Veganism’s influence in the tourism space is growing, with vegan-friendly tours, excursions and digital travel apps emerging as another tool for travel companies to attract eco-focused travellers, according to GlobalData.
As tourism companies look to recover from Covid-19, they see greater personalisation as key in helping to ensure customer satisfaction. Consequently, accommodating every traveller type – vegan included – will be critical in the future of travel.
Veganism’s influence on the travel industry will grow, says GlobalData
Johanna Bonhill-Smith, travel and tourism analyst, commented: “A common objective across the entire travel and tourism sector is to deliver a ‘seamless’ traveller experience for each customer along every touchpoint, on an individualised, trip-by-trip basis.
“Vegan travellers can often encounter problems ranging from where to stay to a lack of suitable meal choices. Language barriers and cultural differences can often exacerbate these problems. This creates an opportunity where personalised recommendations are lacking and catering for a growing vegan consumer base could soon be a key differentiator.”
Unique apps have emerged, with Veg Visits and Air Vegan identified as key innovators. Veg Visits, for example, is a vegan home-sharing platform providing individuals with ‘vegan hosts’ across 80 countries. Air Vegan rates how vegan-friendly an airport is, giving users insights into the best vegan food spots within it.
Some lodging providers also commonly provide for the vegan tourist – for example, Hilton opened its first vegan hotel suite in 2019. Tour operators are also capitalising on this market with smaller companies such as Responsible Travel promoting 34 vegan holidays across destinations worldwide including Greece, Ethiopia, India and Costa Rica.
Bonhill-Smith said: “The view that a vegan diet reflects a more sustainable form of lifestyle is gaining increased traction and is no longer considered a market niche.”
In a GlobalData survey conducted in December 2020, 76 per cent of over 5,700 global respondents say they were influenced by how ethical/environmentally friendly/socially responsible the product/service is. Prior to Covid-19, only 46 per cent of global respondents say they actively buy products that are ‘better for the environment or animal friendly’ in GlobalData’s 3Q2019 consumer survey, which polled more than 29,000 respondents.
“This suggests travellers’ perceptions are changing during Covid-19 and many may decide to make more environmentally-friendly decisions – including going vegan,” Bonhill-Smith said.
“Servicing a traveller’s every need is going to be critical in post-pandemic recovery to both restore confidence and ensure satisfaction. With a greater level of satisfaction, there is, in turn, a higher chance to attract loyal customers – a promising prospect in light of Covid-19 and the detrimental losses it has inflicted on company revenues,” he added.
“As travel companies aspire to personalise each individual’s experience, ‘veganism’ should be an area to be acknowledged and acted upon, not ignored across the tourism sector.”
Veganism’s influence in the tourism space is growing, with vegan-friendly tours, excursions and digital travel apps emerging as another tool for travel companies to attract eco-focused travellers, according to GlobalData.
As tourism companies look to recover from Covid-19, they see greater personalisation as key in helping to ensure customer satisfaction. Consequently, accommodating every traveller type – vegan included – will be critical in the future of travel.
Johanna Bonhill-Smith, travel and tourism analyst, commented: “A common objective across the entire travel and tourism sector is to deliver a ‘seamless’ traveller experience for each customer along every touchpoint, on an individualised, trip-by-trip basis.
“Vegan travellers can often encounter problems ranging from where to stay to a lack of suitable meal choices. Language barriers and cultural differences can often exacerbate these problems. This creates an opportunity where personalised recommendations are lacking and catering for a growing vegan consumer base could soon be a key differentiator.”
Unique apps have emerged, with Veg Visits and Air Vegan identified as key innovators. Veg Visits, for example, is a vegan home-sharing platform providing individuals with ‘vegan hosts’ across 80 countries. Air Vegan rates how vegan-friendly an airport is, giving users insights into the best vegan food spots within it.
Some lodging providers also commonly provide for the vegan tourist – for example, Hilton opened its first vegan hotel suite in 2019. Tour operators are also capitalising on this market with smaller companies such as Responsible Travel promoting 34 vegan holidays across destinations worldwide including Greece, Ethiopia, India and Costa Rica.
Bonhill-Smith said: “The view that a vegan diet reflects a more sustainable form of lifestyle is gaining increased traction and is no longer considered a market niche.”
In a GlobalData survey conducted in December 2020, 76 per cent of over 5,700 global respondents say they were influenced by how ethical/environmentally friendly/socially responsible the product/service is. Prior to Covid-19, only 46 per cent of global respondents say they actively buy products that are ‘better for the environment or animal friendly’ in GlobalData’s 3Q2019 consumer survey, which polled more than 29,000 respondents.
“This suggests travellers’ perceptions are changing during Covid-19 and many may decide to make more environmentally-friendly decisions – including going vegan,” Bonhill-Smith said.
“Servicing a traveller’s every need is going to be critical in post-pandemic recovery to both restore confidence and ensure satisfaction. With a greater level of satisfaction, there is, in turn, a higher chance to attract loyal customers – a promising prospect in light of Covid-19 and the detrimental losses it has inflicted on company revenues,” he added.
“As travel companies aspire to personalise each individual’s experience, ‘veganism’ should be an area to be acknowledged and acted upon, not ignored across the tourism sector.”