‘Social tourism’ – it’s a phrase you may not be familiar with, but it’s something everyone with social media partakes in on a daily basis. This modern phenomenon is on the rise:  the ability to become a digital globetrotter through following your friends’ holiday posts on Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and Twitter.

Four in ten UK adults admit to being a ‘social tourist’, according to recent research conducted by First Choice Holidays. They have revealed that people who are regularly on Facebook or Instagram will experience (to clarify, we’re using the term liberally) fourteen countries in a year, via their friends’ social media feeds.The great thing about over two-thirds of social tourists are inspired to travel more widely after seeing their secretary/cousin/first wife sipping rosé

The great thing about this access-all-areas approach to digital voyeurism is that – as well as benefiting from a vibrant social media feed – over two-thirds of social tourists are inspired to travel more widely after seeing their secretary/cousin/first wife sipping rosé on a beach in Bali or trekking up Macchu Piccu. 

First Choice are excited about the impact social media is having on the industry. Jeremy Ellis, Marketing and Customer Experience Director for First Choice, said: “For many of us, social media has made the world a little smaller – inspiring us to visit destinations we might not otherwise have considered and encouraging us to share our holidays with friends and family too.”

According to First Choice, the number of photographs taken by Brits abroad has increased from 62 to 85 in the last five years – many of which will end up on social media. Unsurprisingly, about a fifth of people admit that they take photos and videos on holiday solely to spark jealousy in friends and relatives. 

Here at The Sybarite, we are always planning our next long weekend away and trips further afield – and if social tourism encourages wanderlust then we are all for it! Our bags are already packed…