New travel trend More and more people are traveling to find love
More and more people are traveling not only to see and experience new things, but also to get to know others. According to a study, young travelers in particular are looking for real connections on the road - friendship, closeness or even love.
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- Today, traveling is seen as an opportunity to make real contacts.
- According to Skyscanner and WeRoad, many people, especially from Generation Z, travel to make friends or find love.
- The topic is also becoming increasingly present online - with many stories about encounters abroad.
A few years ago, the slogan on social media was clear: "Catching flights, not feelings" - in other words, traveling rather than allowing feelings. Today, the motto has changed: "Catching flights and feelings". Travel is no longer just about escape, but about encounters.
This is shown by a recent analysis by Skyscanner and WeRoad: 58% of respondents have already traveled abroad or at least thought about it - to make friends or date. Among Generation Z, the proportion is as high as 74 percent, and 51 percent among boomers. At the same time, worldwide hotel bookings with the "solo travelers" filter increased by 83%.
Travel is increasingly seen as an opportunity to build genuine interpersonal connections. According to the analysis, the most important reasons for traveling are getting to know other cultures (28%), meeting like-minded people (15%) and exploring destinations with locals (12%). For many, being on the road is also an opportunity to be more spontaneous and free - 38% are more open to new encounters when traveling, while 27% feel more like themselves.
"When we leave behind all the housework, endless deadlines and numerous demands that are part of everyday life at home and adopt a vacation mentality that focuses on spontaneity and freedom, our emotions have room to blossom," says travel psychologist and founder of Essentialise Lee Chambers.
"When we travel, we slip out of our usual role and allow ourselves to be ourselves - also thanks to the fact that hardly anyone knows us at the vacation destination."
Interest can also be observed online
The growing interest can also be seen online: In travel subreddits, the number of views of dating posts increased by a whole 492 percent compared to the previous year, according to the analysis.
Solo travel shows that many people are looking for real encounters - new ways to get in touch with others. "We believe that traveling is one of the most effective ways to create real human connections," says Andrea D'Amico, CEO of WeRoad.
Almost everyone knows that love or friendships can develop abroad. This topic is becoming increasingly present on social media: Many people share short videos about their romances - or really great love stories:
"You met a guy a year ago when you were on a solo trip in Spain and now your weekends consist of him visiting you," writes one TikTok user:
Or this user: "A reminder of my European girls - your husband probably lives in Australia":
On TikTok, many users* also report having met their best friend abroad. This user writes: "Everyone talks about childhood best friendships, but let's take a moment to appreciate the friends we've made abroad - the ones who make a foreign place feel like home and make life a little easier."
