The desire to escape the everyday routine and enjoy some downtime in a different country is something that appeals to most of us. What’s more, a getaway is one of the best ways to spend quality time with family, friends, your other half or even as a solo traveller.
With that in mind, we wanted to find out how holidaymakers’ habits have changed over the past year, so we took UK Google Trends data from January to October in 2023 and 2024 and compared this to find changes in search volume, as well as changes in peak search months.
This research was carried out across different cruise and holiday destinations, passenger groups, and styles to find the most comprehensive results of 2024 trends within the market.
We found the results quite surprising, and we’re excited to share our findings with you below.
General Holiday & Cruise Booking Searches in 2024
January continues to be the most popular month for people searching for holidays with people keen to get something booked in to look forward to. This, of course, doesn’t include seasonal holidays like Christmas which tend to be booked a little more last minute.
In 2024, there was a general decline in the number of people searching for terms relating to holidays. With the cost of living crisis continuing to be at the forefront of people’s minds, as well as rising costs, it’s plausible that many people are choosing to stay at home after spending a considerable amount of money on a big holiday.
However, it’s also possible that people are just using other methods to find their holidays, such as social media or direct from trusted providers. Holidaymakers may be choosing to go back to destinations and providers they know and trust rather than going through a search engine. The search volumes may also be more specific to smaller destinations, hotels, or even more niche queries like “beachfront”.
Holiday & Cruise Trends: Continents & Countries
Year on year, the only continent that saw positive growth was South America, with a considerable 10.4% growth compared to 2023. South American holidays offer great weather year-round, incredible cultural experiences, and fantastic landscapes that can’t be found anywhere else in the world.
The continent with the biggest decrease was North America with a drop of -21.2% followed closely by their neighbours to the east, the Caribbean, with a drop of -21.1%. Environmental and geopolitical decisions in these areas could be impacting tourists’ decision to fly to these destinations, leading them further afield.
The story is much the same with cruise travel. South America once again tops the list for the highest growth in search volume, with a monumental rise of 41.7%. One key difference is that the peak of these searches happened in April 2024, compared to January 2023, suggesting altered marketing strategies, changes in travel patterns, and general seasonality.
Despite having great year-round weather, Africa’s search volume for cruises declined significantly, with a -41.8% drop in 2024 compared to 2023. Again, this could be due to regional challenges or environmental factors.
Continuing the South American trend, holidays Brazil saw a slight increase (10%) in search queries, but it’s Eastern Europe that saw the biggest jump with the Czech Republic gaining 44.7% search volume and Hungary gaining 35.9%. Eastern European destinations are gaining popularity due to continued investment in tourist infrastructure alongside great weather, and an affordable price when vacationing in this part of the world.
Countries with unstable political landscapes, like Jordan, despite having deep cultural roots, saw a steep decline of -50.8% from 2023 to 2024. Surprisingly, popular tourist destinations Fiji, Cuba, and Iceland saw drops of between -37.9% and -40%, even though interest remained fairly high during January.
Strangely, Argentina and Peru experienced huge drops of -33.4% and -25.3% respectively, despite increased interest in holidays in South America.
Despite a large drop off when relating to holidays, Jordan cruises more than doubled (137.4%) search queries year on year from 2023 to 2024, with a shift in peaks from April to July, capitalising on late summer and early autumn when prices are lower, and the weather is slightly cooler.
Holiday & Cruise Trends: Resort Level
When considering resorts specifically, Asian destinations saw quite significant rises in search volume. Kuala Lumpur saw a rise of 162.3%, while Hanoi saw a rise of 41.6%. These destinations have quickly become urban and cultural places for international travellers to discover, potentially indicating a social media influence.
Phuket in Thailand, saw a small decline despite being an incredibly popular holiday destination, suggesting that holidaymakers are opting for other destinations in Asia.
Vietnam’s popularity is rising quickly across the board, likely due to the low cost of living in these locations. Popular European destinations such as Madrid, Stockholm, and Copenhagen, which are known to be relatively expensive, saw small decreases in search volume, possibly reflecting the high cost of living that is happening in the UK, or that holiday-goers are opting for places further afield.
Cruises around Northern Europe and Scandinavia have seen a large increase in search queries. Copenhagen and Bruges saw increases of 128.7% and 92.9% respectively when compared to the same period the previous year. It wasn’t just cruises in Europe that saw a large increase, though, with cruises to Sydney, Australia (24%), Tokyo, Japan (44%), and Bangkok, Thailand (62%) seeing significant growth in the number of search queries relating to cruise holidays to these destinations. This could potentially be due to the vast range of cruise destinations that people are only just finding out about, swaying them from destinations like the Caribbean and the Mediterranean.
Phuket, Thailand saw the largest drop (-94.4%) in interest among cruise destinations. This likely represents the growing number of options available in the region, increasing competitive pricing and experiences in this part of the world. There also seemed to be a general decline in the popularity of Thailand’s high season.
Holiday & Cruise Type Trends
Across the board, there were declines in most passenger groups. The only group who saw an increase in search volume was solo travellers, with a marginal increase of 1.89%. Although it’s a very minor increase, it’s better than the decline seen in friends (-14.4%), couples (-16.6%), and families (-17%). After a significant holiday boom post-pandemic, it’s likely that these numbers are returning to normal rather than being a significant problem in the holiday industry. Social media has done a fantastic job of making solo travelling more accessible and normalised, which is probably one of the reasons this group continues to rise year on year.
In contrast, there is a lot more variation when only considering cruise holidays. There was a 14% increase in searches for cruise holiday with friends and a tiny 0.8% rise in queries relating to solo cruises, but there were still considerable drops in couples search queries (-61.2%) and a -19.4% drop in searches relating to family cruise holidays. It could be that people’s booking habits are shifting, with solo travellers, friends and families looking to book at different times of the year due to other schedules or commitments.
Every season saw a drop in search queries, with the largest drop being in autumn (-29.9%). This indicates that the demand for travel in autumn has dropped substantially, while summer saw the smallest decline (-4.5%), with July remaining the peak month to demonstrate a more stable interest in summer holidays.
2025 Predictions
In 2025, we expect to see peak searches for holidays and cruises in January. We may see even further growth when it comes to interest in holidaying across South America in the new year, as well as a potential rise in solo holidays.
What’s more, we’ve seen that cultural holidays are seeing increased interest. It could be that in 2025, holidaymakers are looking for more than just the sun and sea, with the possibility that 2025 could see an increase in historical and cultural destinations.
We could even see more groups of friends booking cruises as the perfect getaway, with friends potentially seeking holidays with multiple destinations. This ties in with a rise in searches for Virgin Voyages over the last few years, which may indicate that there is a growing demand for adult-only cruises for groups to unwind and escape.
Whatever the holiday trends and predictions, it’s essential that you do your research before booking your next holiday to make sure it suits your needs, budget and more. For more insights on finding the right cruise, check out our cruise guides.