COVID-19 Travel Sentiment Monitor – October Report
COVID-19 Travel Sentiment Monitor – October Report
Last updated: Dec 21, 2023 · 5 min read

COVID-19 Travel Sentiment Monitor – October Report

 

While the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is forcing everyone to adapt to “the new normal,” many travelers are still exploring their own country and even beyond.

According to our latest Travel Sentiment Monitor, half of the worldwide respondents are planning winter holidays.

Other key findings:

1) While only 18% of the respondents had planned a domestic trip when 2020 had started, 38% have actually traveled inside their countries so far, due to the international travel restrictions. When it comes to the touristic destinations, cities have become less attractive, receiving only 32% of the respondents. That is in contrast to travelers’ original plans. At the beginning of this year, 73% had planned at least one city break for 2020.

2) As many as 49% of the worldwide participants are still planning to go on winter holidays, with more than one third wanting to travel only inside their country.

Since the pandemic lockdowns started, we regularly polled travelers around the world. This current customer survey was conducted between October 20-26, 2020, via online forms and ensured gender and age balance. Here are the findings in detail for this month’s perception, and you can also check out the reports for July, May, April or March.

 

New Year’s Resolutions could not be realized

Even though travelers have wished for many trips when this year started, the travel restrictions and health concerns have limited many of those wishes: while only 11% of the participants in this month’s survey had not planned a trip for 2020, three times more (37%) ended up staying home during the first 10 months of the year.

In regards to those who did travel, 38% of the respondents have taken at least one trip inside the country so far, two times more than they’d planned before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Besides distance, types of holidays also have changed during 2020, bringing city breaks down to 32% of the travelers’ choice, a steep decrease from the 73% who expected to take a city break when health and travel restrictions were not such key points in planning.

Travel to nature areas did not pick up much of the loss of city travel, as outdoors travel increased only 4% compared to initial plans.

 

What’s next?

As the time goes by, people are getting used to this new and more cautious way of traveling, and are feeling enthusiastic about the months to come. Almost half of the participants are planning their winter holidays, hoping that the predicted future waves of infections will be controlled and that a vaccine might become available soon. It is also true that most of these travelers (76%) will stay closer to home, considering only movement inside the continent.

 

What will travel look like in the upcoming months?

Short-term accommodations are still preferred above hotels because travelers feel that independent lodging allows them to practice proper hygiene and risk management when it comes to COVID-19 infection. Only 13% of the respondents think that hotels are a better option, while 43% will not use external accommodation during the winter holidays.

In regards to finance, the 2020 travel budget was severely impacted by the pandemic, with only 34% of the initial travel funds untouched. The big cuts are still happening, as 46% of the participants stated that they have reduced their travel spending for this year by more than 40% compared to initial planning. That dip represents the greatest financial impact since LuggageHero started polling on this subject in March.

 

You can check out the full results below:

Did you PLAN any leisure trips for 2020 when this year has started? Worldwide USA UK Europe
Yes, international trip/s outside the continent
38%
38%
45%
32%
Yes, international trip/s inside the continent
33%
16%
34%
44%
Yes, domestic trip/s
18%
35%
13%
13%
No
11%
11%
8%
11%

Did you HAVE any leisure trips after lockdowns ended? Worldwide USA UK Europe
Yes, domestic trip/s
38%
48%
39%
38%
No
37%
36%
36%
31%
Yes, international trip/s inside the continent
18%
4%
21%
28%
Yes, international trip/s outside the continent
7%
12%
4%
3%

Did you PLAN any city break abroad for 2020 when this year has started? Worldwide USA UK Europe
Yes, I had planned a city trip for this year
73%
62%
82%
77%
No, I did not want to travel abroad at all this year
16%
27%
9%
11%
No, I had planned to focus only on nature
11%
11%
9%
12%

Did you HAVE any city break abroad in 2020? Worldwide USA UK Europe
No, I did not travel abroad at all this year
53%
64%
52%
46%
Yes, I had a city trip this year
32%
21%
32%
37%
No, I focused only on nature
15%
15%
16%
17%

Do you plan to travel abroad this winter (if allowed)? Worldwide USA UK Europe
No
51%
55%
50%
47%
Yes, I will visit another country inside the continent
19%
7%
23%
26%
I will travel inside the country
18%
26%
12%
16%
Yes, I will visit another country outside the continent
12%
12%
15%
11%

Will you use short-term renting this winter? Worldwide USA UK Europe
I will not need accommodation in the next months
43%
45%
44%
41%
I think both rentals and hotels ensure proper hygiene
28%
28%
26%
30%
Yes, I prefer short-term accommodations for proper hygiene
16%
16%
18%
15%
No, I prefer using hotels for proper hygiene
13%
11%
12%
14%

Did your 2020 travel budget change because of the COVID-19 situation? Worldwide USA UK Europe
No, I didn’t reduce my travel budget for this year
34%
36%
40%
36%
Yes, I reduced my travel budget by 0-20%
9%
7%
9%
11%
Yes, I reduced my travel budget by 20-40%
11%
7%
13%
13%
Yes, I reduced my travel budget by 40-60%
14%
13%
14%
13%
Yes, I reduced my travel budget by more than 60%
32%
37%
24%
27%

*The survey was filled through online forms between October 20-26, 2020.
**For updated COVID-19 information you can check the official WHO data.

Check out the July survey report.
Check out the May survey report.
Check out the April survey report.
Check out the March survey report.
Read this article about coronavirus precautions and practical information to follow in the biggest cities.