The findings from a new study support the real-world evidence that international travel is headed for a full recovery in 2022, and even suggest that it will surpass pre-pandemic levels.
Global insurance and assistance services company International Medical Group (IMG) has just released the results of its '2022 Travel Outlook Survey', in which it evaluated the upcoming travel plans and overall sentiments of customers who had previously traveled internationally.
The results revealed that a whopping 96 percent of participants are planning to travel overseas in 2022, representing an 11 percent increase over pre-pandemic levels for international travel.
"It is clear that people are feeling more comfortable traveling abroad and are ready to take the international trips they have had to delay over the last couple of years," said IMG's Chief Commercial Officer, Amanda Winkle. "At IMG, we're well-positioned to meet this rising demand for international travel with industry-leading insurance products that protect travelers from the unexpected."
The 2022 Travel Outlook Survey's key findings include:
Travelers feel more comfortable about going abroad this year than they did in 2021.
- 59 percent of respondents said they feel more comfortable about traveling abroad this year than they did last year, compared to the 32 percent who expressed the same level of comfort about traveling internationally as they did in 2021.
- 71 percent of survey-takers reported plans to travel internationally before October 2022, in comparison to the 49 percent of last year's respondents who planned to travel overseas before October 2021.
Whether internationally or domestically, travelers are ready and willing to take multiple trips in 2022.
- 38 percent of survey participants said they plan to travel internationally three or more times before 2022 is over, representing a 141 percent increase over 2021.
- Among those staying stateside, 52 percent plan on traveling domestically three or more times before the year is out, an 18 percent increase as compared to 2021.
While they generally feel more confident about traveling abroad this year, travelers are also keener to protect themselves and their trip investments by purchasing travel protection plans and/or travel medical insurance.
- 53 percent of respondents said they're more likely to buy a trip protection plan and/or travel medical insurance policy because of the continued impacts and uncertainty caused by COVID-19. Meanwhile, 43 said that they're equally likely to purchase a plan as they were prior to the pandemic.
- The coverage inclusions that survey participants currently consider the most important are:
1. Medical insurance benefits
2. Trip cancellation/interruption benefits
3. Cancel/interrupt for any reason (CFAR/IFAR) benefits
"COVID-19 has focused everyone's mind on travel and health safety, and the fact that they can become ill or injured while they are traveling, or before they plan to travel, resulting in a need to cancel their trip," said IMG Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Geoff Tothill. "Traveling is still such a joy, but now many people are understanding that, when they travel, they really need to be properly protected with the appropriate insurance coverage."
"After being stuck at home for the last few years, we are seeing people take more extravagant or once-in-a-lifetime trips as they get back to traveling internationally," said IMG President and CEO, Steve Paraboschi. "As people invest more in their travels, they want robust insurance policies to protect all aspects of their trip, and IMG is here to provide such travel and health safety solutions."
The top five countries respondents said that they plan on visiting next are:
1. Mexico
2. Canada
3. France
4. Italy
5. Portugal
For the latest insights on international travel requirements, check out the guide below:
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