Travelers are going green but are not willing to pay for it

Although the percentage of American travelers who consider themselves “environmentally conscious” remains unchanged this year compared to 2007 (at 78 percent), there has been a remarkable increase in the percentage who report they are familiar with the term “carbon footprint” (from 12 percent in July 2007 to 54 percent in July 2009). Awareness of this term hasn’t translated into actions intended to minimize the carbon footprint created by their travel, however, as only 3 percent have purchased a carbon offset when booking travel according to our July travelhorizons, the quarterly survey we co-author with the U.S. Travel Assn. 

Heightened awareness of environmental issues has translated into an increase in several environmentally friendly behaviors at home, including turning lights off when leaving a room, recycling and composting trash, and using energy-efficient CFL bulbs. The incidence of all environmentally responsible behaviors measured in the survey has increased since we recorded the benchmark measures in 2007 as shown here:

Top 3 green behaviors:                2007      2008
•Turn off the lights when leaving.      85%        88%
•Recycle trash/compost.                    60%        76%
•Regulate AC when not at home.       67%        75%

Consumers’ willingness to pay higher rates to patronize travel service suppliers who show environmental responsibility remains limited, with only nine percent of U.S. adults stating they would. Among those who would, roughly four out of 10 (39 percent) would pay up to a 5-percent premium to an environmentally responsible supplier. These data suggest that most travelers believe the additional expenses that are typically incurred should be borne by hoteliers as a cost of doing business. And although they believe travel service suppliers should be good environmental stewards, more than half also believe individuals have the greatest responsibility for protecting the environment, while just over one-fourth believe this responsibility rests primarily with the government.

For more information on the latest results from travelhorizons, please visit the publications section of
www.ypartnership.com.