We millennials are the most talked about generation. Companies want to hire us, brands want to target us and everyone wants to be as cool as us. Yet, we find ourselves at the receiving end of a lot of criticism and often, hate.
The truth is that our generation has created a major impact in transforming various aspects of the world, and travel is no exception. Here’s how we have changed travelling forever.
Prioritising experiences over material things:
While travellers earlier spent the most amount of money on shopping during vacations, millennials are instead investing in experiences and adventure. This is not because we are reckless, but because experiences change us, challenge us, and most importantly, stay with us forever.
Spending less money
There’s a misconception that we millennials are spendthrifts — this couldn't be further away from the truth. Yes, we do have more spending capacity than the generations before us, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that we spend money mindlessly. While travelling, we spend only if we also get an equally valuable service. With our obsession of spending less but getting more, we have given a boost to cheap, value for money experiences.
Popularising solo travel
The recent years have seen an exponential rise in the number of travellers who choose to travel solo rather than with friends and family. Solo travelling was not as famous before, and if you too have travelled solo, you will know what a transformative experience it is!
Travelling more
A recent study conducted by Skyscanner revealed that 62% of millennials travel 2 to 5 times a year whereas a whopping 10% stated that they travelled between 6 to 10 times every single year! Unlike the generations before us who toiled hard at work and left home only if there was a wedding, or well… a death in the family, we millennials are taking more trips, exposing ourselves to new people, places and culture, and thus, becoming more global and inclusive in our approach.
Indulging in authentic travel experiences
The last decade or so has also seen an unbelievable rise in travellers opting for home-stays rather than hotels. Staying with locals offers an authentic experience, giving a deep insight into their culture and lives. There is also a higher demand of indulging in activities that will give us a taste of a place’s culture — be it through a culinary class or a village tour. This massive shift is going to force you out of your well-manicured hotel that is the same no matter what part of a city or country you are in, and push you to have an immersive experience.
Choosing off-beat over the mainstream
Indian travellers are used to visiting mainstream locations such as Jaipur, Goa, Shimla, and Mumbai over and over again. While there is nothing inherently wrong with choosing to travel to popular destinations, the new trend of visiting places that are off-beat is boosting tourism in many small towns. This wasn’t possible before millennials who wanted to be different and explore more than what was given to them.
Opting for responsible travel and volunteering
While most think that we are a selfish group of people, millennials are actually opting for travelling opportunities that involve volunteering for a social cause and contributing to the place they are travelling to. Along with this, we are becoming more aware of the need to travel responsibly.
Using technology to improve travel
Millennials are almost synonymous with technology, after all, it has evolved massively in front of us. While travel suggestions were earlier limited to thick magazine guides and maps, today, we can actually travel based on what users on an application like Instagram suggest us. With reviews and ratings openly available, technology has made travelling much easier.
If you don't belong to the most rad generation that the world has ever seen, I suggest you take some travelling tips from us and make your trips more memorable as well as impactful.
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