The travel and tourism sector has started to rebound with the easing of COVID-19 restrictions across the world. However, travelers are feeling the pinch of increasing inflation which has impacted travel costs including airfares and accommodation. Against this backdrop, Twitter influencer conversations on inflation around travel-related topics have recorded a staggering 250% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) rise in the second quarter (Q2) of 2022, reveals the Social Media Analytics Platform of GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

A significant spike in discussions was noticed in the second week of June, when airfares surged by 37.8% month-on-month in May, as inflation in the US recorded the highest level in the last 40 years, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Smitarani Tripathy, Social Media Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Most of the influencers opine travel demand may come under pressure as consumers are expected to cut travel plans amid the dreaded combination of soaring inflation, a depressed financial market, and airfares. The pandemic-induced demand is likely to be facilitated by trading down, with cheaper products and services being prioritized to counteract the impact of inflation.”

Below are a few of the most popular influencer tweets captured by GlobalData’s Social Media Analytics Platform:

1. J Mintzmyer, Founder of Value Investor’s Edge:

“I think this gets oversimplified a lot. Yeah, consumer spending is likely coming down with fuel pressure and inflation, but not clear how much goes direct to services. Saw a recent poll on what ppl were cutting due to inflation. Travel was #1. 40%+ cutting 2022 travel plans.”

2. Deepak Singh, Founder & publisher of State of the Market

“The Slowdown is so evident now. Domestic airline bookings slipped 2.3% in May from April, the second consecutive month-over-month drop, according to Adobe data. Why? Airfares were up 30% last month compared with 2019 levels. 😲”

3. Trevor, World Traveler

“I think the challenge is two fold. definitely seeing high airfares, unattractive mileage redemptions. With the meltdowns of air travel that we keep seeing, the paxex isn’t great now. I wonder if it makes more sense to save money and wait. But we waited for so long w/ Covid.”

4. Vinamra Longani, Head of Operations at Sarin & Co.:

“Higher airfares due to inter alia, rising fuel prices (as it stands, Aviation Turbine Fuel in India costs more than retail petrol) are starting to take a toll on demand. Unless things change dramatically, the next few months may be rather difficult for our airlines. #AvGeek”

5. Gary Leff, Miles and Points Consulting, LLC

“Not an unanticipated risk – a risk-adjusted cost that needs to be factored into travel. That makes travel more expensive (beyond airfare/lodging/etc) and therefore holds back international travel – and for many it should!”