We don’t mean to alarm you, but we’re now just as close to the year 2050 as we are to the year 2000. Freaked? Same.
However, there’s nothing that can be done to halt the relentless march of time, so instead of dreading it slipping away, we better prepare to make the most of it. And that means brushing up on what our travel habits will look like in 25 years’ time.
Adventure.com has published a deep-dive into how and what will change in travel over the next two and a half decades, and while parts sound really futuristic, we’re already experiencing some of it.
The first major change outlined will be in transport. As Adventure.com writes, driverless cars once seemed impossible, but now they’re already a thing in LA. Floating trains don’t look too far away, either. However, by 2050 it looks like electric and hydrogen-powered planes could be in our skies, and we might even see ‘airships’ as an alternative for scenic travel.
The climate is another major factor that will impact how we travel, with the potential for the earth to be 2C hotter in 25 years time. It could mean the end of classic summer holidays (which we’re already seeing with the rise in cool-cations), but also a shift to hotels and resorts operating entirely on renewable energy with climate-resistant designs.
Adventure.com also predicts a boom in the number of people who travel within their financial grasp, likely leading to a wave of ‘mega-resorts’ in destinations such as Saudi Arabia.
Along with this shift, there’ll be interest in new cities, regions and countries. Popular tourist cities in the world’s most visited countries, like Barcelona and Venice, are firmly putting their foot down when it comes to tourism numbers, so the spotlight will shift to destinations which are ‘lesser-known’ right now.
Wellness tourism will also be on the up, with the emphasis on increasing our ‘health span’ (the period of our lives where we’re mobile and active) compared to our life span, and then there’s the impact of AI, which will grow from search engine-style pages planning itineraries to stuff like translation, facial recognition, virtual reality safaris and even space travel.
A lot to take in, right? At Time Out, we bring you the latest information, bit by bit, on the latest transport, travel and sustainability developments from all over the world, as well as insight into upcoming travel trends. Keep an eye on our Travel hub for the latest.
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