For many of us, fulfilling those travel dreams often comes at sacrificing something else we enjoy as we save our money for airfare and accommodation. But if you could snap your fingers and give up something in exchange for travel, what would that be?
What would you give up for a free vacation? Photo by Stephen Zeigler
A survey for tour company Contiki asked more than 1500 US travellers aged 18 to 35 what they would give up in exchange for six months travelling the world for free. Younger people are known for their wanderlust lifestyle so it probably comes as no surprise that the majority of them would be happy to give up plenty of creature comforts for the sake of an amazing travel opportunity.
At the top of list was Netflix, which 80% of people said they’d happily do without. A majority of people (77%) would give up coffee, 73% would abstain from alcohol and 60% would say no to carbs. Perhaps surprisingly, 57% said they would do without sex, which was far more than those who would be happy to give up their cell phone at 41%.
73% would give up booze for six months free travel. Photo by Jonathan Stokes/Lonely Planet
Just 1% of respondents said they would not give up anything in exchange for such a dream trip. And if you’re wondering why so few people would give up their phone, in the same survey 49% of people said they probably spent between 8 and 10 hours on their device.
Despite the younger age of the respondents, 73% of people already said they look back at their life so far and regret not taking more opportunities. Perhaps due to this, 83% travel at least once a year, while 35% travel between three and five times a year.
Netflix is the first choice to go. Photo by BrAt82/Shutterstock
With such an emphasis on the importance of travel, it’s probably unsurprising that many people spend hours doing research before making important decisions on their trip. Of those surveyed, 57% spent between one and three hours researching places to eat beforehand, while just under 6% did not research at all. Half of them (50%) admitted to spending up to three hours reading online reviews by other travellers, while 18% said they could spend up to an eye-watering eight hours doing it.
See more survey results here:
The full survey results. Image by Contiki
The post Coffee, booze and sex; what would young travellers give up for a free holiday? appeared first on Lonely Planet Travel News.