Nearly 1 in 5 Gen Z travelers are allocating more than 40% of their disposable income to travel

03.04.2024 - 12:12 / traveldailynews.com / Vicky Karantzavelou

StudentUniverse’s latest survey delves into the spending habits of Gen Z travelers in the U.S.

WALTHAM, MASS. – Intent to travel amongst Gen travelers remains strong as student and youth travelers continue to engage in trips for vacation, vocation and education. According to a new survey on the vacation spending habits of Gen Z travelers from StudentUniverse, a Flight Centre Travel Group company and the world’s largest student and youth travel marketplace, found that 78% of Gen Z travelers intend to take a vacation within the next 12 months.

According to StudentUniverse’s 2024 State of Student Travel Report a third of the student and youth market prefers to spend money on travel and experiences as opposed to things. The latest survey reinforces these findings by diving deeper into spending habits. According to the survey 18.3% of Gen Z travelers in the U.S. indicated they allocated 40% or more of their disposable income towards vacations and an additional 47.8% indicating they allocate 20-40% of their disposable income towards vacationing.

“Despite ongoing economic concerns, student and youth travelers continue to prioritize traveling,” said Will Jones, brand manager at StudentUniverse. “They put great emphasis on the value of traveling which can foster cultural exchange and expand their worldview. As we continue to see strong intent to travel from Gen Z we believe it is valuable to better understand the spending habits of this demographic which accounts for roughly 20% of the U.S. population and boasts spending power in excess of $350 billion.” 

Roughly 1 in 10 Gen Z travelers are allocating over $2,000 per vacation as we continue to see their spending power grow. Of course, as a significant portion of Gen Z consists of students it was not surprising to see that most are budgeting less for vacations with 23.4% indicating they allocate $500 or less per vacation and 33.6% indicating they allocate anywhere from $500 to $1,000. The remaining 32% are allocating between $1,000 and $2,000 per vacation. As we continue to see Gen Z’s spending power grow, we will likely see these numbers increase as they continue to prioritize travel experiences.

According to the survey, unsurprisingly, the most common method amongst Gen Z travelers looking to save up for a vacation is through work, with 94.4% indicating they will work and save to afford a vacation. With a significant number of Gen Z travelers still in school it comes as little surprise that 21.7% indicated they will ask relatives to assist them with vacation funds. The next most common method for earning money for a vacation is selling possessions, with 21.3% indicating they do so. This coincides with the rise in popularity of the resale market and