Top Post-COVID Travel Trends and Startups to Look Out For

The tourism industry, which had not foreseen disaster, was severely affected by the covid influence. Nevertheless, the industry is actively recovering from the outcomes of the pandemic. Moreover, COVID-19 has contributed to the development of new trends in travel and tourism. Looking back to 2020, people’s demands and expectations have changed quite significantly. Transformations in travel plans have opened up new opportunities for start-ups, which can now meet customer needs with innovative ideas.

This article compiles leading tourism trends and showcases the companies that have adapted to the industry’s abrupt changes.

New tourism trends: how COVID-19 has changed the way people travel

COVID-19 has not turned the travel industry upside down completely. However, it was a major push towards the development of new travel trends. People want a higher level of personalisation, the ability for bookings and transactions online. Still, the impact of the pandemic is palpable due to restrictions and new travel regulations.

Let’s take a closer look at the most noticeable post-pandemic trends in tourism.

Bleisure and work combined with family trips

The leading trend in business tourism is represented by bleisure. It stands for the combination of corporate travel with active recreation. Bleisure travel allows tourists to combine work and leisure once every two or three months. This trend is especially popular with the so-called Generation Y – the people born from 1981 to 1996.

According to Travel Edge Network research, the number of bleisure trips has increased by more than 25 per cent compared to previous years. And the duration of such trips has tripled, exceeding 10 days. Tourists often take their family, colleagues and friends on holiday, thereby creating a large group. This peculiarity caused an increased requirement for spacious accommodation options.

Motorhome travel

Motorhome travel is not new to the tourism industry. However, it is a trend gaining popularity in post-COVID realities. Most of all, this trend appeals to tourists with its sense of freedom and lack of schedules for cities and hotels. The route can be rearranged at any time, you can turn into unfamiliar towns and choose your destination according to your mood and the weather. An additional advantage of traveling in a motorhome is that you can communicate with fewer people and thereby lower the risk of catching COVID virus.

Travel companies actively support this trend and provide motorhome rentals to travelers.

Ecological travel

In 2022, Booking.com has produced a report on Sustainable Travel. It states that 71% of tourists are already expressing the need for sustainable travel today. And 38% of tourists wonder whether travel service providers make the necessary efforts to protect the environment.

Source: Sustainable Travel report

More and more tourists today prefer eco-friendly places to live which complicates the process of finding tourist accommodation. This customer pain can definitely be integrated into a start-up’s growth opportunity. Companies can increase their customer base by helping people find eco-friendly housing.

Local community travel

Equally with the need for stable options, travelers are now willing to communicate with the local population in the visited destinations. Today, tourists want not only to relax, but also to immerse themselves in the life of the local people. It infuses travel with unique local experiences that help to enrich and expand the traveler’s worldview.

According to a Booking.com study, 66% of tourists are looking for an authentic travel experience. Furthermore, some recent studies suggest that people not only want to rest in another country, but also contribute to the local population financially.

Health protection

The pandemic has affected all aspects of the tourism industry. But the issue of medical protection for tourists has taken a bigger hit. Even with lockdowns abolished and many restrictions lifted, people still cannot feel fully protected.

Tourists’ fears have led to new solutions in health protection. These days, people express a need for improved hygiene, a non-contact interaction approach, access to health insurance and much more. Tourists believe that technological advances can create safer touristic environments.

Health / recreational travel

Wellness travel is indeed a popular trend in the post-pandemic recovery realities. The purpose of such journeys is the treatment and recuperation of tourists. Wellness travel has always been popular, especially among senior citizens. However, according to reports from the Global Wellness Institute, the worldwide pandemic has shrinked this type of tourism by 39%. Nevertheless, with the pandemic receding health tourism is now showing the greatest annual growth rate.

GP Solutions has developed a number of travel software solutions for medical tourism companies. A notable case here is the advanced platform for the travel company ASISTOUR.

Learn more how GP Solutions applied its travel automation solution GP Travel Enterprise to launch a platform that greatly simplified customer interactions and day-to-day tour operator activities for the Client.

Nomadic travel and mobile lifestyle

The mobile lifestyle is gaining increasing popularity among digital nomads – middle-class remote workers and freelancers not bound to offices or specific locations. Their distinctive features are high mobility and frequent changes of residence. In choosing a location, nomads consider the quality of the Internet connection, the climate, along with the social and cultural environment.

Until 2020, there were around 65 million freelancers around the world. In today’s realities, their number is increasing significantly and is expected to reach one billion by 2035. Many European countries are developing digital visas to attract this type of tourist. This proves that governments are realizing the importance of digital nomads for the development of the country’s economy and society. Their awareness of the trend creates numerous opportunities for travel-related projects and startups working on ways to satisfy the growing demand for nomadic travel services.

VR tourism

The use of virtual reality in tourism is another popular trend. Virtual reality has the potential to change the industry and create a new competitive edge for travel companies. With virtual tours, tourists will be able to see hotels, restaurants and landmarks in advance. This will make it possible to accurately choose tours that customers are looking for.

The use of virtual reality is particularly beneficial in the context of a the pandemic. With online tours, the company assists the customer in making a decision. In case of doubts about the quality of a tour, the customer can assess the potential with the help of VR.

Some of the most promising modern travel start-ups

Successful travel start-ups take the above trends into account as far as possible. And surely they do not forget the fundamental customer needs such as online booking. Below we deal with a few examples of frontline trending travel platforms that exist today.

Travelin.ai: a corporate travel platform

Trends covered: bleisure travel, ecological travel, safety issues

Clients: working travelers, travel company managers, travel administrators, financial departments

Travelin.Ai is a business travel platform for companies.

The main purpose of the platform is to combine business and leisure travel (bleisure) by automatically sharing costs. With platform solutions, a company can easily manage everything: flight and hotel bookings, travel policies, expense management. The Travelin.AI platform allows employers to optimize the cost of employee travel. The platform is marked by flexibility. Online booking takes minutes and changes can be made at any stage of the platform.

Travelin.AI contains data on the environmental situation of the planned route. For example, it is possible to track CO2 emissions along a holiday itinerary. In this way, the platform is unique for lovers of eco-friendly vacations. More to that, it also provides data on the crime rate of the selected region and current COVID restrictions.

Runway health: the travel health protection platform

Trends covered: health protection

Clients: travelers, tour operators

Runway Health is a global wellness companion. The platform accompanies clients on their journey to ensure timely delivery of medication. The main advantage of the platform is that it is open 24 hours a day, without weekends, and delivers medicines within 3-5 working days. The platform provides travelers with medication for the five most widespread illnesses: malaria, diarrhoea, motion sickness, insomnia and altitude sickness.

Origin: luxury travel platform

Trends covered: bleisure travel, ecological travel, local communities, mobile lifestyle

Clients: travelers

Origin creates individual tours designed with unlimited personalisation using machine learning techniques and curatorial expertise.

The platform is classified as a technology-based travel company capable of developing frequent luxury trips. An important feature of Origin is using machine learning to create the perfect travel itinerary. The platform creates unique travel plans for customers with every need in mind: routes for coffee tastings, dinners in top restaurants, seat selections on the plane and much more.

Origin Curators are tourism experts with over a century of collective experience in creating tailor-made travel itineraries. This team of experts applies extensive personal experience to create highly personalized journeys. In doing so, they pay special attention to areas closely interacting with the local communities.

Do you require help in bringing your new unique travel idea to life?

Let GP Solutions guide you. Learn more about our development services  for startups .

Campspace: ecological travel platform

Trends covered: ecological travel, local communities, mobile lifestyle, motorhome travel

Clients: travelers, local hosts

Campspace is a platform for finding appropriate campsites. It provides solutions for outdoor adventures. With Campspace, it is possible to find any eco-friendly accommodation option: tents, motorhomes, huts, tree houses, etc.

Both tourists and local hosts are involved in the work of the platform. Local hosts use the platform to offer private property or campsites for rent. Tourists, in turn, can browse through multiple eco-friendly accommodation options.

Safetywing: travel and health insurance platform

Trends covered: mobile lifestyle, health protection

Clients: travelers, digital nomads, freelancers

SafetyWing is a travel insurance start-up. The platform arranges health and travel insurance, mainly for freelancers.

The platform offers two types of insurance. ‘Nomad Insurance’ targets digital nomads who need insurance from outside their country of residence. This insurance covers travel and health protection, including cases of illnesses and unexpected events such as accidents, travel delays or natural disasters. Another type of coverage, ‘Remote Health’, is a comprehensive insurance package for the company’s employees and contractors worldwide. Currently, the startup is working on developing two additional insurance packages.

Nomad stays: affordable housing for digital nomads

Trends covered: mobile lifestyle, health protection

Clients: travelers, freelancers

The main mission of Nomad Stays is to provide an instant accommodation booking service for digital nomads. Today, the platform covers over 64 countries. All accommodation options have the required facilities for freelancers: fast and stable internet, co-working spaces nearby and comfortable places to stay.

The shortest booking period for a stay is one week. Nomad Stays also does not charge accommodation booking fees. In addition, the app can help find appropriate accommodation for pet owners.

Basubu: experiential vacations

Trends covered: mobile lifestyle, local communities, ecological travel, health travel

Clients: travelers, spiritual practitioners

Basubu was originally created as a platform for meditations and yoga practices. Today, however, it focuses on retreats and outdoor activities. For example, the application provides surfing activities, various types of safari and motorsports activities.

Basubu operates across 4 continents. The platform helps both travelers and event organizers. The startup has a dedicated host support system that operates around the clock. The platform makes a living on fees charged for booking an accommodation.

VR Applications and Tourism

The use of virtual reality in the tourism context is undoubtedly a trend at an early stage of growth. The introduction of VR into a company’s environment suggests a breakthrough in the travel market. Let’s explore the applications of virtual reality for tourism with some concrete examples.

Virtual hotel tours

Virtual tours are the most popular application of artificial intelligence in tourism. Using a virtual reality headset, tourists can now walk around their preferred hotels without leaving the room. The main advantage of such a tour is the detailed presentation of the chosen hotel, including any imperfections that may be hidden in the photos. Some hotels already offer a 360-degree view of the hotel. However, it is advisable to have a special headset for this purpose.

Virtual booking

The use of virtual reality in tourism can also be applied to travel bookings. There is no more need for a computer headset and ten opened browser tabs. By using a virtual reality headset, it is possible to facilitate the booking process. The booking process takes on a new look with virtual reality. The user will be able to explore the hotel to be booked, the rooms, the attractions in one place.

Virtual travel experience

Finally, virtual reality allows users to evaluate the travel experience in advance. Travel companies, hotels and other platforms will be able to provide customers with this opportunity.

For example, a hotel in Havana will be able to provide an insight into how the user will see the Capitolio through their eyes. And let’s say a hotel near Disneyland can provide a virtual roller coaster experience. The strength of this virtual reality application is the selection of tours, tickets and rooms based on the experience provided.

What to expect in the tourism sector

One way or another, the coronavirus pandemic has significantly changed tourism trends. As time goes on, the number of fresh trends will only increase.

Above all, tourists today are willing to spend money on impressions rather than on things. According to MasterCards research, tourists have spent 34% more on entertainment this year. In today’s reality, people need to be impressed and inspired, rather than being sold material things.

An increasing number of tourists are expressing a need for more immersion and inclusion in the services provided. Today, it is important for people to be sure of their journey. The Expedia Group reports that 92 percent of travelers demand guarantees in terms of transport, accommodation and food. Thus, 7 out of 10 tourists are ready to pay more for the inclusiveness of a tourist trip.

In the nearest future, artificial intelligence is likely to have a huge impact on the tourism industry. Although the introduction of virtual reality into life is still in its infancy, it has already become a trend. A growing number of companies are expressing interest in a technologically new approach to tourism.

While many people imagine the use of virtual reality only in the environment of computer games, VR is making its way into new areas of business. Travel platforms use virtual reality as a marketing tool. Nowadays, tourists can take a virtual tour of a hotel, book trips and even see the sights beforehand with their own eyes.

The pandemic has established a new environment for tourism. Most trends are connected with inner harmony and people’s exploration of the world. So, people are now more interested in their health and the environment. Tourists want to see the world as it is, not from an all-inclusive hotel window. But at the same time feel safe and secure.