The future is bright for the silver travellers
With many over 50s feeling young, fit and healthy – it’s the perfect storm for a travel frenzy!
Hills Balfour reports that Lucy Campbell, Hills Balfour’s Social Media Director attended the Silver Travel Industry breakfast meeting to hear all about their latest industry report, which provided a wide ranging analysis of the travel habits of the over 50’s. …and it seems that the future is bright for the Silver Travellers – more health and more wealth means that this is a golden window of largely untapped potential in the travel industry.
The Baby Boomers are mostly in a pretty good position. Getting ready to retire, with a home of their own and quite possible a final salary pension and still feeling young, fit and healthy. It’s the perfect storm for a travel frenzy!
WHO ARE THE SILVER MARKET?
• 50+ market
• 17K people turn 50 every week in the UK
• Make up 35% of the UK’s ageing population
• By 2020 there will be more people over 50 than under 50
• There will be more pensioners than teenagers by 2050
• New and powerful consumer class
• Fastest growing adopters of technology and social media
• Expected 65% rise in over 65’s by 2033
• The number of people aged 75 and over has increased by 89% since 1974
• Over 75’s currently make up 8% of the population
• The over 85’s are the fastest growing age group in the UK
• 1 in 3 babies born today will live past 100
• 19th century death rate = current 21st century divorce rate
THEY HAVE TIME AND MONEY
• Over 50’s (22.8m UK consumers) hold 80% of the nation’s wealth (approx £9 trillion)
• The spending power of the boomer generation will reach $15 trillion globally by 2020
• Highest disposable income of any age group
• Outspend younger adults on line 2:1 per capita
• 1 in 10 pensioners have a total wealth of £1m or more
• Consumer spending by the over-50’s accounts for about 50% of the UK total with a significantly higher percentage being for luxury goods
• 75% fully own their property and many are willing to release some of these assets to fund their adventures
• 66% of 50-65 y/o’s are SKIERS (spending the kids inheritance), rising to 71% for parents aged 60-65
TRAVEL
• 1/3 of the pension pot money pensioners are now allowed to draw out as and when they want has so far been spent on holidays
• The “grey pound” now accounts for the majority of the UK’s spending on travel and tourism
• 80% spend at least £1k on holidays each year, 39% spend up to £3k and 23% spend over £5k
• 68% travel at least twice a year
• They take longer holidays
• 25% are thinking about their first gap year
• Over 25% travel with their children
• Alliance & Leicester found that 26% of over 50’s were planning a trip half way across the world to Australia or New Zealand and 3% were even contemplating Antarctica
TRAVEL WISH LIST
• Northern Lights
• Venice
• Australia and New Zealand
• Safari
• The Scottish Highlands
• Round the world cruise
• The Amazon
• Las Vegas
• The Pyramids
• The rainforest
• A nudist holiday
(Article source: Hills Balfour)
