Travel Professionals Say All-Inclusives, Family Trips Are Tops for 2005
Travel Experts Predict Increase of Intergenerational Family Travel for 2005, With a Focus on All-Inclusive Resorts
More than 750 travel professionals from across the United States indicate a strongly renewed interest in travel in 2005, with a focus on family travel and all-inclusive resorts, according to the second annual Travel Experts Survey, conducted Oct. 12, 13 and 14, 2004 at MLT University, the nation's largest travel agent education event.
Among the findings:
-- Agents said the most requested type of trip for 2005 is all-inclusive, with a focus on the beach. Family vacations came in second.
-- Agents cited the Cancun/Riviera Maya area of Mexico as their most requested destination for 2005. Las Vegas came in second.
-- Travel agents said their most requested destination for families in 2005 is Orlando, with the Cancun/Riviera Maya area coming in second.
-- 45 percent of agents said clients typically spend $1,000 or more per person on their vacations; 48 percent said clients spend $500-$1,000 per person.
-- The most common attraction tickets added to a package were theme parks, adventure tours and historical tours, respectively.
-- 75 percent of agents said at least one out of four clients purchase travel insurance.
Agents said travelers are increasingly taking the whole family on vacation, and they predicted that small group vacations would be more common in 2005. Agents also said travelers like the convenience of an all-inclusive resort, and whether it's for honeymooners or multiple families vacationing together -- both segments are growing quickly.
MLT University is a three-day event devoted to travel agent education and attended by more than 1,600 travel professionals from the United States and Canada. It is created and sponsored by MLT Vacations Inc. For information, visit http://www.worryfreevacations.com or http://www.nwaworldvacations.com .
