SoFi Travel Habits Survey: Summer Spending & Saving

Summer is almost here, and so is the next big travel season. As millions pack their bags, make their budgets, and SoFi Travel¹ rolls out to SoFi members to help make travel easier and more affordable, SoFi conducted the first-ever SoFi Travel Habits Survey². The survey dives into SoFi members travel plans and budgets, as well as what is inspiring their travel right now.

Baggage & Budgets
SoFi members are big on budgeting when it comes to their trips. Nearly two-thirds of SoFi members report creating a budget for trips, and of those members, one-third start budgeting or saving for the trip 6 – 8 months in advance. Over a quarter of members start saving a whole year in advance, showing commitment to getting their money right even when traveling.

With inflation hitting checkbooks in the last year, nearly 70% of members report that it impacted their travel plans and budgets within the last year. Additionally, 56% of members said they decided against traveling altogether due to rising costs during the planning process.

Women were much more likely to forgo travel due to cost within the last year – 61% of women decided against travel due to the rising costs, compared to 51% of men.

Even though SoFi members are savvy budgeters, they know there are times to splurge. Most members are most interested by far in splurging on their accommodations, with food and transportation (such as flights, trains, etc.) rounding out the top three.

Where In the World Are SoFi Members Going
This year, members are mostly staying stateside, but are getting out of their home state for the most part:

1. U.S. / Domestic: 50%
2. International: 32%
3. In State: 18%

Of those members going global, the top regions they are headed to are:

1. North America – Mexico & Canada (52%)
2. Europe (27%)
3. South America (8%)

For SoFi members heading around the world, after North America and Europe, men are actually more likely to visit Asia than South America.

But when it comes to getting out of state or out of the country, most SoFi members are most excited to kick back on a beach vacation (44%), with camping / adventure travel excursions coming in second (21%) and road trips third (18%).

Trending in Travel
SoFi members are finding travel inspiration in a variety of places, from social to TV.
When it comes to travel inspiration, members reported the top ways they found where to head to next were:

1. Word of mouth
2. Travel Blogs / Vlogs
3. Instagram

Beyond tips from friends and travel blogs, 57% said a TV show or movie inspired them to book a trip. Of those who have been inspired to travel based on their favorite shows, the latest season of White Lotus drove them to book the most trips, with their favorites as follows:

1. White Lotus – Italy (24%)
2. Game of Thrones – Croatia (18%)
3. Emily in Paris – France (17%)
4. Outlander – Scotland (16%)
5. Downton Abbey – England (14%)
6. Big Little Lies – Carmel, California (11%)

However, when it comes to finding inspiration from favorite shows, men and women are on different channels, with men finding Game of Thrones to be their top TV inspiration for travel. How men vs. women are booking trips based on their favorite shows:

Where Women Travel Based on TV & Movies:
1. White Lotus – Italy (23%)
2. Outlander – Scotland (20%)
3. Emily in Paris – France (20%)
4. Downton Abbey – England (14%)
5. Game of Thrones – Croatia (12%)
6. Big Little Lies – Carmel, California (11%)

Where Men Travel Based on TV & Movies:
1. Game of Thrones – Croatia (25%)
2. White Lotus – Italy (24%)
3. Emily in Paris – France (15%)
4. Downton Abbey – England (14%)
5. Outlander – Scotland (11%)
6. Big Little Lies – Carmel, California (10%)

Interested in planning a trip this summer or beyond? SoFi just started rolling out SoFi Travel powered by Expedia, designed to make travel planning easier and more affordable than ever before – see more about SoFi Travel here.

DISCLOSURES

2. Source: Based on the SoFi Travel Habits Survey of 1,466 SoFi members from April 4 – 16, 2023.