Boston Globe, August 10, 2016
Yes. Yes it is. Back in August 2016, the Boston Globe published an article, Most travelers today are women, and the industry may finally be catching on, giving a great overview of the market from both the supplier and consumer sides of the equation.
…the extent to which women have come to outnumber men in leisure travel has otherwise been as little noticed as it is dramatic.
Nearly two-thirds of travelers today are women, reports the George Washington University School of Business.
Many of these women travel solo or exclusively with other women. More than 11 percent of adult leisure travelers are women on their own, the US Travel Association says. AAA reports that one in four have joined other women on “girlfriend getaways,” bachelorette trips, or mother-daughter getaways, with 39 percent planning to do so at least once in the next three years.
The reporter talks to a number of Tour Operators. Not surprisingly, Gutsy Women Travel is bullish about the market. What is eye-opening are the stats cited by general tour operators. Jennifer Tombaugh, President of Tauck, said they’d seen the number of women travelers among its customers double since 2012. Carol Dimopoulos, President of Perillo Tours, said 70 percent of their customers are women. And, Joe Cali, President of Overseas Adventure Travel, reported 67 percent of his customers are female.
The article goes onto to quote Ann Fishman, Author of Marketing to the Millenial Woman.
The travel industry is scrambling to adapt to all of this. After all, as Fishman put it, “When you have a market that’s composed of 40 million women, believe me, every business is going to change to accommodate them.”
I’d like to think so but online travel agencies don’t even have a filter for “women’s travel” or “girlfriend getaways.” For women today, seeking the perfect travel experience takes a lot of hunting and pecking on the web, with no general repository of independent reviews on tours, hotels, resort packages, or destinations, through the lens of women travelers whether solo or in groups. I’d like to change that.
If you’re interested in reading the entire Boston Globe article, click here.
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