Travellers, consider this your “villain era.” We’ve picked our top travel trends for Canada this year, and it’s clear: 2023 is the year for revenge travel.
What do we mean by that? This is the year you get to take all those trips you missed due to various quarantine guidelines, lockdowns and more initiatives to better protect our community. Then, 2022 was really about traveling to see the family and friends you were far away from. Now, 2023 is yours – it’s all about planning those trips that put your wants and needs first.
And it’s happening despite rising flight prices (up 21% year-over-year). In fact, our data shows that international flight searches in Canada are up nearly 100% (technically 98% YoY), proving Canadians are making up for lost time and booking big – no quick weekend getaways here (though of course, if that’s your version of revenge travel – do it).
To help all your ambitions come to life in 2023, we’re sharing our top trends and money-saving tips, including when to fly, where to stay and how to get more bang for your buck amid rising prices.
Here are our travel predictions for 2023:
- Asian destinations will be all the rage. Manila (+287% YoY increase in searches), Tokyo (+279% YoY), and Bangkok (+229% YoY) are leading as the top trending international destinations in 2023. And, with airfare to the South Pacific down an average of 25% since last year, those typically expensive flights may be just a bit less expensive.*
- Budget travellers will head to the beach. Our data shows that flights to some coastal destinations are cheaper than last year, like Melbourne (-10% YoY decrease in airfare), Vaitape (-9% YoY), Copenhagen (-8% YoY), Croatia (-5% YoY) and Greece (-3% YoY).*
- You’ll want to fly out on Thursdays and Fridays for better deals.* According to our data, on average, the lowest flight prices can be found if you plan to travel on one of these days.
- Staycations will be on their way out. Searches for accommodations domestically are up 10% compared to last year while international stays are up an impressive 94% compared to last year.*** This is signalling that more travellers may opt to cross borders than stay close to home.
- Roadtrips will be driving more vacations. Rental car searches are up both internationally (78% YoY) and domestically (4% YoY).** In 2023, we think you’ll see more travelers on the road… literally.
- 2023 will be the year of anti-procrastination. Canadians are becoming more comfortable with booking travel further in advance, with the average flight booking window increasing by 21% for domestic travel and 14% for international travel compared to last year. That’s more than a month for domestic flights (44 days in advance) and approximately two months (56-64 days in advance) for international destinations!*
Ready to jump-start your 2023 trips? KAYAK Explore will let you set a budget and see how far it’ll take you. Give it a try and happy planning.
Methodology
*KAYAK considered searches for flights from 7.1.2022 – 11.20.2022 for travel between 1.1.2023 – 12.31.2023. To compare year over year, we considered searches for flights from 7.1.2021 – 11.20.2021 for travel between 1.1.2022 – 12.31.2022. To compare year over three year, we considered searches for flights from 7.1.2019 – 11.20.2019 for travel between 1.1.2020 – 12.31.2020. Percentages and prices are on average. Destinations were excluded based on certain criteria, such as inadequate search volume.
**KAYAK considered searches for rental cars from 7.1.2022 – 11.20.2022 for travel between 1.1.2023 – 12.31.2023. To compare year over year, we considered searches for rental cars from 7.1.2021 – 11.20.2021 for travel between 1.1.2022 – 12.31.2022. To compare year over three year, we considered searches for rental cars from 7.1.2019 – 11.20.2019 for travel between 1.1.2020 – 12.31.2020. Percentages and prices are on average. Destinations were excluded based on certain criteria, such as inadequate search volume.
***KAYAK considered searches for stays from 7.1.2022 – 11.20.2022 for travel between 1.1.2023 – 12.31.2023. To compare year over year, we considered searches for stays from 7.1.2021 – 11.20.2021 for travel between 1.1.2022 – 12.31.2022. To compare year over three year, we considered searches for stays from 7.1.2019 – 11.20.2019 for travel between 1.1.2020 – 12.31.2020. Percentages and prices are on average. Destinations were excluded based on certain criteria, such as inadequate search volume.
