Sociology of Tourism - Tourism: Principles, Practices, Philosophies - page 244

This massive growth of seniors is worldwide. The segment has been targeted both domestically and
internationally by tourism managers because they have a lifestyle that is experienced, discerning, and
likes to travel. In addition, they have the freedom to travel, are more active and healthy than previous
generations, are media and Internet aware, and have discretionary income. They will continue to
become a more important market group.

Income

Buying power is another factor for the tourism manager to consider. People must have buying power
to create a market. There is no question that a large and increasing percentage of the population today
has suf cient to finance business and pleasure travel, although some families

may be limited to inexpensive trips. The frequency of travel and the magnitude of travel expenditures
increase rapidly as income increases. All travel surveys, whether conducted by the Census Bureau, the
U.S. Travel Association, market research firms, or the media, show a direct relationship between family
income and the incidence of travel. The greater the income, the more likely a household will travel. The
af uent spend more on just about everything, but spending on travel is particularly strong. The value
placed on time increases with household income, which is one of the reasons air travel attracts the
higher-income consumer.
How the travel dollar is spent obviously depends on income. When the income of the population is
divided into fifths, less than 33 percent of the lowest fifth report an expenditure for travel, whereas 85
percent of those in the top fifth report a travel expenditure. Almost half of all consumer spending for
vacation and pleasure trips comes from households in the top fifth of the income scale. The af uent
spend more on lodging, all-expense-paid tours, food, and shopping, but transportation expenditures
are a smaller share of their total travel outlays than with those at the bottom of the income scale—
32 percent versus 43 percent. This results from the fact that it is more dif cult to economize on
transportation than on food, lodging, and miscellaneous expenses. 3
If current long-term trends continue, the U.S. population will become wealthier. However, the
recession put a dent in the current trend. The Bureau of Census reports that real median household

discretionary income

To re ect the travel patterns of different age groups, some cruise lines offer special cruises and trips for
those with speci c interests. PhotocourtesyofCarnivalCruiseLines.