Consumers Spending 50% More on Travel

In a recent survey on consumers spending habits conducted by Barclaycard, excellent results showed for the UK travel industry, with consumers spending nearly 50% more than the same time in 2021 despite current economical conditions. 

According to the survey, travel consumers in October 2022 spent nearly 50% more money with their chosen travel agents than they did in October 2021. These results came as a surprise to many as we navigate through the increased pressure on the UK economy in the midst of the cost-of-living crisis. 

Despite these restrictions on finances across the UK, travellers seem keen to spend more money on travel than in the past year while the effects of the Covid pandemic have been easing. Based on this survey, the amount that consumers were spending with travel agents grew 48.3% in October of this year compared to October 2021, with the number of transactions increasing by 44.6%. 

Airlines in the UK have also seen a boost in spending over the course of last month, with a 37.6% increase in consumers spending and an increase in transactions of 35.5%. In comparison, domestic hotels, resorts, and accommodations across the UK have seen a reduction of 4.7% in spending and 3.4% in transactions since October 2021. 

This shows a growing optimism among travel consumers since Covid entry rules have begun to drop drastically in many destinations (all of these rules are updated on the Foreign Travel Advice page) and despite the increase in costs. Since the many restrictions on travel over the past couple of years travel abroad has become highlighted to many consumers as a necessity for their lives, rather than a luxury and more consumers are beginning to book with travel agents. 

In comparison with the increase in numbers for the travel industry, the survey has seen an overall card spending increase of 3.5% this October from October 2021, coming in far below the rise in consumer price inflation of 8.8%. Spending on essentials has also seen the effects of the cost-of-living crisis with an increase of 5.7%. 

So, if you’d like to learn more about how your consumers’ monies are protected with Protected Trust Services (PTS) and how we support excellent travel businesses, check out our pages. Or you can get in touch with the lovely PTS team by calling 0207 190 9988 or emailing us at ask@protectedtrustservices.com.