TripCentral.ca Survey Says: Canadians Definitely Ready to Travel Again

March 2, 2021 Jim Byers

Seven out of 10 Canadian travellers say they’ll book vacations if they’re vaccinated or confident in being vaccinated.

In a study of some 5,800 past customers conducted by tripcentral.ca in late February, 10 per cent of respondents said they’d book a trip whether they’ve received a vaccine or not, while 20 per cent said they’d book if they were confident in receiving an inoculation. Another 40 per cent said they won’t book a trip until they’ve been vaccinated, while 24 per cent said everyone should have a vaccine before they’ll book.

These are former tripcentral.ca customers being surveyed, so they’re obviously folks who like to travel. It’s somewhat encouraging, but it’s also clear that many Canadians who love travelling are reluctant to do so without a vaccine, which points to a rebound taking place later in the year versus the next few months (see details below).

Asked about their concerns about booking travel, 37 per cent “not being vaccinated yet,” while 32 per cent said the big issue is the idea of being quarantined on return to Canada. Eighteen per cent of respondents said their top concern is people in destination not having received a vaccine, even if they are vaccinated, while eight per cent said their biggest issue is pre-flight COVID-19 testing.

Asked how likely they are to book travel when the time is right, 37 per cent said they want to travel as soon as they can, while 34 per cent agreed with the statement “I so badly want to travel you have no idea.” Which I gotta say is a fun question to ask in a survey. Another 18 per cent said they’re somewhat interested in travel but that they can wait, while nine per cent said they’re in no hurry.

Asked when they want to travel, 27% said next winter, while 24% said the fall of 2021. Twenty one per cent of those surveyed said they’d go now if there weren’t any travel restrictions. Only 5.4 per cent of respondents said they’d travel this summer, and just 2.4 said they’d hit the road this spring.

Tripcentral.ca said their customers skew heavy to package vacations and are mostly in Ontario and Atlantic Canada.

Asked what type of trip they can see booking first when the time is right, 58% said an all-inclusive vacation, while 32 per cent answered “friends and relatives.” Thirteen per cent said they’d visit a city in Canada or the U.S., while another 13 per cent said they want to go to Europe.

The cruise industry has been decimated in the past year, but 11 per cent of those surveyed by tripcentral.ca said they can see booking a cruise for their first trip.

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