To help us direct your question to the best team to provide an answer please select which option best describes you.
The experience economy report 2026: summer travel
From planning and booking to spending at the destination, today’s summer traveler prioritizes flexibility, meaningful experiences, and fast, reliable payment methods. Download Paysafe’s latest The Experience Economy Report to see how travelers are choosing where to go, what they spend on, and how payment experiences are shaping the journey.
How experience-led travel is reshaping spending and payments
Summer travel demand remains strong, but consumer behavior is shifting. Our latest research surveyed 4,500 consumers across the US, UK, Canada, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain who plan to travel for leisure this summer to understand their travel intentions, spending priorities, booking behavior, and payment preferences.
The findings show that travelers are placing greater value on experiences, staying flexible for longer, and expecting payments to be as smooth as the rest of the journey. For travel merchants, that raises the stakes for payment choice, ease, and reliability at every stage of the trip.
Key insights from the research
From strong travel intent and a growing focus on experiences to fragmented payment habits and widespread checkout friction, the 2026 summer travel season is reshaping how consumers spend and pay. Here’s a visual breakdown of the study’s most important findings.
Powering payments for the travel experience
Paysafe helps travel merchants deliver payment experiences that reflect how consumers plan, book, and spend today. Whether it’s supporting diverse payment preferences, reducing checkout friction, or enabling seamless digital transactions across touchpoints, we help businesses meet rising traveler expectations and capture more in-the-moment spend. This aligns with the report’s finding that the payment experience now directly affects conversion and satisfaction throughout the travel journey.
Ready to optimize your payment strategy for summer travel?