In April 2020, a time of strict lockdown in Spain, C4T carried out a quick survey to find out the interest and concerns of potential tourists in the immediate future. The results roughly coincide in more than 90% of the responses. Here we have a summary of the trends and some answers that are most repeated.

The survey consists of seven questions, six of them of open type, on the intentions of traveling for pleasure in the coming months. Here we have a summary of the trends and some answers of the most frequent answers.

QUESTION 1: Would you take a vacation away from home when the confinement is over? (camping, hotel, resort, bungalow park, rural house (only for your group or family) etc.)?
92% of the respondents answered YES to this question. For the 8% who answered NO, the survey form opened two alternative questions: Why not? and until when? The answers were: BECAUSE OF THE HIGH RISK OF CONTAGION and UNTIL THE OBTAINING OF AN EFFECTIVE VACCINE OR TREATMENT.

QUESTION 2: Where would you travel (my region, my country, nearby countries, the whole world)? and what kind of accommodation would you look for?
58% of respondents would travel to only in their region or their country. Out of the remaining 42%, 25% would travel to nearby countries or regions, 8% did not specify and the other 8% would not travel (negative answer to the previous question). NEAREST COUNTRIES WITH LOWER INCIDENCES OF COVID-19 are also mentioned. As a type of accommodation, they mention CAMPING or VACATION RENTAL ACCOMMODATION.

QUESTION 3: What would you expect to find at your destination?
Here there is more variety, but the most frequent answers are: PEACE OF MIND AND DISTANCE FROM THE CROWD, CLEANING / DISINFECTION, NATURE.

QUESTION 4: What things that were not there until now - before confinement - would you want to find?
All the answers mention at least one of the following aspects: RESTRICTED MEASURES OF ADJUSTMENT IN PUBLIC AREAS AND INFORMATION ON THE OPTED MEASURES OF DISINFECTION AND SOCIAL DISTANCING, MASKS, GLOVES, DISINFECTING GEL, SPORTS AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES, REDUCED GROUPS, TRANQUILITY, HYGIENE.

QUESTION 5: Should you not find these items, which of these would make you decide not to go to this place?
The answers to this question tell us what people fear when planning a trip. Many fears are revealed: CHAOS, LACK OF ORGANIZATION, EXCESSIVE CONTACT, TOO LITTLE CLEANING AND LACK OF RESPECT TO PERSONAL SPACE, AGLOMERATION, STRESS ON THE HEALTH SYSTEM IN THE CHOSEN PLACE, FEELING OF DANGER AND LACK OF HYGIENE, MAJOR ATTRACTIONS CLOSED OR LIMITED, MASSIFICATION (LACK OF QUIETUDE), LACK OF PERSONAL PROTECTION ELEMENTS SUCH AS MASKS AND GLOVES.

QUESTION 6: Please describe your IDEAL vacation spot.
The most wanted or imagined destination is near the sea: 33% of the answers mention BEACH and BOAT. Another recurring wish (25%) is AN ISOLATED COUNTRY HOUSE, SURROUNDED BY NATURE. AUSTRALIA, TROPICAL CLIMATE and A HOUSE IN A TREE are also mentioned. One answer sums up the concerns of many: I WOULD AVOID THE BIG CITIES. I WOULD PRIORITIZE PLACES WITH A LOT OF NATURE TO DO OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES. BUNGALOW ACCOMMODATIONS RATHER THAN HOTEL BUILDINGS.

QUESTION 7: What difficulties or fears THE JOURNEY would pose for you on the way to the vacation spot and back?
All respondents worry about overcrowding in common means of transportation and 50% of them say they would not get on a plane.

CONCLUSIONS: The respondents look forward to being able to travel again, but they will do it in a very different way, prioritizing nearby destinations, individual transportation, open spaces and rural landscapes in the midst of nature. As type of accommodation, they prefer to rent a house for the holidays rather than go to a hotel or resort, for fear of overcrowding. The concern about the contagion is very present: all interviewed prioritize the hygiene and safety of the destination and many of them say they wouldn’t get on a plane in the short term. It’s the great moment of camping, rural houses and ecotourism.