Here’s more evidence of the popularity of “micro-trips”: according to a new survey by Allianz Global Assistance, the majority (57%) of Americans did not take a leisure trip longer than four nights in the last year. What’s more, nearly three-quarters (72%) of Millennials took at least one micro-trip – defined in the Allianz survey as a trip lasting fewer than five nights – as compared to 69 percent of Gen Xers and 60 percent of Baby Boomers.
Allianz based its report on an Ipsos poll of a sample of 1,005 Americans from the Ipsos I-Say panel, who were interviewed May 1 and 2.
According to the Allianz report, for many Americans, these micro-trips are replacing the traditional weeklong vacation. Almost two in 10 Americans (18%) said their longest trip in the last year was three to four nights, while one in 10 (11%) took no trips longer than one to two nights.
These trips may allow Americans to travel more frequently, Allianz said; 25 percent of all Americans and 29 percent of Millennials say they took at least three micro-trips in the last year.
Baby Boomers and Gen Xers still take longer trips. The report found that 40 percent of Baby Boomers avoided trips fewer than five nights in the past year, compared to 34 percent of the general population.
Millennials are less likely than older generations to take longer trips, with only 17 percent taking a trip longer than seven days in the past year, compared to 21 percent of Gen Xers and 22 percent of Baby Boomers. At the same time, 12 percent of Millennials and 15 percent of Gen Xers said that their longest trip was one to two nights, compared to 7 percent of Baby Boomers.
The survey also found that over one-quarter (28%) of all Americans have not taken a leisure trip of any length in the past year. Baby Boomers saw this trend the most, with 35 percent saying they did not take a trip in the last year, as compared to 26 percent of Millennials and 24 percent of Gen X.
When asked why they prefer to take micro-trips, 32 percent of Americans said it was easier to take time off work for shorter periods, and another 32 percent said they did not need more than five nights for the purpose of the trip, like attending a wedding or visiting friends. Other reasons include: preferring to take more frequent shorter trips than fewer longer trips (26%); not wanting to spend money on longer trips (19%); and it being easier to find a travel companion for a shorter trip (10%).
Taking less time off work was most important to Gen X’ers (40%), followed closely by Millennials (37%) and then working Baby Boomers (20 percent). Millennials (34%) and Baby Boomers (38%) take trips to attend special events or family occasions at much higher rates than Gen X’ers (23%), while finding a travel companion is more of a concern to Millennials (18%) than Gen X’ers (7%) and Baby Boomers (3%).
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