What worries travelers the most amidst the never-ending diet of news and first-person social media accounts of conflict, upheaval and health risks around the world?
Given the voluminous coverage, you won't be surprised to hear that one in four travelers has changed vacation plans in the past year due to global or local safety, security or health concerns—and terrorism activity tops the list of reasons tourists will avoid travel to certain destinations. But you might be surprised to learn Ebola has become the number-one infectious disease that travelers worry about, according to 67 percent of travelers. And islands, large and small, are considered the safest places to have a vacation.
These findings are part of a new study undertaken by the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council's GeoBranding Center and AIG Travel. Data for the report, entitled "How Global Voices Shape Travel Choices: The Impact of Consumer Apprehension on Travel Intention," was collected from more than 2,000 American, European and other worldwide travelers in October 2015 via an online survey.
The research aimed to gather consumer views and specific areas of concern that lead travelers to alter their plans, intentions or destination picks. Among these events and incidents are terrorist attacks, natural disasters, disease outbreaks, regional conflicts, political upheaval, crime and violence, civil unrest, plane crashes, and cruise line accidents or food safety issues.
Topping the list of the most desirable and safe destinations are Australia and New Zealand, as well as islands in the Pacific and Western Europe. More than 62 percent of travelers would like to visit Australia and New Zealand, two countries which have a zero rate of travel concern or anxiety. This compares to 10 percent or less who want to visit North, Central or West Africa and the Middle East. Some 20 percent, however, said they were keen on visiting Southern Africa. With interest in distance and isolation, a few survey participants even named Antarctica, Iceland, Greenland and the Arctic as desirable destinations.
The top five reasons for avoiding travel to certain destinations include:
- Terrorist activity (77 percent).
- Military conflict or fighting (59 percent).
- Outbreak of disease or health risks (46 percent).
- High incidence of crime (25 percent).
- Political upheaval (25 percent).
Examples of these issues can be found in the Middle East and North Africa, where turmoil, terrorism, civic strife and refugee migration are unfortunately keeping popular destinations like Egypt, Turkey, Tunisia, Morocco and Saudi Arabia in the news and at the top of the travel advisory lists.
When it comes to the most trusted sources of travel planning relating to safety and security, government agencies and law enforcement alerts are relied upon by more than half (55 percent) of survey participants while 36 percent believe trusted information comes from news media and travel journalists for information.
This is ahead of friends and family (34 percent), third-party crowd-sourced travel rating sites (25 percent), and social media networks (17 percent).
The report and infographics based on the quantitative and qualitative findings of this study are available for download at http://geobrandingcenter.org/how-global-voices-shape-travel-choices.php.
