After months of being locked up at home, people around the world are itching to get out and travel. The trend is leading travel publications to see a huge jump in readership, with subscription rates and advertising fill rates going through the roof.
According to data from Readly, a digital subscription service, travel and recreation publications are seeing a larger increase in readership numbers than any other niche in digital magazines.
Local news publishers and digital magazines in other niches are seeing a similar increase in engagement on travel-related content. Industry data shows that travel articles in newspapers and online magazines are generating more clicks and engagement in 2021 than in previous years.
What’s behind the trend? Certainly, the general push to get back outside and explore after more than a year in pandemic lockdowns is a driving factor. The way consumers are traveling appears to be changing now, as well, and that’s causing people to do a little more research as they plan their trips this summer and fall. More families are planning “staycations” this summer than previous years, and staying close to home, leading newspapers to see an increase in engagement on articles focused on local activities and lodging. International travelers are also adapting to changes in global travel, like evolving Covid-19 testing and vaccine requirements, by consuming more digital content focused around those topics.
Digital magazines that are focused on travel and recreation are providing readers with inspiration for where to visit next, while newspapers are seeing more engagement with informative travel articles, such as guides to certain locations or lists of the businesses and activities that are open in tourist hotspots.
Google Search Trends
According to search data from Google, travel-related searches for “tonight” and “today” have grown over 150% on mobile, giving digital magazines some additional insights into the type of travel content people are looking for. Since January 2021, Google searches for hotels are up 92%, searches for flights are up 79%, and searches for cruises are up 88%. The greatest overall increases in travel search have happened in Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Ohio.
In an interview, Readly’s Head of Content Chris Couchman said the readership jump that digital magazines in the travel industry are seeing is boosted by consumers who saved money during the lockdown and are now looking at ways to spend it. Research shows that the extra savings that some households amassed during the pandemic is being used on luxury travel, home improvement, and cars.
According to Readly, the top categories for digital magazine readership increases between spring 2020 and spring 2021 are:
- Travel (up 42%)
- Home renovation (up 33%)
- Luxury (up 30%)
- Boats and Watersports (up 28%)
- Cars and Motoring (up 25%)
- Sport (up 24)
- Airplanes and Transport (up 24%)
- Lifestyle (up 23%)
- Fashion & beauty (up 21%)
- Interior Design & Architecture (up 20%)
To learn more about how to capitalize on all the latest industry trends and grow your digital publication, reach out to our team at Web Publisher PRO.
