Passenger volumes are up 13% in 2023 compared to last year, according to the TSA. Travellers taking more trips than before the pandemic spearheaded the 2023 travel rebound. The forces driving the rebound include catching up on missed opportunities due to the pandemic shutdown, anxiety that future travel may not be available, and entertainment media inspiring travel.
The possibility of travel restrictions in the future and the YOLO maxim – you only live once – drives millions of travelers to get as many trips in as possible before they no longer can. But travelers also highlight the movies, books and music that inspire them to travel.
According to the survey, the movie “Out of Africa” starring Meryl Streep, the book “Around the World in 80 Days” by Jules Verne, and the song “Beautiful Day” by U2 were the leading art forms inspiring trips among the world’s most experienced travelers.
Close behind “Out of Africa” in the category of travel-inspiring movies were the “Indiana Jones” series led by Harrison Ford, “Under the Tuscan Sun” starring Diane Lane, “Seven Years in Tibet” featuring Brad Pitt, “Into the Wild” directed by Sean Penn, and “Lawrence of Arabia” led by Peter O’Toole.
The five books survey respondents noted for inspiring travel after Verne’s classic were “A Moveable Feast” by Ernest Hemingway, “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” by Robert M. Pirsig, “On the Road” by Jack Kerouac, “Eat, Pray, Love” by Elizabeth Gilbert, and “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho.
The Annual List of Top Songs Inspiring Travel includes perennial favorites like “On the Road Again” by Willie Nelson, “Take It Easy” by the Eagles, “Vacation” by the Go-Gos, and “Margaritaville” by (the late) Jimmy Buffett. There are a dozen new entries for 2023 (below) and you can find the complete list of the top travel inspiring songs from the past several years here:
“Back to Black” by Amy Winehouse
“Beautiful Day” by U2
“Free Bird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd
“Here Comes the Sun” by The Beatles
“Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac
“Moondance” by Van Morrison
“Piano Man” by Billy Joel
“Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zepplin
“Son of a Son of a Sailor” by Jimmy Buffett
“Sweet Caroline” by Neal Diamond
“Sweet Emotion” by Aerosmith
“Truckin’” by the Grateful Dead
More than 80% of the world’s most experienced travellers took as many or more trips in 2023 than at any time before the pandemic, according to the survey. “Travel confidence is exploding in a positive direction. TSA data reflects traveller volumes pushing past pre-pandemic levels for the first time in more than two years. Call it revenge travel or make-up travel, the comeback to international travel is surging,” said Dan Richards, CEO of Global Rescue, the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services and a member of the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board at the U.S. Department of Commerce.
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