Travel will spike in 2022 so plan now for your well-being getaway
If you think travel can make you happy, you’re going to love 2022. That’s when an unprecedented number of travelers will also try to pursue that elusive goal: They’ll try to make themselves happy by taking a vacation.
A recent Amex Trendex survey of travelers found 81% of consumers surveyed value the freedom to travel more now than they did before the pandemic. More than two-thirds of travelers (68%) say they are likely to improve their mental well-being by taking a vacation next year.
“After more than a year of travelers being grounded, my clients are really looking to knock things off their bucket lists,” says Amy Siegal, a travel adviser with Valerie Wilson Travel.
I’ve had conversations with travelers who say ’22 will be their year to travel too. They’re planning outrageous getaways, from African safaris to Antarctic cruises. And they don’t have to say it, but they think these crazy – and crazy expensive trips – are going to make them happy.
Maybe they will.
What the happy travel trend means for you
For Betty Sandbeck, happiness is a field of red tulips. She and her husband plan to take a Viking “Tulips and Windmills” river cruise next April. It’s a break from the couple’s domestic vacations.
“We hope it’ll be OK to travel by then,” says Sandbeck, a retired computer executive who lives in Largo, Florida.
Peter Hoagland defines happiness as a cruise on Regent through the Inside Passage from Vancouver, Canada, to Seward, Alaska. Whales, glaciers and great food are on the menu.
“When we get to Alaska, we’re headed up to Denali on a tour,” says Hoagland, a consultant from Warrenton, Virginia.
What’s going to make you happy?
But how about you? What will make you happy? That’s hard – and easy – to answer. It’s easy in the sense that we know everyone wants to avoid a replay of 2020 and 2021. The mask confrontations. The high vacation rental prices. The car rental shortages.
If you’re a regular reader of this column, then you know how to sidestep all of that. But real happiness is more elusive and difficult to find. You’re looking for more than another same old, same old vacation. You want something amazing.
As someone who travels all the time, I can shed a little light on this topic. Travel does not make you happy. It can’t. It’s
more the lack of travel that makes you miserable.
The travel industry wants you to think the only way to achieve this goal is to spend lots of money. Fact is, you can bring a little variety into your life without overspending or traveling long distances.
So achieving happiness through travel means avoiding pain and boredom. And in 2022, that’s something many Americans seem to want.
These travel trends could affect your happiness in 2022
It’ll be more unpredictable than ever. “I expect restrictions will continue to be very dynamic based on both local
COVID vaccination and infection rates,” predicts Stan Caldwell, executive director of Carnegie Mellon’s Traffic21 Institute. If you like adventure, this may be your year.
Prices will rise. As more people book trips, rates will increase. Fare analysts at the airfare app Hopper forecast ticket prices to Europe will jump about 12% this fall and average $750 round trip. Roland Rust, a professor at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, sums up the outlook: “High prices and fewer options.” So book now.
It’ll be a lot like 2021. If you traveled this year, you’ll feel right at home in 2022. “Look for more staffing shortages, unruly passengers, route cuts, and an unprecedented number of delays and cancellations,” says Lauren LaBar, the travel and experience manager at the travel app Upaway.
“Be patient, optimistic, and prepared,” she says. “That will lead to a successful – and happy – year of travel in 2022.”
Here are the keys to a happier vacation in 2022
Don’t wait. “The sooner you can plan, the better will be your choices and the greater the odds that you will get the dates and itineraries you want,” says Mitch Krayton, owner of Krayton Travel in Denver. But changes may happen (particularly if there’s or another fastspreading variant). You can hedge your bets with travel insurance.
Take the road less traveled. If you’re thinking of resuming travel in 2022, look at your bucket list and push yourself a little, say experts. “Choose something more aspirational,” advises Ann Waters, a travel adviser at Travel Leaders in Fort Wayne, Indiana. “Go to a lesser-known Caribbean island for spring break. Think beyond Western Europe if you’re heading over the Atlantic in the summer.”
Stay a little longer. “Longer stays and vetted home rentals will be popular for 2022,” says Kate Johnson, owner of KJ Travel. She has several monthslong domestic and European itineraries already on the books. This allows for deeper immersion, and it might give you a perspective on the last two years.