Sustainable Travel in an Era of Disruption: Did COVID-19 Change How We Travel?
The COVID-19 pandemic brought travel to a halt, and many hoped tourism would restart in a more sustainable way. For the European Travel Commission, this study examined whether the pandemic really changed travellers’ attitudes and behaviour.
Project duration: 2021 – 2023
The challenge
Many travellers say they care about sustainability, but their travel choices often tell a different story. The pandemic seemed a unique moment for change.
The study explored how COVID-19 influenced travellers’ understanding of sustainability, their attitudes towards sustainable travel, their actual and planned travel behaviour, and the conditions that could encourage more sustainable choices.
Our approach
ETFI and the Centre for Sustainability, Tourism and Transport at Breda University of Applied Sciences conducted a large-scale survey in Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy and the Netherlands. The team consisted of Bernadett Papp and Jasper Heslinga (ETFI), Paul Peeters and Ivar Neelis (BUas), and Jennifer Iduh, Lyublena Dimova and James Arnold (ETC).
The impact
The study found that the pandemic had very little effect: travellers’ behaviour before, during and after COVID-19 was largely the same. Values, beliefs and personal norms proved good predictors of travel behaviour, and the analysis revealed four distinct traveller clusters. Money and time turned out to be the main barriers to more sustainable travel.
The report was published by the European Travel Commission. Read more: https://etc-corporate.org/reports/sustainable-travel-in-an-era-of-disruption-impact-of-covid-19-on-sustainable-tourism-attitudes/
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