Each week, we give you a run down of the hostel industry insights and offer our take (we can also provide a variety of GIFs for your entertainment, too!).
1. WYSTC CAME TO TOWN – AND AWARDED SOME OUTSTANDING HOSTELS…
Last week, professionals from the youth, student and educational travel industries came together for the 2018 World Youth and Student Travel Conference (WYSTC) in Edinburgh.
Some of the ‘hostel highlights’ included a session on digital nomads and how travel businesses can cater to this new kind of traveller with contributors including Felipe Munoz, Head of Global Sales at Selina Hostels, and Kim Whitaker, Co-founder of Once Youth Hotels.
Simon Morley of Lubd Group also delivered a talk on the emergence of boutique hostels and new hostel brands in South East Asia, explaining the increasing appetite for travel in the area due, in part, to a growing middle class and an enhanced passion to explore different places.
The final evening of the conference saw delegates gather at the National Museum of Scotland to celebrate the Global Youth Travel Awards – and two hostel chains were among the winners.
Abraham Hostel Tel Aviv were awarded ‘Best Social Space in a Hostel’, recognising their investment in transforming their space to be as comfortable, multi-functional and interactive as possible.
Their open plan social space – described as the ‘beating heart of Abraham Hostel Tel Aviv’ – provides guests with the opportunity to cook in the fully-equipped kitchen, share food at the long communal tables, sit at the lively bar, take part in activities or enjoy live music. Activities are mostly free for guests & also open to locals, providing the unique opportunity to interact with the community.
The design also impressed judges with its industrial-style elements blended with urban views of the city. The space has ‘a treasure trove of materials and textures’ with rich fabrics, striking floors and unique graffiti murals.
Generator also scooped the ‘Best Youth Travel Accommodation’ award in the consumer-voted awards category. This latest award is a testament to the chain’s commitment to offering exciting experiences to travellers across their 14 properties. Their latest property, Generator Miami, opened its doors last week and is set to shake up the American hostel industry which is very much in its infancy.
2. IS IT TIME TO REEVALUATE INFLUENCER MARKETING?
“Many travel brands want to work with influencers but aren’t sure how to measure return on investment… Influencer marketing is about five years old and isn’t about to disappear, but some travel brands are re-evaluating its effectiveness.” – Source.
We’ve all heard of influencers – bloggers, vloggers and social media personalities who partner with brands (including hostels) to help promote them to a wider audience. But, more recently, debates have started about how transparent influencers are about their work with governments even stepping in to ensure posts that are a result of a paid partnership are visibly indicated.
The above story from Skift sheds some much-needed light on this misunderstood area of marketing, giving opinions from the perspective of both brands and influencers themselves.
For hostels, working with influencers can be a great tactic to grow brand awareness and ultimately boost bookings. However, you need to be wise when it comes to choosing influencers to work with and how partnerships like this should work. Check out our past blog post where we shared 5 things you MUST do before deciding to work with an influencer.
3. CHINESE MILLENNIALS HAVE ALMOST DOUBLED TRAVEL SPENDING IN PAST YEAR
“Chinese residents born after 1990 are fueling a surge in international travel, with a preference for local experiences, independent accommodations and long-haul destinations.” – Source.
A recent report by Expedia has revealed that Chinese travel is on the up, with millennials spending 80% more on travel between May 2017 and May 2018 than they had in the past 12 months.
The survey also found that this group are spending that money on “local flavor and colorful experiences.” Sixty-nine percent of respondents say “tasting local delicacies” was their favourite activity in the past 12 months, followed by visiting local landmarks (65%) and shopping for authentic local items (43%). The traveller desire to ‘live like a local’ doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon!
And – good news for hostels – this group prefer to stay in unique, independent accommodation with 56% saying that “living in atypical accommodation” makes for a great travel experience.
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