Spontaneous Trips Are In; Ugly Sweaters Out This Holiday Season

There's nothing quite like a surprise travel gift — and U.S. travelers are ready for it.

During the most wonderful time of the year, consumers are more optimistic about the holiday period since the pandemic started, despite concerns about the economy and rising prices. Americans are excited about holiday shopping but even more so about taking a holiday in 2023.

A GetYourGuide survey shows more Americans are planning to travel for the holidays this year than in 2021 (52 percent compared to 48 percent last year), and travel tops the list of experiences people hope to be surprised with.

The finding shared by the travel booking platform shows that 77 percent of Americans would rather receive experiences over physical gifts if they could share them, with the following list of the top experiences they'd most like to enjoy.

• Surprise travel (63 percent),
•  Tickets to a concert or show (50 percent),
•  An outdoor activity, such as skiing, boating or hiking (43 percent),
•  Food tour or cooking class (36 percent),
•  Wine or beer tasting (31percent),
•  Or a trip to the museum (29 percent).

And the wanderlust bug appears to be biting hard, as most respondents weren't picky either — as 96 percent said they would gladly take any of the top experiences listed above.

Want the latest insights on the business of travel in 2023 - Don't miss the Skift Megatrends event in both online, and in New York City and London in January.