Moving Beyond Revenge Travel Into an Endless Summer of Possibilities 

Reports of the death of “revenge travel” may be premature. That’s because travel demand hasn’t slowed down post-pandemic, but that phrase, well, bon voyage, good riddance and auf wiedersehen. The important thing is that people still wanna getaway (as the ad goes). 

But is the rise in travel just a bubble? In its 2024 Travel Outlook report, Deloitte says, “From January through November 2023, TSA-reported passenger travel was up an average of 12.5% year over year.” The report considers whether US travel is due for a correction, concluding that there could be “significant fluctuations in demand” subject to changing economic conditions. 

The Deloitte report also weighs in on revenge travel, noting that by late last year, “just 11% (of travelers) said they were making up for missed trips.” John Grant, a travel analyst at OAG, told Nerdwallet, “We’re talking about a softening. We’re not talking about a nosedive.” Of course, not everyone shares his lukewarm outlook. According to Forbes, Delta Air Lines President Glen Hauenstein predicted at the start of the year that “Revenge travel has years to go, particularly in long-haul international.”

Regardless of what motivates travelers, all signs, including economic indicators, point to a solid year for the travel industry in 2024. In Skift Research’s Global Travel Outlook 2024, they blurbed that “2024 will be the year that the travel industry fully transitions from catch-up to true growth above pre-pandemic levels. Without revenge travel as a tailwind, we expect a more normal growth trajectory for the travel industry this year.” 

Both Sides Now

What does this travel outlook indicate to marketers seeking to launch effective summer campaigns? Targeting known travelers is critical to efficiency. Data integrations can present previously timely opportunities based on current travel behaviors. For example, marketers can target US consumers based on previous traveling history, in-market propensity or leisure interests (like golfing). 

Viant’s people-based omnichannel DSP, powered by Viant Household ID, enables marketers to link travel intent, travel history and physical visits, closing the loop and enabling omnichannel execution at scale. Travel marketers can choose from best-in-class programmatic inventory sources in CTV, Mobile, DOOH, Audio, Display, and In-Game. Marketers can also activate seamless omnichannel retargeting with Direct Deal (PG) access across the preferred supply. 

Viant can also help marketers understand the impact of media buys on driving actions. For instance, our unique integration with Arrivalist enables the passback of log-level data to provide extensive coverage across channels like CTV, Audio and DOOH for higher match rates and cookieless measurement.  Arrivalist distills mobile location data and provides accurate attribution, measuring where travelers come from and how long they stay. 

As marketers gain actionable insights, they can drill even deeper, initiating custom geofencing to measure non-residents who were exposed and visited targeted destinations. They can also capture clicks and impressions to attribute campaigns and website activity to visitors, flight bookings, room nights and hotel revenue from active travelers. 

These capabilities enable travel marketers to hone a sophisticated omnichannel strategy that engages with target audiences and, after initial ad exposure, keeps reaching travelers across their devices, no matter where or why they roam. 

Contact your Viant representative to learn more, or get started with us.