In 2024, an
increase in travel has prompted a significant rise in the demand for security
advisory and extraction protection services, according to the Global Rescue
Spring 2024 Traveler Sentiment and Safety Survey.
Global Rescue is a
leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management
services around the world. For the study, the company polled 2,000 of its
current and former members to discover their behaviors, attitudes and
preferences when it comes to current and future travel plans.
A notable 63
percent of seasoned travelers indicated they would purchase security extraction
protection services if the U.S. State Department travel advisory for their intended
destination was rated Level 1 (exercise normal precautions) or Level 2
(exercise increased caution).
Dan Richards, CEO
of The Global Rescue Companies and member of the U.S. Travel and Tourism
Advisory Board at the U.S. Department of Commerce, highlighted the impact of
current global conflicts on travel security decisions. “Travelers are saying
the war in Ukraine, the Hamas attacks on Israel, or other violent conflicts
make it more likely they will add security extraction and advisory protection
to their travel protection packages,” he said.
The survey findings
further revealed that nearly a third (31 percent) of respondents would seek
additional security travel protection when traveling to areas prone to
terrorism, civil unrest or regions neighboring war zones. Additionally, 27
percent would obtain such protection for any international travel, regardless
of specific regional threats.
Correspondingly,
Richards revealed that his company is seeing a significant increase in demand
for these protection products. "We're experiencing double-digit growth in
membership sales for both medical evacuation and security protection services.
As travel booms, we’re seeing an understandable increase in traveler safety
concern worldwide,” he said.
Another notable
finding from the survey is the shift in travel preferences regarding the customarily
popular destination of Paris. Nearly 90 percent of respondents indicated they
would avoid the French capital city in 2024 altogether.
The attitude of
these experienced travelers toward Paris seemed to stem from a mix of safety
concerns about potential protests and civil unrest, the anticipated crowds from
the upcoming Summer Olympic Games and a general preference for less traditional
travel destinations.
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