Generation Y and air travel - The influence of young people’s values and motives on their traveling habits

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the motivations and habits of generation Y university students on the basis of the specific literature as well as qualitative research. We consider young people (generation Y) a segment which is worth investigating in connection with this topic due to their specific characteristics and potential, and for university students, as the main target group of Erasmus programs, significant opportunities for travelling have opened. In our study we explore how and why this group starts to travel, what their specific motivations, values and traveling habits are. After describing the most important general and consumption-related features and values of this group, we present the results of a focus group research. On the basis of this, we have revealed several key travel motivations: 1) the world is opened by Erasmus, 2) freedom and the sense of international life, and 3) community experiences that can be linked to their values as well as to the characteristics of their traveling habits. Generation Y university students' travel habits can be characterised by ad hoc decision-making on the basis of price, independent travel management, aviation as means of travel, and information search by Web 2.0.