Play Travel announces new research showing the key to an Aussie traveller's heart is planning, preparation, and holidays factoring in social-distancing regulations.

With this in mind, Play Travel  has opened the doors to new possibilities for travellers, and adopts a traditional layby model so customers are able to pick and book a curated holiday package and pay for it in full or in weekly instalments over a 2- to 12-month period, before they travel.

As optimism grows and borders gradually re open, Play Travel offers a completely unique opportunity for consumers. The purpose-built website allows customers to carefully budget their travel so they can nominate how much they want to contribute to their 'holiday fund' on a weekly basis and assemble a suitable itinerary around their budget.

The complete version of Play Travel, which will launch end of 2020 will give the ability to curate an itinerary that not only meets their budget, but allows them to bundle flights, accommodation and experiences. It's a one stop shop for the savvy traveller.

“This unique model has shown us that the market is ready for a new OTA that offers something unique to consumers. From our research we know that 74% of people surveyed would prefer to book holidays with payment plans over credit and debit cards”, says Andrew Paykel.

Interesting findings

Planning during a pandemic

Whilst some used this downtime to develop a new skill or learn how to perfect the perfect sourdough starter, others could have spent it dreaming and planning their next holiday. 70% of travellers are planned and considered when it comes to co-ordinating a holiday. And while we may be a bit tighter on our purse strings, survey finds that 63% of travellers are even more conscious and concerned about unexpected expenses when on holiday.

Beaches beats busyness

When it comes to the type of holiday they're looking for, 65% of travellers would rather travel to a beach than a big city – it seems when it comes to holiday preferences, social distancing is taken into consideration. The survey also found the trans Tasmanian bubble is strong, with 60% wanting to visit New Zealand and neighbouring South Pacific over anywhere else in the world.

Budget blues

Holiday planning can also be stressful with 43% of people struggle with their budget pre-holiday, followed by 32% who admit to being frustrated having to trawl through multiple booking websites to book their holiday. This further validates that Play Travel which launches end 2020 will be a one stop inspiration and booking hub that makes budgeting easy.

Pay NOT pay

Paying for your holiday before you travel is hugely appealing to travellers, with 74% opting for a payment plan rather than relying on bank credit cards with high interest charges and debt (8%) and 17% relying on debit cards. 

Holiday budgeting is not for the penny pinchers

Just because they're budgeting doesn't mean they're penny pinchers; in fact, travellers surveyed prefer to stay in 4-5 star accommodation (60%) with 79% of holiday activities focused around food and drink experiences closely followed by arts, entertainment and culture (74%).

Holiday frustrations

The photo album may look wonderful and the memories last forever, but when it comes to booking a holiday, 60% say they're frustrated by poor refund or cancellation policies, with 52% complaining of having to book different elements of their travel (accommodation, flights, experiences) on different websites.

*Survey conducted by Play Travel interviewing 2000 Australians in April 2020.

For more information, visit https://www.playtravel.com.au/