I was recently approached by Phyllis Stoller, founder of ‘The Women’s Travel Group‘, a tour company for small group, in depth, female travel. She came across my blog while researching interviews with Pauline Frommer of Frommer’s. During our inital conversation, we discussed trends in women’s travel that she has witnessed over the decades. She also expressed how attitudes have shifted with today’s traveling women. As a mature travel professional who has owned her travel business for nearly 30 years, Phyllis exhibits some clear contrasts to the younger generations (myself included). We have different perceptions of travel and, more importantly, traveling as a woman.
However, as we continue to talk, we realize we also have quite a bit in common! We both traveled internationally for the first time in our mid-teens and spoke French in our younger years. We both also enjoy value travel and have a passion for exploring the world and meeting like minded women. Phyllis’ story is deeply rooted in that exact concept.
Meet Phyllis Stoller
As we chat, Phyllis explains that she was inspired to travel from books she read at a young age. In particular, she recalls being most inspired by “Drums Along the Mohawk” by Walter D. Edmonds. “I had some very interesting travel experiences, chosen by my parents.” The first trip they sent her on was at the age of 15, to a French speaking school in Switzerland and she recalls not putting much thought into planning the trip. “I didn’t think about anything. ‘What is the money in that country?’, ‘Do I have health care in that country?’, ‘What’s the weather going to be?’, I was completely clueless!” She recalls of her care free travel mentality from a younger age. “I think that people my age have to throw their brains back to when they didn’t think about every single thing.”
And so it began
After Switzerland, she spent some time in Israel searching for her ‘true self’ through a leadership program. “I had an Orthodox Jewish father, and a very religious Christian mother. And they wanted me to have a look at a country that represented both of them, and dig around to find myself.”
She returned to the US to study history and French at Tufts University, and pursue grad school, where she took a break from traveling. On her next escapade, post college and newly wed, she returned to Europe to explore Spain on $5/day, inspired by Arthur Frommer himself.
In 1970, she and her husband moved abroad to London where she claims she was “deeply impacted by the intrepid UK folks. These travelers had a less conventional sense of travel and were more adventurous than the American travelers,” she had known. They returned to the US in 1980 when the UK economy began to tank, and found themselves in Miami.
“[Miami] was so suburban and so bland. I missed the kind of people that would backpack in India, or rent a house in Italy and learn to cook.” Here, Phyllis was inspired to start her own business after an ‘Explorers Club‘ meeting she had attended. It was then she realized there was a big demand for real travel experiences for women. That there were women who weren’t interested in the cliché “spa” and “cruise” travel that was initially targeted to women. It was with that idea that she decided to go all in, and she hasn’t turned back. Hence, The Women’s Travel Group was born.
“When you go into the travel business and you know what your niche is, it’s very specific, it doesn’t take too long before you start finding people who fit that mold. Let’s find people, let’s go places”.
Phyllis Stoller of The Women’s Travel Group
And with her current clientele, she explains that “When a woman calls me, she already knows exactly where she wants to go. Because she doesn’t have that many years left…there’s a much bigger sense of immediacy with women over 50.”
29 years in Women’s Travel
Over the decades, Phyllis has learned a lot about herself, the travel industry and what women look for in travel. Now a veteran in women’s travel, she recalls a time when it was frowned upon to discuss international travel. “For fear of sounding too elite” she explained. “But now”, she says, “travel entitles you to bragging rights!” She remembers flights becoming deregulated and says flights used to be much more expensive. She says she much prefers flying today. “It’s safer, it’s cleaner, there’s no smoking and the staff is [more diverse].”
When it comes to travel tips, her words of wisdom include “buying your luggage in person” and using declassified CIA documents as a destination search resource (you can search “government information about [destination]” via the internet).
And staying informed about everything that is going on in the travel world is no small task! Here are some of the travel channels Phyllis says she follows:
- International Travel News
- Christopher Elliot
- Travelers United
- Peter Greenburg
- World Tourism Network
- Johnny Jet
- Travel Weekly
- Travelmole UK/US
- Insider Travel Report
- set Google Alerts for your destination
So where is Phyllis off to next? She says the list is still long, and she is keen to travel again. She has already received her COVID vaccinations, and welcomes the day that global travel re-opens.
“If you love to travel, you can’t get it out of your blood.”
Phyllis Stoller of The Women’s Travel Group
Female Travel Trend Survey
My conversation with Phyllis really got the wheels spinning with regards to trends in women’s travel, specifically with regards to age. I decided to publish a short survey via Google Forms that I could easily push out through the various travel platforms that I engage in and via the [awesome] travel women I associate with. The chat with Phyllis resulting in this survey also gave me the opportunity to reach out to older female travelers.
Below are the results from the ten (10) questions that made up the survey that I published addressing ‘Generational Differences in Female Travel’. I have to say I was a little overwhelmed at first by the amount of data this brought in, but really enjoyed putting this all together. I’ve included some additional comments with regards to the results outlined below. Some of the results may line up with your expectations, while others may come as a surprise.
Survey Participant Age Distribution
A total of 106 participants completed the survey, which I was very excited about! As a scientist I geeked out, as your ideal sample size should include a minimum of 100 participants to be considered representative. (Thanks again to all of those who took the time to provide their answers!)
Travel Group Size Preference by Age
While the larger tour group option must most popular with female travelers over 70, the small family/friends group was the most popular form of prefered travel type.
Female Travel Research Platform Distribution
These responses were quite evenly spread across the age groups. Responses that fell into the ‘other ‘ category included being a member of a travel organization and visiting the destination website.
Travel Budget by Age
Travel Preparation Method
I really appreciate that books are still the most popular form of trip preparation! I always purchase a couple Lonely Planet/Fodor/Frommer’s books when I’m planning a trip. There’s just something about flipping through the pages, highlighting lines of interest and making notes about the new adventure you are about to embark on.
Female Travel Planning Preference
Not surprisingly, there are a lot of travelers who prefer to plan their own trip. While there has been a shift away from the use of travel agents as the internet has expanded, Phyllis recommends using them at times. “They have personal connections you don’t, and they’re really knowledgeable about the area you want to travel to.” And they can work to help you get your money back, say in the event of a pandemic for example. “There are some very good ones out there, you just have to find them.”
Documentation Methods of Female Travelers
Of course, the most popular method of travel documentation is photography, commonly paired with journaling. Most travelers had a combination of documentation methods, including other options such as scrapbooking and blogging.
Preferred Trip Duration
I have to say I was a little surprised (in a good way!) at how many travelers are able to enjoy multi-week getaways, especially in the age bracket of 30-70. I fully expected the getaways to get longer with increased age.
Preferred Accommodations
Note the clear age group definitions for camping and cruises here, and the curious RV split.
Female Traveler Splurge Preferences
Lastly, the splurge results align quite well with an Expedia study that highlighted “activities and once-in-a-lifetime or cultural experiences” as a trend across all generations.
How do you find the survey results align with your age and travel style? Drop a line below and let us know!
If you're in the market for more female travel centric resources, you'll also want to check out Holiday Goddess and Wanderful. 'The Women's Travel Group' is now booking tours for 2021 and 2022 for those who are eager to get away. Phyllis lives in New York with her husband and they recently purchased a property on Cape Cod. She has been awareded ‘Top Woman in Tourism Marketing' by Women in Travel-Tourism International. Phyllis is the Executive Treasurer and Secretary for Skal, a global travel and tourism network. Read more about Phyllis on Travel Market Report and LinkedIn.
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Very interesting research and data. We, as travelers, fall into major and the most popular categories according to our age and preferences. We are somewhere in the middle or closer to the right in all categories. Thank you for sharing these curious facts.
Thank you Natalia! It’s so interesting to discuss the results with fellow travellers and where they fall on the spectrum. Glad you found it intteresting!
The survey results provide an interesting perspective–the graphs and charts are helpful.
Thanks for stopping by Darla! This was a fun experiment for me and I was able to meet alot of great personalities in the process. Stay well!
Very interesting. Since I write for Generation X (people 40-ish to mid-50s) this stuff is fascinating and also very helpful to me. Thanks.
You are most welcome Susan! I really wanted to capture some interesting statistics to share with all the like-minded travel content creators and bloggers. So glad you enjoyed it!
Really interesting post. I love the data you collected, I’m in the 40-49 age group and a lot of my preferences are similar. I don’t like tour groups and I’m not a fan of camping, although I did it when I was younger. Definitely seeking good value and cultural experiences these days
Thank you so much Regan. It was a really great opportunity to interact with some new folks and discuss different perspectives. And thanks for sharing your personal preferences as well.
You have provided a great deal of useful information on this blog. Thank you for organizing it in a easy to read format with gorgeous photos.
Thank you Nicole! It was a really fun post to work on. I got to meet and chat with some really great ladies along the way!
Kathryn, this is such a fascinating article! It’s so interesting to learn about travel from the perspective of someone in another generation. Things have changed so much over the years and it makes me wonder what things will be like in the future. Some of the results in the graphs you shared from your survey are also quite surprising. Great piece!
Thank you Daniella! I was so excited about the collection of data that came with the quiz I distributed. It would certainly be interesting to send this survey around in another 25 years to see how the results compare. Will certainly have to consider it!
Very interesting data. Especially the age distribution!
Agreed Lisi! Adding the ages groups associated with the responses brought the results to a whole new level. Glad you found it interesting!
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Very interesting results!
I am glad to see documentation of how I prefer to trip plan: using guidebooks (and physical ones at that — when one doesn’t have electricity, internet, or hanging out in a station waiting for the transport to the next destination — or even want to be traveling with easy-to-break electronics that mark one for theft — then nothing can beat a physical book)!
And it is good to see the economic breakdown of travelers, in how they wish to travel, and that budget is very common.
Unfortunately — none of the present guidebooks on the market are really, truly budget oriented — which is a shame, for to travel on a budget brings you in closer contact with the people where you are traveling.
= Sigh =
Thanks, again, for your research!
You have a really good point Lorraine! Maybe you’ve found your next business idea there 😉 Keep me posted!!
Wow, what an interesting study! Some of these aren’t surprising, like the fact that younger women are more likely to be camping (I can’t sleep on the ground anymore, that’s for sure!😂). But there are other things that I would not have guessed. Great information.
I feel ya there Jenn! Really enjoyed collecting the data and putting it all together. Thanks for taking a look at it!
Interesting. You have made me realise just how much has changed – not only as I have got older, but more because my husband has different ideas about travel. Now everything has to be planned (by me) and there has to be proof – a printout – of every bit of travel and accommodation so that he knows that it is all booked, etc. Gone are the days when I could go where I wanted and at what speed I wanted. Even journaling has been replaced by more photography – he understands photography, but not the need to write. Now I wonder what my traveling would be like if I could do it my way again – though probably not with a tent these days!
While a lot of the results were not surprising, per say, the goal was to invoke some thoughts about our individual styles, just as you have done here. I’m sorry to hear it sounds like your personal style has gotten a little lost in the mix. Have you tried talking about your need to write more? There must be a balance you can reach between the two of you when it comes to travel. It’s always great to share in travel, but personal development is also an essential part of it. Any chance of a solo trip? That might be a good start.
This is a fantastic study, the results take a lot to digest, but I am not shocked by many of them and love the plan your own trip is high across the spread.. Love this research
Thanks so much Jeanine! As you mention, many of the results are not shocking, but nice to see neatly organize and presented. Had a lot of fun putting it all together!