London – October 29, 2007 – TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel community, has announced the results of its annual travel trends survey of more than 2,500 travellers from around the world. According to the survey, British travellers take more time off than the rest of the world but are far less active when on holiday. British Airways survives 2007 to be among the world’s favourites but Heathrow remains a horror. Meanwhile TripAdvisor travellers give a resounding NO to mobiles in the skies. The world and especially the Americans are becoming more “germophobic" but it’s not such a big deal for the Brits. TripAdvisor also unveiled its TravelCast list of emerging hotspots for 2008 with Jerba, Tunisia topping the list. No to Mobiles in the Air TripAdvisor travellers gave an unequivocal answer to the question as to whether use of mobile phones should be allowed on flights. There was a resounding “no" from 90 percent of British and 78 percent of travellers worldwide. Meanwhile there is a lot more tolerance about people’s viewing preferences. When asked if they think they have a right to tell an airline passenger sitting next to them to turn off video content they deem inappropriate, 58 percent said “no." Superb Schipol – Horrible Heathrow The favourite airport, according to worldwide travellers is Schipol International Airport. Heathrow along with Chicago’s O’Hare were nominated the world’s least favourite airports. According to travellers, the top three key features that make an airport great are easy to navigate and get to your gate, clean restrooms and good parking. World’s Favourite and not so Favourite Airlines Perhaps surprisingly, despite bad publicity this year, British Airways, which came top in the same survey last year, has only slipped to third place overall and still managed to get voted top airline by travellers outside the U.S. American Airlines was the favourite airline among worldwide respondents. Travellers selected these airlines as their favourite primarily because of their friendly and helpful staff, good on-time arrival and departure records, and comfortable seats. British travellers rate personal comfort more important than others. U.S. Airways was the least favourite airline according to respondents. This wooden spoon was awarded to RyanAir in the TripAdvisor Travel Trends survey last year. The budget airline however retained the booby prize among British travellers, a third of whom voted it their least favourite. The principal reasons given for nominating an airline as least favourite were delays/cancellations, unfriendly staff, uncomfortable seats and poor legroom. A fifth of British travellers also put price gouging on their list. Air travel reward programmes are less import to the British than the rest of the world. Just over one-third said that they keep track of their air miles, compared with more than half of all travellers. More Time Off Nearly half (47 percent) of Brits had between four and six weeks annual holiday entitlement during the past 12 months and 43 percent had six weeks or more, compared with just under a third of all travellers for the same period. Sixty-two percent of British respondents believe they need six weeks or more annual holiday leave and 85 percent of British travellers intend to take up all their holiday entitlement during the next 12 months, compared with 76 percent of all travellers. Life’s A Beach When it comes to the type of holiday 64 percent of us will opt to head to the beach and most likely to do little else. Only 12 percent of British travellers are very likely to go hiking, five percent cycling, nine percent sailing and seven percent engage in an adventure activity, compared with 21, 10, 29 and 15 percent respectively for all travellers. Switching Off The British, it would seem, are better at switching off on holiday than other nationalities. Sixty-five percent said they never check their e-mail or voicemail when on holiday, unlike only 42 percent of all travellers. However, it takes long for us to “unwind," compared to other travellers. Only 17 percent are very likely to dress more provocatively while on holiday and 13 percent have stipulated the “whatever happens on holiday stays on holiday" rule, compared with 24 percent and 19 percent respectively for all travellers. Only seven percent of British respondents admitted to having been to a clothing-optional or adults-only resort. A Lighter Shade of Green Whilst environmental concerns about travel grow, British travellers are less enthusiastic than the rest of the world to embrace eco-friendly practices. When asked whether they plan to be more environmentally conscious in their travel decisions in the coming year, nearly one-third (27 percent) said, “no," compared with only one-fifth (19 percent of all travellers). Forty-five percent of Brits said that they were unlikely to visit an environmentally friendly hotel or resort, compared with 30 percent worldwide. Carried Away Fifty-five percent of British travellers said that they had brought or bought an additional piece of luggage for their return trip, to pack items purchased while on holiday. Nineteen percent confessed to having taken a “souvenir" from a hotel such as towel or bathrobe. When asked what they would never leave home without, five percent admitted to taking their teddy or other comforter with them on holiday. Weak Dollar Woos Fifty-four percent of respondents from outside the U.S. said that favourable exchange rates will inspire them to travel to the U.S. more in the next 12 months. Correspondingly, 41 percent of Americans said the unfavourable exchange rates will either prevent them from going, or limit their travel to Europe in the coming year. Clean Conscious Eighty percent of respondents have a concern about germs, bacteria and viruses when travelling, but this figure falls to 70 percent among Brits. Airplanes are the most germy, according to 28 percent of those polled. Public transportation was next, followed by restaurants, hotels, and airports. British travellers are most concerned about germs at restaurants, while Americans are far more wary of airplanes. Fifty-five percent said they tend to wash and disinfect their hands more often while travelling, but only 40 percent of British took the same precautions. Forty-five percent of travellers said their worst experience at a hotel was a dirty bathroom or dirty sheets, and 17 percent said their worst experience was the presence of vermin. Jerba, Tunisia, TravelCast’s Next Hot Spot in 2008 TripAdvisor TravelCast is a barometer of what’s hot in travel destinations. TripAdvisor engineers have developed a proprietary algorithm that looks at several criteria, including changes in search activity and postings throughout the world’s largest travel community, www.tripadvisor.com. The TravelCast then predicts the rising stars in travel. TripAdvisor TravelCast Top Ten World Destinations for 2008 1. Jerba, Tunisia 2. Makandi Bay, Egypt 3. Phangnga, Thailand 4. Kovalam, India 5. Sabaudia, Italy 6. Asilah, Morocco 7. Ko Phangan, Thailand 8. La Plagne, France 9. Yangshuo, China 10. Kotor, Montenegro Contact: Ian Rumgay: 07803903602 irumgay@tripadvisor.com Jane Owen: 07747036050 jowen@tripadvisor.com