ACI World: People Have Never Been More Eager to Travel

Despite impact of the global economy on travel habits, the intention to take trips is positive, according to the newest edition of the Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Global Traveller Survey (GTS) report released by Airports Council International (ACI) World.

For the fourth year, ACI World’s GTS report engages the views of over 4,000 travellers from 30 countries who have travelled by air at least once in the past 12 months. The report was released at the Airports Innovate event in Muscat, Oman.

According to ACI World Director General Luis Felipe de Oliveira, the ASQ 2023 report shifts focus from the immediate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in order to gain a broader understanding of travel trends affecting current and future traveller behaviours and expectations.

ACI World Director General Luis Felipe de Oliveira. Photo source: ACI World

“The findings show that while travellers report a high perceived impact of the economic situation on their travel habits, they have never been more eager to travel,” he said.

The GTS report provides key insights into the evolution of traveller behaviours and expectations and contributes to the advancement of airport experience excellence by exploring current and emerging travel trends, as well as monitoring the potential impact of external events on the air travel industry.

56% of respondents are planning to travel within the next three months

According to a main finding from the survey,  globally, 54 percent of respondents travelling for leisure and personal reasons reported that economic and geopolitical events have influenced their travel plans in the past year.

However, while travellers report a high perceived impact of the economic situation on their travel habits, little evidence is found on the impact of the economy on their actual travel behaviours in the past 12 months or on their forecasted behaviours for the next 12 months.

The report found that 56 percent of respondents are planning to travel within the next three months, compared to 51 percent of the same time last year.

“While the global economy continues to face uncertainty, the air travel industry is moving in the right direction with passengers firmly at the heart of airports’ strategies,” ACI World’s director general added.

Trends influencing traveller behaviours

Photo source: ACI World

Moreover, the report found the following top consumer trends influencing traveller behaviours and preferences:

– Automation: 58 percent of travellers favour technological and automated approaches to enhance their travel experience. However, there is still a preference for human interactions in crucial steps such as security control and immigration processes.
– Personalization of travel experience: 74 percent of travellers would use an app that pushes personalized information to make their journey more fluid.
– Emotional engagement: passengers expect the airport experience to be lifted above the historic standard of the airport journey, particularly as they seek stronger emotional engagement with the airport.
– Remote and hybrid work: the rise of remote work has led to a blending of business and leisure travel, with 59 percent of respondents combining more than one reason for travel in the same trip.
– Sustainability: 72 percent of travellers expect to see a green environment at airports and 43 percent of respondents have heard of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF).

ACI World is the trade association of the world’s airports.