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As the world slowly came to grips with the COVID-19 pandemic, borders opened up and vaccine mandates started delivering on promises.

It was the moment we all let out a collective “finally” for those hours lost stuck at home, stagnant and void, with the promise ahead of time that can now be used for something more exciting.

Now for those revenge travel plans to start taking shape.

“Revenge” is not exactly a word that makes sense alongside travel, sure, but eager tourists are enjoying the trendy phrase as it reflects the overwhelming need to make up for all that lost time.

Revenge travel is ultimately a middle finger to the pandemic, or the wretched virus itself. “Post-pandemic travel” doesn’t quite cut it, because some countries are still battling through their fifth or sixth wave.

Explaining more, here’s Erika Richter, vice president of the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA), in conversation with CNN:

“Revenge travel is a media buzzword that originated in 2021 when the world began to reopen, and people decided to make up for lost time.”

“It’s another way of saying, “Hey, life is short. I want to book that trip. I want to spend more time with family. I want to connect with humanity and with nature. I want to explore the world and seek experiences that make me feel alive.”

Rory Boland, editor of Which? magazine, thinks propping revenge next to the excitement of travel is “ugly”, although he sees how people have connected with the phrase anyway:

“What it is trying to capture, I think, is the desire many people have to travel again, to see new places and meet new people, after a period that has felt static and dreary.”

Expedia, the online booking company that tracks online search data related to travel and tourism, found that travel searches increased as vaccine rollouts surged in Europe. It also found that travelers are willing to spend more money on a vacation than in the past.

That makes sense after two-ish years stuck in one place, potentially saving up money and paid leave.

In that sense, people are more than willing to splurge on a luxurious hotel, a first-class airplane ticket, or an expensive once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The sentiment is that the pandemic made folks less frugal, more eager to get out, and less guilty about the money spent because, simply, we deserve it.

[source:cnn]