How Summer Travel is Shaping Up Amid the Covid-19 Pandemic

Last Updated: April 8, 2021July 18, 2024 — 2 min read

• Staycations are on the rise
• Covid-19 travel insurance coverage soars in popularity
• Baby boomers top the list of vacationers this summer

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. April 8, 2021 — Squaremouth breaks down how summer travel trends are shaping up in 2021. More than one year into the Covid-19 pandemic, travelers are slowly regaining their willingness to take trips ahead of the summer travel season.

Squaremouth.com hosts the largest number of travel insurance providers and policies that offer coverage related to the Covid-19 pandemic. Squaremouth Analytics has compared thousands of travel insurance policies purchased pre-and-post-pandemic to identify changes and trends in travel insurance to unveil how both consumers and travel insurance providers are responding to the impact of Covid-19 this season. The key trends are outlined below.

Travelers Prefer to Stay Close to Home

• Domestic trips are estimated to make up 48% of travel for U.S. residents in Summer 2021
• This is a significant spike from 2020, when just 19% of travelers were staying in the U.S.

Increased Purchases of Travel Insurance for Covid-19

• Nearly 35% of all purchases for summer trips include the Covid-19 filter, which only shows policies offering Covid-19 Cancellation or Covid-19 Medical benefits
• Nearly 27% of purchases include the Cancel For Any Reason upgrade, compared to 19% in 2020
  • Prior to the pandemic, this figure was historically around 8%

Cancel For Any Reason is an optional upgrade that partially reimburses travelers to cancel for a reason that is not otherwise covered by their policy, such as fear of traveling due to Covid-19. This benefit is only available for 10-21 days after the traveler’s initial trip payment, and can reimburse up to 75% of their prepaid and non-refundable trip expenses.

Baby Boomers are Willing to Travel

• The Baby Boomer generation accounts for 30% of travelers this summer, the most of any generation
• This is followed by Gen X at 24% and Gen Z at 18%
• The average age of travelers buying travel insurance in March was 41, marking an increase from the onset of the pandemic when the average age dropped as low as 38
  • Before the pandemic, the average traveler buying through Squaremouth was 50+

“The rise in travel among Baby Boomers is part of a trend we’ve seen since the vaccine rollout,” says Squaremouth Lead Data Analyst, Steven Benna. “This trend is continuing as travelers begin to book their summer vacations.”

Squaremouth maintains a large portfolio of travel insurance products that offer coverage related to the Covid-19 pandemic, including cancellation and emergency medical benefits for contracting the virus, and Cancel For Any Reason coverage. Travelers can search for policies that include Covid-19-related coverage, including Cancel for Any Reason, here.

For regularly updated information about Covid-19 and travel insurance, please visit our Covid-19 travel insurance information hub.