Expedia’s #LikeToTravel report delivers the latest status update on social media’s impact on travel
Kiwis love social media; on average over two hours per day is spent perusing feeds and posting updates. Call it passion or habit, it’s safe to say social media is now a dominant travel partner! Expedia’s 2018 social media and travel report, #LikeToTravel, suggests Kiwis have upped the social snaps stakes and are focusing on achieving ‘gram glory rather than their surroundings when travelling…
Social Saturation
Two out of every three Kiwis post pics to their social networks while on holiday, spending on average 45 mins each day, documenting their trip alone. Over a two-week holiday, that’s a whole waking day and equates to millions of holiday hours spent taking the pic, applying the filter, uploading, adding a creative caption and responding to comments. The two most prolific documenters are parents and millennials jumping up above the average to over an hour each day!
And, it’s about quality over quantity – 35% reveal they spend time and effort getting the right shot and pose. Compared with Expedia’s 2017 report, the results reveal Kiwis are posting less frequently, however are spending more time on the individual photo. Roughly it’s about a 6-minute job, but nearly 10% admit they spend 30 minutes or more taking the perfect pic, with some taking 2 hours or more! 2 HOURS MORE!
What’s the main motivator for close to 30% of Kiwis behind spending time capturing the perfect pic? Envy among friends! And it sure does work with close to 50% of Kiwis admitting they’ve felt envious of someone’s travel pic they’ve seen in their feeds. LOL.
View this post on Instagram
Social Inspo
While social media is impacting our travel on the ground, it’s also a major travel inspiration tool for Kiwis to find their next destination. Close to a quarter of Kiwis have visited a place based off a post they saw on their social media and a further 20% plan to!
View this post on Instagram
Too little or too much?
The results show the extent that social media is impacting our travel, but the jury is out as to whether Kiwis feel social media on holidays is a good or bad thing. 25% believe social media detracts from their holiday experience, while 27% believe it adds to the holiday. That’s pretty even if you ask us! Love or hate it, 15% admit they feel some holiday moments are missed by being on social media.
Lisa Perkovic, Travel Expert at Expedia Group, commented on the findings saying “Travel connects us culturally, emotionally and physically, not on a device or via a screen, but in the real world. If I think about my favourite holiday experiences they’ve been sans screen. Whilst our mobile phone and social media is now a valuable travel partner, we want to encourage Kiwis to be mindful of how they use social media to ensure they aren’t wasting precious holiday time and missing moments.”
We agree. We LOVE documenting and sharing our travel snaps, but don’t miss out on living the experience!
Have you ever been inspired to book a trip to a destination you spotted in a social media post?!
See more
Written by Ronnie Swainston
A jet-setter with a love for sci-fi, Star Wars and Clexacon (look it up), Ronnie is a boss babe who likes to wind down with one (probably three) gin cocktails. Too often found trawling Instagram for cocktail and fashion inspo, her phone is full of #nailedit fails plus pictures of her fave people.
Favourite place she’s worked: New York City
Leave A Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.