Each generation has a chance to shape the future of travel.
A new study from YouGov suggests that the Baby Boomer generation is the least likely among frequent travelers to be worried about the impact of their travel on the environment and local communities.
Only 31% of Baby Boomers surveyed—that is, travelers between the ages of 60 and 77—said the effects of their travel on the environment were a concern. Among those aged over 78 (also known as the Silent Generation, or those born between 1928 and 1945) the figure falls to just 26%.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Generation Z (aged 18-27) and Millennials (aged 28-45) experienced the highest levels of “eco-anxiety” when it came to their personal travel.
The survey also found that the younger demographics were also more concerned about social justice, and were more likely to book travel with B Corp designations.
Major travel brands that are B Corps include Exodus Adventure Travels, Intrepid Travel, and Pelorus.
Nearly half (48%) of Gen Z travelers said accreditations like B Corp were important as they chose where to spend their travel dollars. Around a third of Gen X and Baby Boomer travelers ranked such accreditations important. Younger travelers also preferred hotels that offered volunteer opportunities or supported local businesses, to the tune of 58%.
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Environmental concerns surrounding the travel industry are far-reaching. Travelers can be concerned about the environmental impact of their travels, particularly the carbon emissions created by their journeys. Eco-conscious travelers can choose less carbon-intensive travel modes like bus, train, or bicycling, and if they do fly; can choose flights on aircraft and routings that have fewer carbon emissions; plus they can often purchase carbon offsets from their airline.
Travelers are also concerned about overtourism and extractive tourism (tourism that takes resources from a community without replacing them). They might choose less-trafficked destinations and ensure they stay in accommodation types that don’t take housing availability from the local market.
The survey was commissioned among U.K. adults by hybrid hospitality operator The Social Hub, a certified B Corp that combines hotel and student-style lodging with food and beverage, event, and coworking spaces across the U.K. and continental Europe.
It’s worth noting, however, that views on climate change and sustainability can vary between the U.S. and U.K. Thirty-nine percent of the U.S. public felt that climate change impacts were not a top priority, according to a recent King’s College Survey, while in Britain it was 24%.
Americans were also more likely to take a fatalistic view of climate change, with 27% saying behavioral changes to tackle climate change were pointless, while only 19% of Britons felt the same. In both countries, survey respondents tended to view climate change topics roughly along ideological lines, with conservatives slightly more skeptical than liberals, but the split was more pronounced between the U.K.’s Liberals and Conservatives than between the U.S.’s Republicans and Democrats.
Each generation has a chance to shape the future of travel. The Baby Boomer generation is in the midst of a mass wave of retirements, driving up demand for travel as those travelers now have more time to devote to leisure travel. Travel demand will also increase as subsequent generations accumulate more disposable income as they age.
Among the generations, however, it’s Millennials who travel the most, averaging 35 travel days per year, according to data compiled by the travel company Expedia. Generation X travels the least, at 26 travel days per year. Generation Z slightly edged out Baby Boomers with 29 days to the older generation’s 27.
