Till now, 2020-2021 has been one of the most unpredictable and uncertain years for travelers due the impact of COVID19 on their expected travel behaviour in the near future. As the summer is approaching, there is an urgent need to understand expected consumer travel behaviour and grasp the changing travel attitude for many sectors, but especially for the travel sector.
To help marketers and other players on the market anticipate the travel plans of Italian consumers, we have conducted a survey with over 160 participants to collect insights into how Italian consumers perceive the impact of the recent pandemic on their expected travel behaviour.
The results gave us an extensive and comprehensive estimate on how Italians perceive their expected travel plans and under what circumstances and conditions traveling will be feasible to our respondents.
What could a hotel or a travel agent do to persuade Italian consumers to travel?
To ensure Italian consumers their needs are being met, marketers and other players in the travel industry have to consider the following results: across all ages, the most essential factors seem to be good quality-price ratio (39.81%), which includes offering discounts to compensate for the risks of traveling and high safety and sanification standards (24.14%) as well as social distancing. Lastly, free cancellation also plays a big role in consumers’ decisions. Offering discounts might help you attract more customers who are looking for a good quality-price ratio, especially students and young professionals on a budget, as well as regularly sanitizing accommodations (preferably daily)
What would discourage Italian consumers from booking a holiday?
Besides techniques to convince Italian consumers to make travel plans, it is also crucial to know what could potentially discourage them from booking a holiday. We found that over 44.17% of survey participants define the possibility of an outbreak in the destination country as the biggest factor discouraging them from traveling. Changes in travel restrictions (36.19%) and mandatory self isolation of either 14 days (25.77%) and 7 days (42.45%) follow closely. 55.44% of consumers ranked the vaccine passport lowest, most likely due to few restrictions in place for those who have yet to receive the vaccine.
To provide a pleasant service to your customers, we recommend staying up to date with the latest changes in regards to restrictions, risk of outbreaks, curfew, mandatory self-isolation, COVID test,.. Keep your clients updated about changing restrictions and make sure someone is available at the destination to provide information and support.
Curious to learn more?
You can find out a lot more insights by downloading our Italian consumer travel behaviour research report.
