Passion travel refers to embarking on journeys based on points of interest rather than picking a place because of its destination. A few examples of this include city food tours, wellness retreats, and music festivals. It’s like going to Comic-Con in San Deigo because you love comics instead of going to Hawaii, just because it’s Hawaii.

Thrillist’s recent study of 2,000 Gen Zers and Millennials found that 77% identified with passion travel. The concept’s influence impacts the way the two generations approach travel. It contrasts the tradition of picking a destination before the activities and events to participate in while there.

Passion travel sees its followers pick out what they want to do before where they want to do that activity. The study found that of those “who plan to book a flight in the next year, 63% say they will purchase tickets or plan activities for that trip prior to purchasing a plane ticket.”

Why Is Passion Travel Important?

The report noted that “younger travelers lean on their passions to explore the world.” Moreover, they also celebrate and explore themselves through the passions they pursue away from home.

Elsewhere in the research, Thrillist shared that Gen Zers and Millennials utilize travel as a means of self-expression. Of the two generations surveyed, “76% feel their travel experience says a lot about who they are, and 72% say traveling is core to their identity and part of how they express themselves.”

A resounding 88% agreed that travel had “impacted their personal growth.”

Evidence of Gen Z and Millennials’ passion travel trend is rampant online. For example, Beverley Ugwu is a TikToker who’s made a whole series about her passion and interest in London’s food scene. Content creator Rhianna Taylor is passionate about travel itself as she shares unique hotels you’ve probably never heard of. Moreover, a Ghanaian-American from Texas moved to Switzerland because he identified with the “calm” and “stress-free” vibe he experienced there.