A survey of over 50s has found 67% now research and/or book their holidays online, up from 61% in the same survey last year. The rest prefer to arrange their travel face to face or over the telephone.
The poll of 1,000 Brits – two thirds aged 50-69 and the rest over 70 – was carried out by Silver Travel Advisor.
For holiday inspiration, 23% said they would see or speak to an agent in the first instance, but the internet and travel review websites were found to be emphatically the first ports of call at 68% and 70% respectively.
The survey found 75% of people book between one and nine months ahead and only 17% book further out than this.
When it comes to the biggest reasons for choosing a particular travel company, price came bottom of the list (23%).
The most compelling reason was having previous good experiences with the company (73%), followed by company reputation (60%), good customer service (57%) and being fully bonded (49%).
Debbie Marshall, MD of Silver Travel Advisor, said: "Today’s older travellers are very much part of the digital age – over half the over 55s are on social media now and more 55-64 year olds do research online before making purchases than the average adult overall. And when it comes to travel, two thirds of the over 50s are looking and/or booking online, either through travel agents or direct with travel companies, hotels, airlines and intermediaries.
"The more complicated the booking, the more likely older people are to use travel agents. These are savvy, smart, resourceful people who just happen to be older than most of the working population. And although things are not easy for all of them, they are still where most of the travel money is."
The survey found 85% of respondents expect to take the same number (65%) or more (20%) holidays in the coming year compared to the previous 12 months.
But they are spending less as economic worries take hold.
The proportion of people expecting to spend over £3,000pp a year on travel fell to 40% this year, from 48% last year while nearly double the number of people (20%) said they would spend less than £1,000pp.
Over 80% of respondents felt that the wealth of pensioners is exaggerated in the media.
