Young shun work in favour of travel
Youth travel specialist STA has seen sales of round-the-world airfares soar by 25% compared to this time last year as more young people are opting to travel rather than find a job.
UK managing director Glen Mintrim said: "The job market is still very tough for young people in the UK. More and more are taking the opportunity to head off on a gap year trip to broaden their work and life experience, and bolster their CV with overseas work experience.
"For example, we’ve seen a 10% increase in sales of Working Holiday Visas for Australia compared to last summer, and 16% for New Zealand."
The key five gap year destinations for STA Travel UK are Australia, New Zealand, the USA, Thailand and Peru, which form the staple parts of most people’s gap year experience.
However there’s a new wave of destinations coming through, including Iceland (up 129% on last year) and Bali, Manila and Borneo (all are up more than 75% year-on-year).
"Off-the-beaten-track places such as Manila are pretty unknown still so have extra social media talkability, a factor which is becoming increasingly important to our customers who regularly post updates whilst on their travels," said Mintrim.
Southern Africa is increasingly being used as an international hub to explore Africa. Numbers to Cape Town and Windhoek are 35% and 38% respectively.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
TAP Air Portugal to operate 29 flights due to strike on December 11
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
Airbnb eyes a loyalty program but details remain under wraps
Air Mauritius reduces frequencies to Europe and Asia for the holiday season
Major rail disruptions around and in Berlin until early 2026