Global Tourism Must Confront These 3 Consumer Shifts in Its Sustainability Push

Amid incessant global disruptions, from war to inflation and a zoonotic virus that has spread to 11 countries through cross-border movement, travelers remain undeterred for now in making up for two years of caution and restrictions. What remains true as well is that their "how, what, where and why" has changed and their actions are starting to confirm it, for the first time since the great travel pause. 

Novelty, purpose, connection — and not specific destinations — are now travelers’ primary goals in the first year of broader rebound since 2020. That means it’s about passion over place, and interest over a specific country, at a time when life feels closer than ever to a post-pandemic reality. Those are the key findings in the new traveler sentiment report from social media marketing agency Sparkloft Media, shared exclusively with Skift.  

“If we look now, people are really starting to think about this post-pandemic world and they're putting those values into practice,” said Gio Palatucci, senior director of research at Sparkloft Media, adding that not even inflation is slowing down the travel conversation, which has really ticked up. 

It’s good news that travelers’ desire for more meaning is unfolding just as the industry sees a healthier recovery pace. But here's the reality: global tourism isn’t crafting a new and more sustainable model as quickly as travelers are shifting their mindsets and behaviors. The dialogue coming out of the industry also remains incredibly sparse around the impact of the transformed consumer on host communities and on the industry long-term.  

From the hordes of untethered individuals encouraged to stay longer and “live local” to travel fusing into wellness, tourism leaders must address with more urgency the looming shifts emerging out of a changed pattern in consumption, needs and mindsets post-pandemic. What opportunities and what consequences might emerge from the latter, just as global tourism pushes climate action and sustainability to the core of its