The millennials today are traveling so much that they are redefining the entire travel industry. But is this a good thing? In a way, it definitely is because this prompted the industry to change and develop in a variety of ways. On the other hand, some important aspects of travel seem to be falling to the wayside.
Millennial “Experience” Hunters: What Exactly Are They Looking For?
Millennials are the generation that took a step from the materialistic to spiritual and named “experience” to be the ultimate source of happiness and satisfaction.
However, what kind of experience are they after exactly? It definitely isn’t educational, which is quite sad because traveling offers an unmatched opportunity to learn not only about different cultures but also about the history and plight of the world.
Yet, the majority of millennial travelers seem to be missing this opportunity, even when it comes to education about events that had world-shaking consequences. For example, according to a recent survey, 49% of millennials in the US are unable to name even one concentration camp that was active during the Holocaust. Yet one doesn’t even need to travel to Europe to learn about this most horrendous genocide in the history of humanity. The Jewish Museum in New York City is open all day long and it not only has exhibits dedicated to Auschwitz but also hosts a variety of educational events. And for those who want to learn through traveling, Auschwitz itself is open to visitors.
But observations of the millennial travelers’ behavior show that they are far more likely to spend their trip browsing local markets and festivals while making friends with the locals and spending hours on “people watching”. Visits to local historical museums are sliding lower on the list of a tourist’s priorities. Why is this happening?
It’s hard to say for sure, but if one were to make a guess, the failing US educational system definitely has something to do with it. Millennials aren’t an uneducated or unintelligent generation. On the contrary, they are often innovators and their energy for exploration and discovery seems to be limitless. Therefore, they aren’t losing interest in the more “boring” landmarks that have no other purpose but to educate. They simply don’t know to be interested in them.
What Is the Ultimate Experience for Travelling Millennials?
Travel agents who want to attract more millennials to their businesses, need to forget about the “traditional” tours and replace them with ones that are based on cultural immersion. Millennials are looking to experience the culture of the country they are visiting, which means that the travel agent who can provide this is the one that can beat the competition.
As these tours need to be as “natural” as possible, they can be cheaper, which means they can attract more tourists. This benefits both, the travelers who can get their experiences in a more structured manner, and numerous businesses in the travel industry that cater to tourists (and those that don’t do this yet, but will under the changed tour parameters).
But most importantly, the creation of such immersive tours can also help bring back the interest to less popular landmarks. It’s only a matter of creating immersive tours dedicated to events celebrated by those landmarks.
Developing the travel industry in this direction definitely seems like the next revolution fueled by millennials, who are the most traveling generation.
Whether this will happen or not is still unclear, but attempts are already there if the creation of “authentic” prison hotels is any indication. The future will tell if travel business owners are daring and forward-thinking enough to invest in this kind of tours and experiences. However, one thing is for sure, millennials will keep fueling the travel industry and pushing it to evolve and diversify in order to satisfy their endless interest.