We’ve heard all the youthful ‘propaganda’ about young Aussies and young Kiwis being these great adventurers for whom a year or two travelling overseas is pretty my much a rite of passage … but what us oldies?
Well, it seems that finally the retiring baby boomers are getting back a bit of ‘street cred’ when it comes to where we travel and what we do. And, hang on, weren’t we the ones who invented the overseas rite of passage in the first place?
A survey conducted in New Zealand by Southern Cross Travel Insurance (SCTI) was intended simply to find which travel destinations around the world had the most appeal for Kiwis … but it ended up revealing a generational home truth or two, as well.
Southern Cross Travel Insurance CEO Craig Morrison said the biggest surprise of the survey was the small difference in appetite for ‘off the beaten track’ destinations between younger and older age groups.
“Whether younger people are becoming more conservative or older people more adventurous in their travel choices is hard to say,” he said. “What we do know is that older travellers are forming a larger part of our market … many are in very good health and there’s nothing restricting them if they have the means and the desire to travel.”
Great news, Craig!
For the record, the survey found that Australia and the UK are the destinations that hold the most appeal for Kiwis, with the Middle East, North Africa and India/Nepal the least appealing.
Are you more adventurous than your children and your grandchildren? Comment below.
