In what is likely a surprise to few travel industry observers, social media’s impact on leisure travelers’ decision-making continues to grow based on results of Allianz Travel Insurance’s annual Vacation Confidence Index survey. What the report does provide is qualitative measurement of the extent to which North American travelers rely on social media sites to provide vacation and destination data.

Based on findings from a survey conducted from June 6 to 10 by polling firm Ipsos, four out of five Americans (77 percent) who will vacation this year said online user-generated reviews are “trustworthy.” Just one in six polled (16 percent) said online user-generated reviews are “not trustworthy.”

Also, a significant share of American leisure travelers is using social media to share personal reviews. The Allianz survey reports four of 10 travelers (40 percent) and one in three Americans overall (35 percent), share their own reviews online, whether through Facebook (27 percent), travel review sites (15 percent), social networking sites other than Facebook (11 percent), consumer review sites (7 percent), or personal blogs and websites (6 percent). 

“From choosing a hotel to protecting a trip with travel insurance, it’s clear that consumers trust peer reviews and marketers would be wise to take note,” said Joe Mason, Allianz’ chief marketing officer. 

Yet the Alllianz survey also found that social media remains at the low end of the spectrum in terms of the medium’s ability to “inspire” travel. Facebook was cited by 24 percent of survey respondents as a go-to source for “summer travel inspiration,” followed by TripAdvisor (18 percent) Pinterest (four percent) and Twitter (one percent). Fifty percent of the travelers surveyed said they did not use social media platforms for inspiration.

This Allianz survey release was closely followed by new monthly data from AIG Travel, the parent firm for vacation insurance provider Travel Guard. The statistics are based on a poll Travel Guard customers and travel agents completed earlier this month and provides insight into Americans’ 2014 travel spending and behavior. Together, the Allianz survey results and Travel Guard data offer evidence of four recent trends tied to vacation choice, influence and spending among American travelers:

Air travel flies in front among travel expenses:  Thirty-nine percent of travel agents polled by Travel Guard said their clients’ itemized travel budgets were most heavily invested in airline tickets, followed by hotel accommodations (27 percent), tour reservations (24 percent), cruises (6 percent) and food and beverage packages (1 percent).

Warm-weather vacations retain popular lead with families: Travel Guard’s survey identifies the Caribbean/Mexico (named by 49 percent of travelers) as the most popular summer vacation destination for families, followed by Western Europe (32 percent). International vacation destinations including Eastern Europe (named by 3 percent), Central America (3 percent) and South America (1 percent) trail warm-weather vacations by a distinct margin.

History and culture rank high among international family travel influencers: Travel agents polled by Travel Guard report that families traveling abroad predominantly booked tours focused on the history of a destination (cited by 44 percent of those surveyed). “Ecology/nature” followed at 22 percent, another 23 percent attracted by “tours surrounding adventure, beach, or all-inclusive tours offering a variety of activities.” 

Age and geography impact travelers’ confidence in online reviews: Allianz’ survey found Americans ages 18 to 34 are most likely to find user-generated-reviews trustworthy (77 percent), followed by middle-aged travelers 35 to 54 (69 percent), and seniors age 55 and older (56 percent). Northeast-based travelers are most likely to find travel reviews trustworthy (77 percent of travelers surveyed), ahead of Midwest-based travelers (69 percent), travelers based in Southern states (63 percent) and those located in Western states (59 percent). 

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