Expedia Reveals Booking Hacks And Predictions In 2021 Travel Trends Report

- Flight, accommodation and car rental data from Expedia® and ARC highlights 2021 booking hacks

- 2020 and 2021 trending and growth destinations

- Traveller behaviour points to new priorities

LONDON, Nov. 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Expedia releases its 2021 Travel Trends Report, sharing predictions and booking advice for the year ahead. In addition to tapping into its own massive database of pricing, search and demand data, Expedia has also partnered with the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) for a deep dive on the effect of the pandemic on global air travel.

Highlighting trends across flights, accommodation and car rental, the report has been created to arm travellers from the UK with the information and inspiration they need to make smart travel decisions coming out of an unprecedented year. Using both internal and external data, it outlines the best holiday hacks, trending destinations for 2021 and how our priorities have changed since the pandemic hit.

Holiday hacks

There has been a significant amount of change in the past year and given ongoing uncertainty, booking future trips can be daunting, however, what's clear is that the desire to travel persists. To give travellers confidence that they're getting the best value for money during these unpredictable times, Expedia has looked at data from the past year to find the top travel hacks in 2021 for UK travellers:

• For flights, ARC has found the best day of the week to book is a Sunday, where prices are shown to be approximately 17% cheaper than on a Friday - the most expensive day to book. For lower rates, start your international travel on a Thursday.
• For accommodation, the best average rates are now typically found on a Monday. Avoid booking on a Thursday, when many holidayers are looking to get away ahead of the weekend and travel corridor announcements are made, prompting a surge in interest.
• For car rental, the best time to book is on a Thursday. Tuesdays show the highest rates, so leave booking until later in the week.
• Book with a flexible policy. Many hotels on Expedia.co.uk can be booked with a flexible booking policy, so you won't be left out of pocket should your plans change.

New destinations and changing priorities

Domestic bliss: This summer, Britain's undiscovered gems had their moment to shine. Looking at the biggest growth destinations by comparing year-on-year results, interest in British coastal towns increased the most, even above international destinations. As nostalgia plays a part in multi-generational travel, Expedia predicts these areas will be revisited next year too, especially in family-friendly rentals over the school holidays.

Wander-luxe: Cancelled breaks and closed borders left many Brits with empty travel diaries in 2020. As a result, travellers have been left with a sense of no longer wanting to 'put off' those once dreamt about trips to far-flung destinations, such as tropical islands. When comparing 2019 booked holidays and interest in 2021 trips, new epic destinations are emerging that were nowhere near being considered last year. Plus, with great discounts and direct flights, these unreal places are becoming even more accessible.

Time to indulge: Countless missed moments such as honeymoons and birthdays have led Brits looking for future opportunities to 'blow the budget' and indulge. In recent research¹, more than a third of Brits stated that their ideal next trip would include luxury and pampering. In fact, internal data shows accommodation with 4 stars or higher was the most popular in 2020 and the top activity booked was the Plaza Premium Airport Lounge at Heathrow. Looking ahead, Expedia data shows the cheapest average daily rates for 4 to 5-star accommodation are found in March.

New standards: Transparency about cleanliness is key for building traveller confidence and will continue into 2021. In June, cleanliness was the number one concern for Brits looking to get away². Now, almost 300,000 accommodation providers globally have stepped up to the challenge by reporting enhanced cleaning facilities to Expedia. As a result, by September, the number one concern for booking a trip was instead quarantining afterwards¹. However, standards must continue to be upheld and specific cleanliness customer reviews will play a big part in providing reassurance. 

Spontaneous thinking: While tighter restrictions are in place in the UK, Expedia has found that going forward, Brits are avoiding holiday blues by taking personal time for wellness, getting into exercise and planning frequent micro-breaks for when the time is right to travel. A need for these spontaneous trips is reflected in this year's flight booking window, which has reduced by 15% since last year.

Alex Platts, Snr Director, Marketing at Expedia Group comments: "We can't ignore the clear shift in attitudes towards holidaying in the short and possibly long term, both here in the UK and overseas. Although many plans have been affected, travellers are finding new ways to get their holiday hit. Whether it's exploring more on their doorstep, pampering to improve wellness or dreaming of epic bucket list destinations, it's clear pent-up wanderlust is real. By looking into our useful data, we have created the 2021 Travel Trends Report to help travellers make thoughtful decisions when booking their future getaway."

DATA REFERENCES:

¹Expedia's September research compiled between 21st – 23rd September 2020 by OnePoll to understand attitudes towards autumn travel. Respondents: 2000 UK adults

²Expedia's Summer of Britain compiled between 9^th – 15^th June 2020 by OnePoll to understand attitudes towards domestic travel in summer. Respondents: 2000 UK adults

Best day to book and average day to travel/book trends: 
Based on lodging demand on Expedia.co.uk for travel between Jan, 1, 2020 – Dec. 31, 2020 and compared to the same timeframe in 2019

Average booking window, star-rating data, % refundable bookings:
Based on lodging demand on Expedia UK between Jan 1, 2020 – Sept 12, 2020 compared to the same timeframe in 2019

Data book: Top trending destinations 
Based on lodging demand on Expedia UK between Jan 1, 2020 – Sep 14, 2020

Data hook: Top searched destinations for 2021
Based on lodging interest on Expedia UK between Jan 1, 2020 – Sept 12, 2020 for travel in 2021

Top activity on Expedia based on bookings from Jan 1, 2020 – Oct 31, 2020

About Expedia.com 
Expedia.com^® is one of the world's largest full-service travel sites, helping millions of travellers per month easily plan and book travel. Expedia.com (https://www.expedia.com/, 1-800-EXPEDIA) aims to provide the latest technology and the widest selection of top vacation destinations, affordable airfare, hotel deals, car rentals, destination weddings, cruise deals and in-destination activities, attractions, services and travel apps. 

© 2020 Expedia, Inc., an Expedia Group company.  All rights reserved.  Expedia and the Airplane logo are trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. CST# 2029030-50. 

Visit our web site https://www.expedia.com/ or use our mobile app to book cheap flights and hotels. 

About Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC)
An industry leader in air travel intelligence and omnichannel retailing, ARC provides platforms, tools and insights that help the global travel community connect, grow and thrive. ARC enables the diverse retailing strategies of its customers by providing flexible settlement solutions, innovative technology and access to the world's most comprehensive air transaction dataset. In 2019, ARC managed more than $97.4 billion in transactions between airlines and travel agencies, representing more than 302 million passenger trips. For more information, please visit www.arccorp.com.