The experience, trends and the traveller

Profile of an adventure traveller: 

Adventure tourism has grown a lot in the past few years with people of middle to higher incomes. This is since the 2009 economic crisis in Europe, when the economy recovered, these people started getting more money to spend on more premium goods and services as they have more disposable income, rather than needing it for essentials, it is spent on adventure tourism. 

Adventure tourism is very popular amongst younger people as they are more likely to want to experience some excitement in their lives and step out of their comfort zone. This can be achieved through putting themselves in perceived or real risks of danger. A lot of university graduates tend to take part in adventure tourism as they want to experience the world and new adventures before they get a full- time job with less hours to spare for tourism (Adventure Tourism - Definitions, History, Types, Characteristics & Features, or Importance, 2021). 

In current times, soft adventure tourism dominates the market compared to hard tourism. The types of people that take part in soft adventure tourism are usually beginners and unexperienced travellers as it is a lot easier to take part in soft activities, due to them being a lot less dangerous and difficult. 

Couple travellers, so those that travel in a pair, are predicted to grow the fastest in the adventure tourism industry. This is a lot higher than those travelling solo, in a group and with family. A lot of adventure travel companies appeal to couples such as Airbnb's and secret getaways, which encourages more couples to travel together. 

Those that are between the ages of 30-41 are predicted to be the fastest growing age group in the tourism market. This is because these people are likely to have higher paid jobs than younger people to fund their travel expenses. These are also likely to be physically fit and active people, which is why the age group would be higher than elderly people. 

Elderly people are more likely to take part in soft adventure tourism due to the easier activities  and those younger people that are less experienced are also likely to take part in soft adventure as it requires less knowledge. Younger experienced people and the physically fit, are those that would take part in hard adventure tourism for the thrill and because they are more able to take part in those riskier activities. 

Adventure travel expenditures: 

The customers that take part in more soft adventure activities, are the ones that spend the most on their trips. However all adventure travellers tend to spend a lot of money on their equipment and clothing before their trip. 

Behaviours, psychographics and demographics: 

There is an equal likelihood that an adventure traveller is single or married and male of female. Majority of travellers are between the ages of 35-47 years old. The people that have enough time to plan and organise their own trips are more likely to be younger people. Most adventure travellers conduct online research before their trips and also consult their friends and family before they go. 

Customers are more likely to be highly educated people. 70% of hard adventurers have post- secondary education, 63% of soft adventurers also have post- secondary education and 47% of other travellers have a two year degree or further. This would also suggest that these adventure travellers come from a higher income, due to their higher education. 

Most adventure travellers use the internet to help with research for their trips. They usually just search their destination into google and visit it's destination's website. 20% of people used social media to find out about a destination, from a blog or post. Facebook was the most used to find out about adventure travel. 

The younger generation (18-30) that take part in adventure tourism, are often those that have travelled in their youth and studied abroad. These are also better at searching the internet to find good deals on holidays and destinations. Those younger people from a higher income, with less time. These have less holiday to use up and often try to take part in as many activities as possible during their short stay, such as hiking mountain Kilimanjaro. They are also likely to spend more as it is more of a once- in a life time opportunity for them. This group of people are likely to book their adventure through a tour operator as they have less time to plan it themselves. The younger people that have a smaller budget and more time to spend on adventure travel. These groups of people are more likely to engage with the communities, wherever they visit. They would usually work for a few years and then spend long periods of time travelling, such as going on the cross- Siberian railway. These are more likely to seek authentic experiences and want to go trekking and taking their time experiencing the natural beauty. 

The elder generation (45-64), for them adventure travel starts later in their life, when they get extra money and time once their children are older and have moved out. They also might find time after retirement and find themselves wanting to do something they haven't had time to do before. These people often have big budgets from working for many years and want to experience new culture and adventures. They are also likely to book through tour operators as they don't know the best way to plan a whole trip down to every detail and conduct research. They are inspired by reading material, the television, friends and family. Experience is the main motivator for this generation. 

(ADVENTURE TOURISM MARKET REPORT, 2006).  

Trekking Everest Base Camp: 

The trek to Everest base camp is a once in a life time opportunity, which might appeal to those higher income youths or the elder generation. However those that are of the older generation would need a good level of fitness as it is very high up and requires a lot of walking and challenging trips. You would need experience trekking before taking part in this adventure. This would count as a hard adventure activity due to it needing experienced guides to assist the treks and the danger of the mountain treks. This type of activity involves meeting locals and learning about culture which might appeal to the older generation and the younger generation of lower budgets (Everest Base Camp Treks, n.d.). 

Skiing in Italy: 

Italy ski holidays can start off from £438pp which is affordable for most people, even with smaller budgets. These are a lot more laid- back and sociable holidays which would appeal to younger people visiting in large groups, or elderly people visiting during their retirement. They are more authentic and have cheap facilities and services near. It is very accessible for the older generation as there are easy scenic routes and diverse areas that can cover a lot of miles. This type of holiday is more of a soft adventure which means that it is not likely to appeal to the hard adventurers as it is not particularly dangerous or risky (Skiing In Italy | Italy Ski Resorts | Crystal Ski, n.d.). 

These are two completely different holidays, as the first one appeals to hard- adventure travellers that have a bigger budget and have to physically fit and healthy, and also for those that like the thrill and danger and are experienced travellers. Whereas the second holiday is more of a social and authentic holiday. This one is suited to people with a lower budget and less experience in travelling, that's motivations might be more for relaxation, and other intrinsic motivation. 

Motivations: 

People that are more likely to be intrinsically motivated are those thrill- seekers that want to take part in adventure travel for the danger and to challenge themselves, which makes them feel good. They are also the people that want to improve their health, so elderly people that might be retired would take part in adventure tourism on treks and walks for their health, whilst experiencing something new. 

People that are extrinsically motivated are those that take part for their image or status and how good it makes them perceive to be in front of others, when discovering new places not discovered before. Prices can also be an extrinsic motivation, if the travellers are young people with not a lot of savings, they would have a budget to spend, so cheaper holidays would appeal more to these people and motivate them to take part. 

Changes in consumer behaviour: 

The tourists change their behaviour when deciding on a trip and services. New behaviours are being shown from consumers such as how they are deciding to stay away from the more dangerous and risky adventures, for much safer ones. Which explains why soft adventure is a lot more popular than hard adventure. 

The last minute adventure behaviour explains that the planning of adventure tourism activities are getting a lot shorter, so they are becoming more of a spur of the moment holiday, and for the more spontaneous. 

Consumers are beginning to be more creative with their down time and fill them with activities that improve skills and help them to acquire new knowledge. They also look at the trend of wellness with adventure tourism such as wellness retreats have become popular, due to the growth of athleticism aspiration and the art of mindfulness. 

Social living is important these days as adventure tourists look at online resources and the media to find good places to visit, along with vouchers and discounts. They also rely on friends and family recommendations of where to go and which activities to plan. Consumers use social media to promote a destination in return for rewards and discounts from brands. 

Consumers change how they behave due to the changes in the world and their surroundings. For example the economic downturn, caused changes in the consumer price sensitivity and the willingness to spend money on luxury holidays, rather than on essentials (Lifestyle Trends & Tourism - How changing consumer behaviour impacts travel to Europe, 2016). 

Pre & post trip behaviour: 

 During the stage before the trip starts, most people are likely to feel happy and excited in anticipation for it, as it is something to look forward to from every- day life. Although the actual planning and preparation for the trip can be stressful. 

During the stage after the trip, there are a lot of positive thoughts and energy, with good memories of the positive experiences. The memory of the trip after, can help the person to stay happy for a while after, whilst they remember their experience. However this could also make the person sad as they know they might not experience anything like that again, or any time soon (Jung and Cho, 2015).