This report looks at 16-25-year-olds’ holidays and attitudes regarding travel, examining what kind of trips they go on, who they go with and what the future holds. It considers consumer trends, the recessionary impact, what the prospects are for recovery, innovations of relevance and the strengths and weaknesses of the market.

Fewer than 5.4 million 16-24-year-olds travelled overseas in 2009 as the recession took its toll. This was a 12.7% fall year-on-year. 2010 is expected to see a slight improvement in the number of youth travellers, but not to the pre-recessionary level of around 6 million.

This report looks at 16-25-year-olds’ holidays and attitudes regarding travel, examining what kind of trips they go on, who they go with and what the future holds. It considers consumer trends, the recessionary impact, what the prospects are for recovery, innovations of relevance and the strengths and weaknesses of the market.

Fewer than 5.4 million 16-24-year-olds travelled overseas in 2009 as the recession took its toll. This was a 12.7% fall year-on-year. 2010 is expected to see a slight improvement in the number of youth travellers, but not to the pre-recessionary level of around 6 million.

A major reason for the lack of significant growth is the continuing unemployment situation – in the January-March 2010 period 914,000 16-24-year-olds were out of work. Widespread recruitment freezes continue to have disproportionate impact on young adults, leading to fears that a ‘lost generation’ of graduates unable to get a foothold in employment is being created. Over one-in-five young adults has experienced difficulty finding a job and reports that this has made it harder for them to go on holiday.

There is a growing tendency for young adults to live at home with their parents to a later age, with financial considerations the key reason. 25% of men and 13% of women aged 25-29 now live with their parents – as do over 10% of men who have reached their early 30s and 5% of women of the same age.

Almost two-thirds of 16-25-year-olds have been on a holiday with their parents in the last three years. And while one-in-four state they are likely to go on holiday with their parents again when they’re older, the same proportion reports the need to ‘escape’ from their parents.

Youth travellers are significantly more likely than other adults to book their holiday one month or less from the departure date. In addition, their use of online social networking in arranging trips has surged in recent years – while 13% reported having done so when asked in 2008, 24% said they had when asked in 2010.

Since 2005, beach/resort holidays have dropped off as a percentage of all youth holidays taken, from over four-in-ten to just over three-in-ten. However they remain the most popular choice, ahead of city breaks.