• Americans like to 'stick to the plan' when traveling abroad
  • Europe is Americans' most popular destination region with nearly a third (30%) of passengers traveling there, while Asia Pacific emerges as a strong second (27%)
  • Paris still reigns as top city to visit with 23% citing it as first or second choice - but Italy wins out as preferred country, with 15% voting it #1

WASHINGTON -- Research consultancy BDRC's Global Passenger Study uncovers the views and habits of over 16,000 international air travelers. The results give fresh, and sometimes surprising, insights into the preferences of Americans who are flying internationally.

The study reveals that American international air passengers, in comparison to their European, Asian and Latin American counterparts, are more likely to plan their trip in advance to know what to expect and are less interested in traveling independently (i.e. discovering things 'at their own pace'). Further, American leisure travelers spend more money on international vacations and stay more nights away than travelers from other regions. When visiting international destinations, Americans are keen to experience the local culture but also want to make sure they 'check off' the main tourist sites.

Other key highlights include:

  • Among the sample of more than 2,000 American international travelers, an overwhelming majority (72%) are traveling (by air) for leisure.
  • These travelers take an average of 4 leisure trips abroad per year, and spend 28 nights in hotels.
  • Americans have the highest proportion of Boomers (a group with potentially greater travel flexibility than other demographics) traveling via air internationally.
  • When traveling abroad, Americans' hotel tier preference is for Upper Midscale accommodation (78%) followed by 45% opting for Luxury and 45% opting for Midscale.
  • Demonstrating the disruptive growth of the 'home sharing' sector, 39% of US travelers surveyed have stayed at a home share property abroad (Airbnb, VRBO, etc.) in the past year.
  • In terms of airlines, most Americans are choosing to fly internationally on Delta, followed by American Airlines and United.

"These results demonstrate that US travelers are more likely to want organized travel, seeking assistance in planning to avoid 'surprises' on the trip," said Matthew Petrie, President, BDRC Americas. "This desire to avoid the potential pitfalls of international travel is good news for travel companies and the growing 'custom travel' sector."

The BDRC Hotel Guest Surveys are conducted in 25 leading travel origination markets worldwide, based on nationally representative samples of business and leisure chain hotel guests.

BDRC, part of the BVA Group, is one of the top providers of insight to the hospitality, meetings and tourism sectors.

Founded in 1991 and headquartered in London, BDRC is a multi-award winning international consumer insight consultancy, conducting research in over 90 countries, with annual revenues of more than £25m and 170 staff. BDRC's businesses cover the full range of research services, from data collection through to consultancy. Common to all is the mission to deliver clear insights that place the customer at the heart of our clients' strategic decisions.

In May 2018 BDRC became a member of the BVA Group. Paris-based BVA is a fast-growing challenger in the Consulting & Market Research global landscape, operating in 50 countries with more than 800 staff. With worldwide turnover of €190m, the Paris-based BVA Group also has offices in eleven global centers: New York, Chicago, London, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Milan, Rome, Singapore and Geneva.

BDRC in the UK consists of leading full service market research agency BDRC, mystery shopping and store observation agency ESA Retail, digital research agency Alligator, operations business Perspective Research Services and Viewpoint, the qualitative recruitment specialist. BDRC has an international network of offices in Washington DC, Singapore, Jakarta, Sydney, Beijing and Cape Town.