Global travel providers are heading into 2024 with a lot of
optimism about the future, as consumers continue to seek unique,
immersive travel experiences around the world. This is according to
the latest research from
Flywire (Nasdaq: FLYW), a
global payments enablement and software company, based on a
commissioned survey into more than 400 destination management
companies, accommodation providers and tour operators across
Australia, Italy, Japan and South Africa.
“Our research into travel providers around the world shows that
as we head into 2024, consumers are likely to continue to
prioritize investing in unique experiences, as providers prepare
for an increase in bookings,” said Colin Smyth, VP and GM of Travel
and Flywire. “As travelers eschew traditional “off the shelf”
packages, providers are offering experiences that match travelers’
expectations for immersive, personalized trips. Our research shows
that these providers are also looking to technology, especially
payments, as a way to change the way they do business, embracing it
to benefit both their customers and their business.”
Personalized, immersive travel a growing trend, as
consumers prioritize experiences over discretionary
spend
Travelers are increasingly foregoing conventional vacations in
favor of personalized trips that deliver unique experiences, often
off the beaten track - so called “experiential travel.” 89% of
providers surveyed have seen increased demand for experiential
travel, especially those in Australia (92%) and Italy (92%).
At the same time, travel providers have seen demand for “slow
travel” also increase, as travelers place more emphasis on
connecting fully with their destination, and immersing themselves
in the local culture for a longer period of time. Providers in
South Africa (86%) and Italy (84%) saw the largest boost in slow
travel compared to last year, with 84% total travel providers say
they expect demand for slow travel to continue growing, perhaps
because travelers no longer need, or want, to book vacations with
impossibly tight schedules.
It is no surprise then that sustainable tourism has shifted from
a nice-to-have to a commercial necessity, with 84% of providers
surveyed saying sustainability is becoming more of a determining
factor in how travelers are planning their trips. 82% have seen an
increase in demands for sustainable options in the last few years,
and 42% say travelers are actively asking for sustainability
options from them.
As a takeaway, global travel providers can make a positive
impact on the environment by enabling their guests to make
contributions to carbon removal when they make their payment. The
partnership between Flywire and Tomorrow's Air is streamlining this
process, and helping leading travel brands around the world reach
their climate goals.
Payments are an extension of the brand, and critical to
providing positive customer experience
Providers agreed that payments are critical to the booking
process and tied directly to overall customer sentiment. 90% agree
that the easier it is for customers to pay them, the happier that
customer will be. 84% travel providers believe that if they could
find a better way of handling payments, they would save time. And
83% believe finding a better way of handling payments would save
them money.
Many providers have an eye towards improvement, with 83% saying
that guests would be more satisfied if it was easier to accept
payments in the customer’s own currency. Furthermore, 83% believe
that their business would grow if it was easier for them to accept
payments in their customer’s own currency. In terms of outgoing
payments, 80% wish their outgoing payments were easier to handle,
especially paying out to their vendors (83%) and paying their
agents commissions (81%).
As a takeaway, global travel providers can upgrade their
payments technology to meet both customers’ expectations and
business goals. With Flywire, travel businesses enable their guests
to pay in their local currency with competitive exchange rates, and
simplify the reconciliation. Providers can also receive invoices
and payment requests from vendors or agents, and pay securely all
within the Flywire platform.
Remote work and flexibility presents growth
opportunities for travel providers
Ongoing work flexibility is giving many people the opportunity
to travel more than ever before as they are freed from the
constraints of traditional corporate models. 89% of travel
providers are seeing an increase in customers wanting
accommodations to allow for remote work, and 44% are seeing an
increase in requests from customers for business amenities. To
capitalize, most travel providers are now offering packages that
accommodate travelers with different work arrangements; 64% offer
packages to accommodate a 4-day work week during trips, and 59%
offer packages to accommodate remote working throughout an entire
trip.
Travel providers believe that remote/flexible working may make
travel look different, saying it will encourage more trips planned
in advance (46%), family vacations (46%), solo travel (40%) and
back-to-back trips (30%). They also anticipate that they’ll see
more requests for booking flexibility, as 57% are being asked for
early check-in options, 52% are asking for no fee
cancellations/changes and 45% are being asked for late check-out
options.
As a takeaway, travel providers can free up their time to focus
on elevating their guests’ experiences and leverage Flywire to
streamline the payments process, including flexible payment options
like split group payments and managing chargebacks. Additionally,
Flywire’s integration with bookings platforms like Rezdy and
Roomboss ensures that travel providers can meet the demands for
booking flexibility, without needing to do anything manually.
To experience the complete report visit here.
About Flywire
Flywire is a global payments enablement and software company.
Flywire combines its proprietary global payments network, next-gen
payments platform and vertical-specific software to deliver the
most important and complex payments for its clients and their
customers.
Flywire leverages its vertical-specific software and payments
technology to deeply embed within the existing A/R workflows for
its clients across the education, healthcare and travel vertical
markets, as well as in key B2B industries. Flywire also integrates
with leading ERP systems, so organizations can optimize the payment
experience for their customers while eliminating operational
challenges.
Flywire supports more than 3,700 clients with diverse payment
methods in more than 140 currencies across 240 countries and
territories around the world. Flywire is headquartered in Boston,
MA, USA with additional offices around the globe. For more
information, visit www.flywire.com. Follow Flywire on X (formerly
known as Twitter), LinkedIn and
Facebook.
Safe Harbor Statement
This release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995,
including, but not limited to, statements regarding the effects of
payment processes on students, institutions and the education
experience. Flywire intends such forward-looking statements to be
covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking
statements contained in Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934 and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms
such as, but not limited to, “believe,” “may,” “will,”
“potentially,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,”
“could,” “would,” “project,” “target,” “plan,” “expect,” or the
negative of these terms, and similar expressions intended to
identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking
statements are based upon current expectations that involve risks,
changes in circumstances, assumptions, and uncertainties. Important
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those reflected in Flywire's forward-looking statements include,
among others, the factors that are described in the "Risk Factors"
and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition
and Results of Operations" sections of Flywire's Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, and Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, which
are on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and
available on the SEC's website at
https://www.sec.gov/. The information in this
release is provided only as of the date of this release, and
Flywire undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking
statements contained in this release on account of new information,
future events, or otherwise, except as required by law.
Contacts
Media:Sarah
KingSarah.King@Flywire.com Prosek
Partnerspro-flywire@prosek.com
Investor Relations Contacts
Akil HollisIR@Flywire.com
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