Dr. Catheryn Khoo-Lattimore is an international expert on women and children in travel and tourism who researches at the Griffith University in Australia. In the last year, she and her team at the Griffith Institute for Tourism (GIFT) have published a number of books and research papers on women travel in international academic platforms. Here are some key information on the emerging women travel trends that they have identified.
1. Girlfriends on the go
In our latest study of women worldwide who have gone on girlfriend getaways, the average traveller is 39 years old, white, married or partnered, well-educated, goes on a girlfriend getaway twice or thrice a year, and spends 3-4 nights each time. Our findings suggest that this market is unique in its accommodation requirements.
2. Asian women and solo travel
We found that 79% of Southeast Asian women reported plans to travel alone, which is higher than the global average of 74%. Our study also shows that solo Asian female travellers experience discrimination in tourism spaces, including those in Asian countries.
3. Safety beyond bolted doors
Our studies revealed that contrary to industry implementation, safety is not only about dead bolt door locks, lighted hallways or secured card access. For women, safety is experienced when they receive information about places to go that are in safe areas, and reliable and trustworthy transportation services.
Meet Dr Catheryn at ZafigoX, a three-day event featuring talks, workshops, bazaar and activities for women by women taking place 29-31 August 2017. She will be presenting a talk on Women, Wanderlust & Wellbeing: What Travel Does To You.
