Amadeus expects music tourism to be key European traveller driver in 2024

It found German music fans most willing to travel internationally to see a concert or festival

Travellers from Spain are most keen to explore the destination when taking a trip to a live music event

Music, like travel, broadens the mind, opening new horizons and offering new perspectives. 

Amadeus Travel Trends 2024 predicted that many are looking to combine music and travel this year, with a boom in concert and festival attendance in 2023 tapping into a desire for connection. 

The trend is expected to accelerate, with many European travellers planning to follow their favourite acts on tour.

A new research project, carried out by YouGov for Amadeus across four European markets, found 49% of Spaniards have previously travelled to attend a concert or festival (spending at least one night away from home), along with 48% of Brits, 44% of Germans and 34%of French travellers. 

The survey which was conducted in November 2023, found German music fans were the most adventurous when it comes to international travel, with 18% headed abroad for a show, compared to 11%of Spanish travellers, nine percent of those from Britain and just seven percent of French travellers.

When it comes to how much a traveller would spend, it found British travellers were the most frugal. 

Some 58% of British music fans who had previously embarked on a trip to see a concert or festival would look to spend less than £300 in the future (not including the cost of the event ticket), compared to just 40% of both French and Spanish travellers, and 39% of Germans. 

In contrast, 15% of German and 13% of Spanish and French music fans who had previously travelled for a live music event would be willing to spend over €600 to do so again, compared to only nine percent of Brits.

Daniel Batchelor, Vice President, global corporate marketing & communications of Amadeus, said: “A prerequisite to building a better travel experience is understanding the minds of travellers.

"That is why we promote “Traveler First” thinking throughout the industry. Consumer research shows that this year travelers are on the lookout for new experiences. 

"And what better experience can there be than sharing a music festival or concert with friends, family or like-minded fans? With artists including Taylor Swift and Coldplay performing in 2024, we are seeing strong demand across Europe for travel, both domestic and international with music fans planning to enjoy a range of performances across the continent.”

When it comes to making the most of a trip, Spaniards were the keenest to explore the destination when travelling to see a live artist, with 79% planning to do so. 

This compared to 67% of French travellers, 64% of British travellers and 58% of Germans. 

Similarly, 43% of all Spanish travellers questioned said they would travel to a musical event with friends, compared to 38% of French travellers, 37% of Brits and 32% of Germans.

Additionally, Amadeus’ own flight search data provides further evidence of intent to travel around key music events. 

For Taylor Swift’s Eras tour in 2024, the data shows that international searches for trips to Paris, France, for seven or more days coinciding with the dates of the concerts increased by 21%.

It also found that countries with a noticeable increase in flight searches to Paris coinciding with the Taylor Swift concert dates were Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, The Netherlands, Norway and the USA.

Trips of seven or more days proved most popular with international visitors to Madrid. Flight search volumes for a trip of this duration increased by an average of 23%. 

While domestic travellers in Spain favoured shorter trips, which rose by 18% over the same period.

Between the announcement of UK tour dates and the opening of ticket sales, domestic flight searches for various durations covering the concert dates increased by 80%, compared to an average week-on-week flight search comparisons in 2023.