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BY A CORRESPONDENT
February 14, 2007
In a survey that is the first of its kind, a national
survey conducted in the United States on the popular
culinary travel niche market shows that 27 million
travelers – or 17% of American leisure travellers –
engaged in culinary-related or wine- related activities
while traveling in the past three years.
The survey was conducted jointly by the Travel Industry
Association (TIA) and the Gourmet and the International
Culinary Tourism Association.
The future is bright for the culinary traveller market,
as the share of US leisure travellers interested in
culinary travel in the near future (60%) is
significantly larger than those currently engaged.
These travellers are younger, more affluent and better
educated than non-culinary travelers. They are clearly
motivated by unique experiences, reinforcing the
benefits of focusing on a destination's individual
environmental and cultural elements.
The survey was held among a representative sample of
2,364 US leisure traveller respondents.
“The study demonstrates that a sizeable proportion of
the US leisure market does indeed make travel decisions
based on a desire for wine and culinary experiences. In
fact, it confirms that wine and culinary experiences are
a driver of destination choice,” Laura Mandala,
vice-president of the Research for the Travel Industry
Association, said.
Culinary activities during travelling include cooking
classes, dining out for a unique and memorable
experience, visiting farmers markets, gourmet food
shopping and attending food festivals. Wine activities
included participating in winery tours, driving a wine
trail, tasting locally made wines and attending wine
festivals.
The study also provided in-depth data about what is
being called the ‘serious’ culinary traveler, one who
intentionally seeks out wine and food experiences while
travelling.
These serious culinary travellers are significantly
different from other types of travellers – the trend
having implications for a travel provider’s strategy and
marketing.
Serious culinary travellers are more likely to shop,
visit state and national parks and museums; specifically
choose a destination to experience local culture and
cuisine and read epicurean magazines.
The fact that serious culinary travellers read highly
specialised publications that cater to their interests
confirms that magazines remain a viable channel for
reaching this travel segment.
One-in-ten (9.4%), or 15 million Americans, participate
in just wine-related activities. About 4 million leisure
travelers participated in both food and wine activities.
On an average, food travelers spend $1,194 per trip,
with over one-third (36% or $425) of their travel budget
going towards food-related activities. Those considered
to be ‘deliberate’ food travellers (culinary activities
were the key reason for the trip) tend to spend a
significantly higher amount of their overall travel
budget on food-related activities – of the $1,271
average trip cost, $593 or 50% was spent on food-related
activities.
Wine travelers spend, on an average, $973 per trip, with
about one-fourth (23% or $219) of their travel budget
going towards wine-specific activities. Those considered
to be ‘deliberate’ wine travelers spend more of their
overall travel budget on wine-related activities – of
the $950 average trip cost, $339 or 36% was spent on
wine-related activities).
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