Fourteen percent of American adults have taken a river cruise, but approximately four in 10 would consider river cruising for an upcoming vacation, the survey found. Following this trend, AAA’s river cruise bookings have increased more than 16% in just the last year.
Despite the perception that river cruising appeals primarily to older generations, millennials respond more strongly to several key attributes of river cruising than members of Generation X and Baby Boomers. The younger generation is less likely to have taken a river cruise (11%), but they are more likely to consider one for an upcoming vacation (42% internationally, 45% domestically) than either Generation X or Baby Boomers.
'River cruising offers travelers an unparalleled opportunity to explore the heart of multiple destinations in comfort and luxury,' said Bryan Shilling, managing director of AAA Travel Products and Services. 'It also provides an intimate view into the culture and history of some of the world’s top destinations. Millennials tend to place great value on experiential travel opportunities and are looking to river cruising as an increasingly viable option for their future vacations.'
Overall, one in four Americans say they are very likely or likely to take a river cruise vacation in the US or internationally in the next five years. River cruising tends to encourage repeat visitation with nearly half (48%) of past river cruisers reporting they are likely or very likely to take a river cruise vacation again in the next five years.
Fifty-four percent of adults in the US think the all-inclusive experience focused on the journey, not just the destination, is the top benefit of river cruising. Other attributes that are similarly appealing include the ability to visit destinations not accessible by larger cruise ships (cited by 50% of survey respondents), the opportunity for an authentic travel experience (48%) and the convenience of docking right in the heart of a city or town (48%).
To evaluate consumer river cruise travel intentions and perceptions, AAA contracted a national research company to perform a telephone survey of 1,012 adults living in the continental United States. Survey results are an accurate representation of the total continental US population with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.9% at a 95% confidence level. The survey was conducted June 23-26.
More details are here.
As North America’s largest motoring and leisure travel organization, AAA provides more than 56m members with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services.
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