GMO Research surveys distinct travel patterns involving APAC, Europe, North America

Will Travel Industry Recover in 2023? - International Travel Survey in EU/North America/APAC. (Graphic: Business Wire)

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 26 (Bernama) -- GMO Research has conducted an overseas travel survey in the last quarter of 2022 to understand the differences in travel patterns involving Europe, North America, and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

According to the survey, the top three countries that respondents from North America would most like to visit in the future are Italy (10.5 per cent), the United Kingdom (nine per cent) and Australia and Japan (both tied at 6.8 per cent)

The US is a popular destination for Europeans and respondents in the APAC region. The Europeans polled also indicated their preference to travel to other countries within their region, mainly Spain (9.3 per cent) and Italy (7.7 per cent).

“This is similar to those surveyed in the APAC region, indicating their preference for regional travel, visiting Japan (20.3 per cent) and South Korea (6.6 per cent),” it said in a statement.

When looking at the reasons for each of the countries selecting the US as their chosen country to visit, the most common reasons included ‘many tourist attractions (25.4 per cent)’, ‘unique cultural experiences (13.5 per cent)’ and ‘its own natural landscape (9.9 per cent).’

In comparison, respondents would like to visit Italy as it offered ‘traditional food/drinks (29 per cent)’, ‘unique cultural experiences (24.2 per cent)’, and ‘historic buildings/sites (12.6 per cent)’.

In the coming year, the majority of respondents in North America (63.1 per cent), Europe (69.4 per cent) and APAC (56.9 per cent) plan to travel overseas at least once.

Specifically, 30–40 per cent of respondents in the U.K., Germany, France and Canada plan to travel abroad twice or more, indicating a high willingness to travel.

“When gathering information on overseas travel, ‘web search’ and ‘word of mouth from friends/acquaintances’ emerged as the most common sources across all countries. ‘Travel blogs’ and ‘online travel agencies’ were also frequently used,” according to the survey.

The survey was conducted within the company’s panel networks with 3,000 respondents across America, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Australia.

-- BERNAMA