87.32% of American adults say sustainable travel is either Somewhat Important or Very Important to them. That is a 4.65 percentage point increase from the same question in our 2021 Sustainable Travel Survey where 82.67% said sustainable travel is either Somewhat Important or Very Important to them.
The Vacationer conducted a survey before Earth Day 2022 to find out how Americans feel about sustainable travel, how many are willing to spend more money to travel sustainably, how many actually plan on making more eco-friendly decisions when planning travel, how many use technology/filters to find sustainable travel options, and more.
The anonymous survey included 1,096 American adults over the age of 18 and was conducted online using SurveyMonkey's interface/audience on our behalf on March 1, 2022. Eric Jones, Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Rowan College South Jersey, analyzed the survey.
Key Stats:
- 87.32% of American adults say sustainable travel is either Somewhat Important or Very Important to them. That is a 4.65 percentage point increase from the same question in our 2021 Sustainable Travel Survey where 82.67% said sustainable travel is either Somewhat Important or Very Important to them.
- 81.57% of American adults plan to make more sustainable (eco-friendly) decisions when planning travel. Of the 81.57%, only 29.84% say they will make the decisions regardless if it inconveniences them, while 51.73% will do it only if it does not inconvenience them.
- 78.28% would pay more for a vacation to lower their carbon footprint. Only 71.37% said they would pay more in last year's survey.
- 6.84% say sustainability and carbon footprint is the most important factor when booking travel. Cost came in at 59.58% and time and convenience came in at 33.58%.
- 81.43% either think there are not enough sustainable travel options or simply do not know if there are.
- 19.43% use sustainable travel filters like "low emissions" when booking trips. 43.98% are not even aware they exist.
Here are the full results:
1. How important is sustainable travel (environmentally friendly) to you?
- Very Important. – 34.22%
- Somewhat Important. – 53.10%
- Not at All Important. – 12.68%
Key Takeaway – More than 87% of American adults say sustainable travel is either Somewhat Important or Very Important to them. The 87.32% represents nearly 225 million people based on the current census. This is 4.65% more people than in our 2021 sustainable travel survey. 4.65% may not seem like a lot, but it represents nearly 12 million which is quite substantial. Many more people are becoming aware of sustainable travel methods and find it important to them. Additionally, 34.22% of people say sustainable travel is very important to them this year. Last year only 26.10% said it was very important to them which equates to a nearly 24% increase in people saying sustainable travel is very important.
2. Do you intend to make more sustainable (eco-friendly) decisions when planning travel?
- Yes, regardless if it inconveniences me. – 29.84%
- Yes, but only if it does not inconvenience me. – 51.73%
- No. – 18.43%
Key Takeaway – Nearly 82% of American adults say they intend to make more eco-friendly decisions when planning travel. The 81.57% includes the 29.84% that says they will do it regardless if it inconveniences them. Also, it includes the 51.73% of American adults that say they will do it only if it does not inconvenience them. In total, the 81.57% represents 210 million people. It is also 6.72% or over 17 million more people than said they intend to make more sustainable travel choices last year
3. Which factor is most important to you when booking travel?
- Cost. – 59.58%
- Time and Convenience. – 33.58%
- Sustainability and Carbon Footprint. – 6.84%
Key Takeaway – Nearly 7% of American adults say sustainability and carbon footprint is the most important factor when booking travel. The 6.84% may seem like a small figure, but it still represents nearly 18 million people. Additionally, the 6.84% is a 36% increase from 2021 when only 4.38% of American adults said sustainability and carbon footprint was the most important factor.
4. How much more would you be willing to spend on your vacation in order to lower your carbon footprint from the trip?
- $0. – 21.72%
- Less than $50. – 33.39%
- Between $50 and $250. – 33.21%
- Between $250 and $500. – 9.22%
- Over $500. – 2.46%
Key Takeaway – Over 78% of American adults would pay more for a vacation to lower their carbon footprint. The 78.28% represents 202 million people. It also is more than the 71.37%, or 184 million people, that said they would pay more for a vacation last year. Additionally, 11.68% of American adults or 30 million people said they would spend $250 or more to lower their carbon footprint when traveling. Also, 2.46% or more than 6 million Americans said they would spend over $500! Earth day is going to be more important than ever as more and more people are prepared to fight climate change.
5. Do you think there are enough sustainable travel options when it comes to flights, hotels, and rental cars?
- Yes. – 18.16%
- No. – 37.41%
- I do not know. – 44.43%
Key Takeaway – More than 37% of people do not think there are enough sustainable travel options when it comes to flights, hotels, and rental cars. Another 44.43% of people do not know. This means 81.43% either think there are not enough sustainable travel options or simply do not know. The 81.43% represents 210 million people. This is a large portion of people thinking there are not enough sustainable options or not knowing if there is
6. Do you go out of your way to find sustainable travel options by using filters like “low emissions” when searching for flights or other similar filters for hotels and rental cars?
- Yes. – 19.43%
- No. – 36.59%
- I did not know those filters existed.- 43.98%
Key Takeaway – Nearly 2 out of every 10 American adults say they go out of their way to find sustainable travel options. The 19.43% equates to 50 million people. 50 million people intentionally using filters to find sustainable travel options is a substantial amount. 43.98% of Americans also do not even know these filters exist. If the public were more educated about these filters and sustainable travel options, we would likely see a very large increase in people using them.
7. How careful are you with water and energy usage while in a hotel or Airbnb compared to at home? (e.g. Do you turn off lights and fans when not using them?)
- Less Careful than at Home. – 13.50%
- The Same as at Home. – 76.64%
- More Careful than at Home. – 9.85%
Key Takeaway – 13.50% of American adults or 35 million people say they are less careful than at home when it comes to energy usage at a hotel or Airbnb. On the other hand, 9.85% or 25 million people say they are more careful than at home.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
