Article by European Travel Commission - September 23, 2021
Rising COVID-19 cases and the Delta variant might have been affecting Europe lately but travel sentiment among Europeans has remained high over the summer.
Almost 70% of Europeans surveyed stated they have plans to travel between July 2021 and January 2022, while significantly fewer expressed unwillingness (17%) or uncertainty (15%) about travelling in the short-term. This is according to the latest research on “Monitoring Sentiment for Domestic and Intra-European Travel – Wave 8” [1] by the European Travel Commission (ETC), which provides timely insights on Europeans’ [2] travel intentions and preferences during the COVID-19 pandemic.
COVID-19 vaccine shows the way to steady tourism recovery
The COVID-19 vaccine remains an essential prerequisite for traveller confidence and booking behaviour. Recent vaccination rollouts allowed more than half (54%) of Europeans to feel much more optimistic regarding trip planning within the next months, with only 21% expressing scepticism.
Furthermore, 1 in 2 Europeans plan to book a trip as soon as they are vaccinated. At the same time, more than half (57%) of the respondents expect the EU Digital COVID Certificate to facilitate planning their next trip and crossing borders, while only 18% doubt that it will ease and simplify their travel experience.
Almost 70% of all surveyed Europeans plan to travel by the end of January 2022.
Of those with short-term travel plans, over half favour visiting another European country and 35% plan to travel domestically.
An increasing share of Europeans sticks to their original travel plans but concerns over rising COVID-19 cases at destinations have intensified by 20%.
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