty to cancel a hotel reservation is 50 per cent, insure only that amount versus the full cost of the room; this will ultimately reduce the total cost of your policy.

If the rising expenses still have you down, consider this: A growing number of companies are rising up to insure not just against travel delays or cancellations but also against simple disappointment. 

Take Sensible Weather’s add-on guarantee to your reservation, ensuring you will get a refund if it rains on your trip when you book with specific hospitality companies. Or the new WeatherPromise, which lets you directly buy rain protection online for any existing trip.

Now there is also Holland America Lines’ out-there glacier guarantee that promises 15 per cent of your cruise fare in credit for a future sail if you do not get to see one on your Alaska cruise.

Travel will be more accessible

The travel industry is ramping up improvements for people with physical disabilities – a US$58 billion market.

Increasingly, it is looking to meet the needs of drastically underserved neurodivergent travellers, too.

According to the travel booking platform Autism Travel, 87 per cent of families with autistic children find travelling so complicated that they forgo it. Hotels are finding ways to help.

For example, Virgin Hotels is getting more of its seven properties around the world “Autism Double Checked”, an independent certification that ensures that staff are trained to properly help guests on the spectrum.

You will soon see this service expand to other hotel brands; Hyatt Hotels recently announced a push in this direction.

On the tech side, Alphabet’s Google has continued expanding accessibility features into Google Maps, including wheelchair-accessible place listings. Also new are screen reading and voice guidance for blind or low-vision travellers, which tell users when, say, they are going the wrong way. 

Accessibility is also becoming more important for airports and the aviation industry, though this summer you are more likely to hear about what is coming than see actual progress.

In the US, legislation is in the works to amend the Air Carrier Access Act to guarantee better services for air travellers who use wheelchairs.

The comment period on proposed amendments will close on June 12, so expect related headlines over the summer.

Similarly, Zurich Airport is currently getting ready to roll out autonomous electric wheelchairs, from Swiss start-up DAAV, by the end of the year. 

You will book at the last minute

Last-minute bookings are on the rise, said glamping hospitality company Autocamp, which attributed the pattern to a growing share of Gen Z travellers.

It is a global trend: Some 78 per cent of international travellers surveyed by American Express in 2024 indicated a preference for last-minute trips and leaving room in trip itineraries for unplanned experiences.   

Flexibility is not the only pandemic-era trend that is back and staying strong.

The desire to holiday in nature and visit national and state parks is driving outdoor hospitality companies to tap in: Think upscale lakeside treehouses, tents, cabins and domes in locations ranging from New York’s Catskill Mountains to Wyoming’s plains and Colorado’s ranges, with limited inventories heightening demand. 

It seems as if every week a new property announces an opening; right after our preview of new glamping lodges was published, we caught wind of this stunning new property that is bringing bubble domes to Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. 

Road trips in the US – another pandemic-era favourite that allowed for more flexible summer travel in one’s backyard – are predicted to hit a record over Memorial Day weekend, according to AAA.

Some 38.4 million people are expected to travel by car, 1.9 per cent more than in 2019. 

All-inclusive resorts will push further into luxury

Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt hotels have been betting large on the all-in-one vacation model, with new openings in such hot spots as Mexico’s Riviera Maya and the Dominican Republic’s Punta Cana. At these places, the standards associated with all-inclusive resorts are trending strongly upwards.

Expect more than lavish suites and miles of white sand beaches. Think of amenities that range from a 10,000 sq ft spa and farm-to-table chef menus to rooftop bars with panoramic sea views. 

Two all-inclusive resorts we are excited about on the horizon: Set to open in August is Almare on Isla Mujeres in Mexico, making it the first location of Marriott’s Luxury Collection brand to go all-inclusive.

The distinction here is less about endless inclusions and more about not having to worry about what you are spending at an intimate, highly luxurious resort – it has got just 109 rooms, and they are all suites. Guests will be able to tuck into their beach reads on daybeds that float along the edges of a palapa-shaded pool; just beyond the white-sand beach is one of the largest coral reefs in Mexico.

And then there is the 30-room SCP Corcovado Wilderness Lodge, just opened in Costa Rica’s Osa peninsula and accessible only by boat. Its luxurious bungalows dot forested trails, with secluded terraces and outdoor tubs that look out over the ocean and adjacent Corcovado National Park. 

Hotels will not get any more affordable 

Hotel prices were forecast to rise in most major cities in 2024, according to American Express Global Business Travel’s Hotel Monitor 2024 Report.

At the start of 2024, it predicted rates would jump by 10 per cent to 17 per cent year over year in the most-affected markets. That seems to be an accurate assessment. 

We are not just talking about the luxury sector, where the US$1,000 entry-level room has become the norm.

When looking more broadly at hotels – meaning everything from budget motels to five-star stays, globally – Hopper says that Memorial Day weekend prices have hit an average of US$212 per night, a 30 per cent increase over rates during the same period in 2022. 

In the most-searched cities, you would be lucky to be able to book for US$212. In both London and San Juan, Puerto Rico, Hopper says the average rate is right around US$370, which represents an increase of 6 per cent to 10 per cent year over year.

And as Airbnb continues getting pushed out of major cities like New York and Amsterdam, the price pressure on such rooms will only continue to grow. 

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