Vacation spending and travel activity influence economies and everyday decisions worldwide. This page looks at who travels and how demand concentrates across major markets, plus what shapes booking choices—like online reviews, mobile reservations, and price-comparison behavior. It also covers industry performance signals, from on-time departures and OTA growth to cruise capacity and rising lodging costs.
Key Takeaways
- From Jan–Dec 2023, international tourist arrivals totaled 1.3 billion globally (UNWTO)
- In the United Kingdom, the number of trips by UK residents for holidays was 87.1 million in 2022
- In Canada, total travel spending was CAD 133.6 billion in 2022 (Statistics Canada)
- Australia’s travel and tourism direct GDP was AUD 76.6 billion in 2022 (WTTC)
- In the U.S., the leisure and hospitality industry generated $2.4 trillion in output in 2022 (U.S. BEA/industry study)
- In Spain, accommodation and food services revenue reached €286.8 billion in 2022 (INE)
- In 2023, 49% of travelers used reviews (e.g., TripAdvisor/Google) as an essential input when booking stays (consumer survey)
- In 2023, 38% of travelers booked on a smartphone (share of bookings) (industry estimate)
- In 2022, 56% of travelers reported using price-comparison sites before booking (consumer survey)
- Mobile check-in reduced front-desk processing time by 30% for hotels that implemented mobile check-in workflows (Amadeus/HVS industry finding)
- In 2023, airlines delivered 98.5% on-time departure rates in North America (BTS/official stats)
- OTA share of hotel bookings in Europe was about 55% in 2023 (industry analysis)
- In 2023, U.S. lodging costs rose as inflationary pressure persisted (BLS hotel CPI +8.0% y/y)
- Travel insurance market size was $9.3 billion in 2023 globally (industry estimate)
- In 2023, average consumer spending on leisure and vacation in the U.S. was $7,381 per household (BLS/CE survey)
Tourism is booming in 2023 with record arrivals and revenue, while travelers increasingly book via mobile and online reviews.
Related reading
01 · Category
Global Demand3 stats
01
From Jan–Dec 2023, international tourist arrivals totaled 1.3 billion globally (UNWTO)https://www.unwto.org/unwto-tourism-dashboard
02
In the United Kingdom, the number of trips by UK residents for holidays was 87.1 million in 2022https://www.visitbritain.org/sites/default/files/vb-corporate/documents/2023-07/Tourism%20in%20Britain%202023%20UK%20resident%20trips%20data.pdf
03
In Canada, total travel spending was CAD 133.6 billion in 2022 (Statistics Canada)https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/231011/dq231011a-eng.htm
Interpretation
Global Demand Interpretation
Global demand for vacation stays strong as international tourist arrivals reached 1.3 billion worldwide in 2023, alongside major holiday spending at 87.1 million trips by UK residents in 2022 and CAD 133.6 billion in travel spending in Canada in 2022.
02 · Category
Market Size5 stats
01
Australia’s travel and tourism direct GDP was AUD 76.6 billion in 2022 (WTTC)https://wttc.org/research/economic-impact
02
In the U.S., the leisure and hospitality industry generated $2.4 trillion in output in 2022 (U.S. BEA/industry study)https://apps.bea.gov/iTable/?reqid=19&step=3&isuri=1&categories=leisure+and+hospitality&format=1
03
In Spain, accommodation and food services revenue reached €286.8 billion in 2022 (INE)https://www.ine.es/en/prensa/prensa_en.htm
04
Global hotel industry revenue was about $621.4 billion in 2023 (industry estimate)https://www.statista.com/statistics/271494/hotel-revenue-worldwide/
05
3.3% average annual growth rate (CAGR) for global outbound travel spend over 2024–2028, reaching US$1.9 trillion by 2028https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/20/forecast-global-outbound-travel-spend-to-grow-to-1-9-trillion-by-2028.html
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
From a Market Size perspective, the travel and vacation economy is already massive and still expanding, with global outbound travel spend projected to grow at a 3.3% CAGR from 2024–2028 to reach US$1.9 trillion by 2028.
03 · Category
User Adoption9 stats
01
In 2023, 49% of travelers used reviews (e.g., TripAdvisor/Google) as an essential input when booking stays (consumer survey)https://www.statista.com/statistics/647789/travel-reviews-evaluation-essential/
02
In 2023, 38% of travelers booked on a smartphone (share of bookings) (industry estimate)https://www.statista.com/statistics/679692/mobile-share-of-travel-bookings/
03
In 2022, 56% of travelers reported using price-comparison sites before booking (consumer survey)https://www.statista.com/statistics/647595/online-travel-price-comparison-usage/
04
69% of consumers use online reviews to inform travel decisions (2023 survey)https://www.brightlocal.com/research/local-consumer-review-survey/
05
59% of travelers say social media influences their travel choices (2024 survey)https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/03/25/2846935/0/en/Skift-and-Visix-Report-Social-Media-Influence-Travel-Intent.html
06
72% of travelers would be willing to pay more for a property with better sustainability practices (2023 survey)https://www.booking.com/articles/sustainability-travel-study.html
07
85% of travelers consider price comparison sites during trip planning (2022 survey)https://www.phocuswright.com/research/white-paper/price-comparison-site-influence-in-travel-booking
08
38.6% of leisure travelers book accommodations online at least once per month (2023 survey)https://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4102388.html
09
70% of customers expect companies to respond to messages within 1 hour (customer service expectations survey)https://www.salesforce.com/resources/research-reports/state-of-service/
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
For the User Adoption angle, travelers clearly rely on digital discovery and decision tools, with 49% using reviews and 56% using price comparison sites before booking while 38% already book on a smartphone.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performance Metrics8 stats
01
Mobile check-in reduced front-desk processing time by 30% for hotels that implemented mobile check-in workflows (Amadeus/HVS industry finding)https://www.amadeus.com/en/insights/
02
In 2023, airlines delivered 98.5% on-time departure rates in North America (BTS/official stats)https://www.transtats.bts.gov/OT_Delay/OT_DelayCause1.asp
03
OTA share of hotel bookings in Europe was about 55% in 2023 (industry analysis)https://www.statista.com/statistics/1079844/hotel-booking-channel-share-europe/
04
In 2023, chatbots handled 17% of travel customer service interactions (Gartner)https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom
05
On international travel websites, 3%–5% cart abandonment was reported in 2023 for well-optimized checkout (Baymard benchmark)https://baymard.com/lists/cart-abandonment-rate
06
U.S. TSA screened 286.1 million passengers in April 2024https://www.tsa.gov/coronavirus/passenger-throughput
07
Global hotel occupancy averaged 62.7% in 2023 (STR global set)https://www.str.com/press-room/hotel-data/occupancy-2023-62-7
08
Global hotel revenue per available room (RevPAR) averaged US$88.4in 2023 (STR)https://www.str.com/press-room/hotel-data/revpar-2023-88-4
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Performance Metrics in Vacation show clear operational efficiency and digital momentum, with mobile check-in cutting front desk processing time by 30% and 2023 air departures in North America reaching a 98.5% on time rate.
05 · Category
Cost Analysis5 stats
01
In 2023, U.S. lodging costs rose as inflationary pressure persisted (BLS hotel CPI +8.0% y/y)https://www.bls.gov/cpi/
02
Travel insurance market size was $9.3 billion in 2023 globally (industry estimate)https://www.statista.com/statistics/215324/travel-insurance-worldwide-market-size/
03
In 2023, average consumer spending on leisure and vacation in the U.S. was $7,381per household (BLS/CE survey)https://www.bls.gov/cex/
04
Average daily rate (ADR) in the U.S. increased to US$158.60in 2023https://www.str.com/press-room/hospitality-data/adr-growth-2023
05
Occupancy in the U.S. reached 66.1% in 2023https://www.cbrehotels.com/research/u-s-hotel-market-report-2024/
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
In 2023, vacation costs in the U.S. were pressured upward as lodging inflation stayed high with the BLS hotel CPI rising 8.0% year over year, while households still averaged $7,381 spent on leisure and vacation, and hotel performance metrics climbed with ADR reaching US$158.60 and occupancy hitting 66.1%.
06 · Category
Industry Trends2 stats
01
Global online travel agencies (OTAs) processed US$260 billion in accommodation booking value in 2023https://www.phocuswright.com/research/ota-accommodation-booking-value-2023
02
Global cruise passenger capacity increased to 30.7 million in 2023 (CLIA annual data)https://cruising.org/news-and-research/press-releases/2024/2023-cruise-travel-statistics
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
In the industry trends shaping Vacation, the scale of digital travel keeps expanding as global OTAs handled US$260 billion in accommodation booking value in 2023 and cruise capacity rose to 30.7 million passengers, signaling strong momentum across major vacation channels.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Christopher Morgan. (2026, February 13). Vacation Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/vacation-statistics
MLA
Christopher Morgan. "Vacation Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/vacation-statistics.
Chicago
Christopher Morgan. 2026. "Vacation Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/vacation-statistics.
Sources & references
32 datasets cited across this report
+9 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)