Travel booking platform Omio's 2024 trends, including travel-tech companions

Report reveals latest trends and decision drivers for travel bookings

Global travel booking platform Omio has released its inaugural NowNext annual report, revealing the trends defining travel in 2024 and beyond. 

Omio commissioned the renowned research house, Ripple Effect, to conduct an omnibus survey of thousands of European and US travellers. 

The findings, complemented by user data, highlight the rise of traveller traffic, with new drivers inspiring booking decisions.  

The NowNext 2024 found that remote, niche locations have grown in popularity over the last years, but city escapes are on the rise again with 60% of travellers planning to visit major cities in 2025. 

Culture-rich capitals win top spot as the most in-demand locations on the Omio platform in 2024, but it isn’t only iconic landmarks persuading travellers to go urban, with food, concerts, and sporting events increasingly amongst the main reasons travellers are flocking to major metropolises.

It revealed that over the last few years, travelling alone as a trend has been heavily led by women, but soon we'll see a surge in lone male voyagers with 30% of men compared to 23% of women planning a solo trip in 2025. 

Not only are men planning to increase solo travel, but they also plan to do it in style with 28% of men planning to spend over £2,000 on their international trip.

It went on to showcase that travellers cite language barriers and navigating unfamiliar transport networks as the biggest sources of stress with almost a third (29%) of respondents struggling with foreign transport. 

In 2025, travellers will increasingly lean on technology to navigate the complexities of international travel with 44% saying they would use AI to plan and book travel in 2025, compared to 27% in 2024.

While ‘shoulder-season’ can provide cheaper, quieter, and temperate conditions, travellers just can’t resist peak summer travel. 

In 2024, 74% of travellers believed June, July, and August were the best times to get away. In 2025, it is set to be a similar story, with 76% preferring the full tourist experience of peak season compared to off-peak options.

It also found savvy travellers are increasingly using AI and social media with 45% of travellers getting their travel inspiration from social media in 2024.

Finally, conscious travel continues to rapidly grow in importance for travellers as they try to minimise the negative impacts of their journey and help the communities and places they visit. 

Over half of travellers (58%) are more likely to travel to places that incentivise sustainable travel and 44% say supporting local businesses and restaurants is a key part of their travel plans.

"At Omio, we are always looking for new ways to simplify and enrich our customers’ travel experiences," said Veronica Diquattro, Omio President B2C Europe.

 "We’ve created this report to get a deeper understanding of what is driving booking decisions, now and into 2025. 

"From the rise of men’s solo travel to the return of city breaks, we’re seeing a dynamic mix of emerging new trends with the renaissance of holiday rituals. 

"We’re also witnessing the continued rise of the digital traveller, whose increasing reliance on AI, social media and apps, provides an insight into how the industry must evolve to meet changing consumer needs.”

She added: “From our NowNext ‘24 Report, it's clear that travellers' needs continue to change. At Omio, it's our mission to offer a powerful and easy-to-use platform that allows travellers, from all corners of the globe, to navigate the complexities of the travel landscape with consummate ease. 

"It's our goal to support all types of travellers, catering to individual needs, personal preferences and decision drivers in 2025 and beyond. We believe it’s time to shake things up. Travel is changing, and Omio is leading the way.”