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The ‘dynamic traveller’ represents a new era of hotel guest – SiteMinder report

  Posted in Press Releases



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Sydney, Australia – To coincide with World Tourism Day and its 15th year in business, SiteMinder, the world’s leading open hotel commerce platform, has released its global consumer research, The Dynamic Traveller: A New Era of Hotel Guest, which uncovers the new hotel guest that has emerged through the pandemic.

The research, which draws upon the survey data of over 7,000 travellers from Australia, France, Germany, Mexico, Spain, Thailand, the United States and United Kingdom, highlights that a traveller with higher expectations, driven by fresh experiences and the need to be more in control of their stay, has developed in the last 18 months.

The birth of the dynamic traveller comes as global hotel bookings hit 70% of their 2019 levels—their highest point since the start of the pandemic began—according to SiteMinder’s World Hotel Index.

SiteMinder’s report has found:

  • When it comes to accommodation standards, guest expectations in 94% of cases are now higher (52%) or the same (42%) as they were compared to pre-pandemic times.
  • ‘Bucket list items’ are among the top two considerations for 38% of travellers globally, when deciding what location to travel to. They rank as high as 60% in Spain.
  • Accommodation that’s able to be freely cancelled and modified is one of the top two priorities for almost 1-in-3 travellers, as they decide where to book.

“Thanks to the rise of technology use over the last 18 months, today’s dynamic traveller is an increasingly savvy one ​​– an avid researcher that’s hyperaware of the widening range of choices available to them,” says Mark Renshaw, Chief Marketing Officer at SiteMinder. “The dynamic traveller not only craves a stay that’s unique and personalised, but one that’s experience-led too. Additionally, as unforeseeable restrictions continue to be experienced in travel markets around the world, today’s dynamic traveller seeks a greater sense of control.”

SiteMinder’s report outlines that experience packages are now as important as health/safety practices as travellers decide where to make their accommodation booking, and that 54% are either ‘supportive’ (39%) or ‘very supportive’ (15%) of accommodation providers using their personal data to better their stay. Another macro trend is that over 30% of travellers are now planning to work on an upcoming trip, extending above 40% in the United States and over 50% in Thailand.

An average of 39% of travellers globally expect to arrange their next trip directly with the accommodation venue, compared to 36% in 2020.

“The preferences of this dynamic, evolved traveller is likely to fundamentally reshape the travel industry, as well as the approach hoteliers now need to take to be seen as a viable accommodation option,” says Renshaw. “Control has tilted even further into the hands of increasingly discerning guests and, as we enter this new era of travel, the always-on nature of hotel businesses has never been more apparent – and put to the test.”

The Dynamic Traveller: A New Era of Hotel Guest can be downloaded here.

About SiteMinder
In an age of rising choice and accessibility for curious travellers, SiteMinder exists to liberate hoteliers with technology that makes a world of difference. SiteMinder is the world’s leading open hotel commerce platform, ranked among technology pioneers for its smart and simple solutions that put hotels everywhere their guests are, at every stage of their journey. It’s this central role that has earned SiteMinder the trust of tens of thousands of hotels, across 150 countries, to generate in excess of 100 million reservations worth over US$35 billion in revenue for hotels in the last year prior to the start of the pandemic.