Without a doubt, travel has changed my life and the lives of many others. Growing up in Connecticut, we rarely traveled by plane since I have three siblings and airfares were a lot more expensive back then. Also, traveling by plane back then was a rarity unless you were a business traveler.
Today, obviously things are much different. With the rise of so many airlines and social media showing friends, family and followers how easy and fun travel can be, it’s become a regular thing for many families – including mine.
To give you an idea how much my kids have flown in their young lives (they’re aged four and seven) they’ve traveled more in a six-month period than my grandparents on both sides combined did in their lifetimes. Think about that. And many of their classmates have traveled about the same or more.
Things are just different these days and I’m grateful to be living during this time. It’s so exciting to get on a plane and go to a new destination, to see family or to leave cold weather and experience the tropics in the winter.
In a recent brand update, KLM launched its Travel Well platform, a key messaging initiative surrounding the power of travel and bringing people together around the world. Many people forget the magic of air travel. The way gigantic machines can transport people, ideas, merchandise and memories across oceans. KLM, like other airlines, does this daily. In fact, KLM is the oldest airline operating under the same name in the world for more than a century.
Each year, the carrier takes more than 30 million travelers around the world to, from and through its Amsterdam hub. But not all travelers are created equally. You have business travelers facing long meetings to close important deals. There are families winging away to their favorite vacation spot. There are students traveling afar to attend university in another country. Some people are traveling for months or even years at a time away from family and loved ones. Others are taking quick weekend getaways to someplace new. When the wheels touch down on the runway, the excitement has been building, no matter what the reason for the trip.
Travel Well promotes this idea of traveling deeper and squeezing more appreciation and meaning from each trip. And after several years of a global pandemic that closed borders and hindered travel planning, the anticipation has been building.
KLM conducted a survey of more than 8,000 people across the globe in key markets it serves like the U.S., Canada, Brazil, China, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Their findings were revealing.
Clocking in as one of the top countries for this sentiment, 59% of Americans say travel has become more meaningful after the pandemic. Among American travelers, 79% of Americans focus on making meaningful connections with people and places, perhaps by staying longer or doing more immersive activities, when they travel.
“Quality, not quantity, defines each journey,” says Barry ter Voert, CXO & EVP Business Development at KLM. “This, I believe, is one of the most wonderful aspects of travel.”
KLM’s survey found that Gen Z and Millennials prefer traveling with family and friends instead of solo trips and look for activities and authentic interactions with locals that stimulate personal growth. Gen Z travelers have a shocking admission, too. 39% of them say that too much technology, like cell phone use on a trip, can hinder the feeling of total immersion in a place.
U.S. travelers especially like to immerse themselves in local culture through interactions with people, food and experiences. The survey did find that new cultures are not always a priority for Americans as much as more immersive experiences.
Families are traveling more often, according to a recent survey by Beaches Resorts, which surveyed (via their parents) Gen Alpha, those born between 2010 and 2024. This will be the largest generation in history with more than 2.8 million people born weekly.
85% of these children have some input on where they travel, and they enjoy traveling with their parents and grandparents. Multi-generational trips are the perfect example of the messaging KLM is trying to convey with this new brand platform. Exploring new places with family and friends doubles down on traveling deeper and better. Since many of these kids travel often enough with their families, they may even be inching closer to airline elite status. That’s just the icing on the cake for the slogan “travel well.”
“Traveling not only helps us reach new places, but also introduces us to unique experiences, leading to greater inspiration and understanding,” ter Voert concludes. KLM’s updated logo, which includes the Travel Well slogan, reminds everyone of that.
I’ve flown KLM only once or twice before but never with my kids but I’m planning to take them to Europe next summer. Hopefully, the day after my kids get out of school, we will be on one of KLM’s plush widebody planes, flying from Los Angeles to Amsterdam and beyond.
KEEP READING:
–12 Things to Know Before You Travel to Europe
–12 Things You Never Knew About Italy
–7 Things to Do in Naples, Italy
–12 Things to Know Before Going to Paris
–19 of the Best Off-the-Beaten Path Things to See and Do in Paris
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