While there is great diversity among Hispanic travelers, MMGY Global has found some commonalities that point to strong connections between family, travel and culture. The findings were the result of its latest study on underrepresented travelers, this one titled, “Vistas Latinas: A Landmark Study on U.S. Travelers of Hispanic Descent.” MMGY touts it as the first travel research of its kind to examine the attitudes, opinions and sentiment of travelers from the United States’ fastest growing demographic group.
Beyond assessing the spending power of the group ($113.9 billion in domestic travel in 2019, accounting for 13 percent of all domestic leisure travel that year), the study aimed to paint a more nuanced picture of Hispanic travelers—also digging into how identity, language, culture, age and other factors affect travel behaviors, decisions and preferences. All proceeds from the sale of the study are being donated to Travel Unity, a non-profit focused on increasing diversity in travel through individual and community empowerment.
According to “Vistas Latinas,” the overwhelming majority (93 percent) travel with their family. Of that percentage, 59 percent indicated they travel with immediate family, 30 percent with parents and 28 percent with adult siblings. Further, six in 10 Hispanic travelers want to learn more about their own origin and history, and most Hispanic travelers (85 percent) have visited the country/territory of their family heritage (with 15 percent returning more than once a year and 22 percent returning yearly).
That said, there is also a strong desire to experience other Latino cultures and destinations, with 71 percent saying they would like to do so even if it is not where their family originated from. The study additionally found that the top three domestic destinations for Hispanic overnight travelers are California (21 percent), Texas (15 percent) and Florida (14 percent); this correlates to the three states with the highest number of Hispanic residents.
Hispanic Travelers and Representation
As America’s Hispanic population is a melting pot of cultures, MMGY Travel Intelligence says it “used an innovative approach to fielding the survey to mirror the distribution of the Latino population,” providing insights based on where Hispanic travelers live and where their travels might take them.
Of those surveyed for “Vistas Latinas,” most said they were born in the United States (83 percent) and a majority indicated their parents were also born in the U.S. Half of respondents indicated their family originated from Mexico, while a quarter of respondents surveyed said they were of Caribbean heritage (Puerto Rican, Dominican or Cuban).
Key findings include:
- The vast majority—80 percent of Hispanic travelers—prefer to identify as Hispanic, while 25 percent prefer Latino/Latina and 3 percent prefer the term Latinx (respondents could choose more than one preferred term).
- Fifty-seven percent agreed they are more likely to visit a destination that embraces Hispanic cultures and celebrates Hispanic business and cultural contributions.
- Fifty-two percent of respondents said they are more likely to visit a destination if they see Hispanic representation in the destination’s advertising and/or marketing materials.
- Hispanic travelers are predominantly consuming all forms of media in English.
The study analyzed findings from both MMGY Global’s 2019 Shifflet Travel Performance/Monitor, which profiled 3,894 Hispanic leisure travelers within the United States, and a new custom survey of 3,000 active Hispanic travelers. The most recent study was conducted this year in English and Spanish and analyzed the current needs, opinions and attitudes of Hispanic travelers in the United States.
Source: MMGY Global
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