How do you find out about new places to travel to and amazing experiences? It is most likely through the awesome and awe-inspiring travel content. I mean, you’re on Travel Wanderlust right now, so it must mean something to you.
We wanted to find out how some of the best in the world do it, so we jumped at the chance to speak to Nicola Eliot, who is the Vice President of BBC’s branded content studio in APAC ‘BBC StoryWorks’.
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With a real passion for travel in her personal life, Nicola loves bringing travel brands’ stories to life through her role at BBC StoryWorks. This puts her in the perfect position to share more about the changing travel industry and what we can expect to change.
What is BBC Storyworks?
BBC StoryWorks is the branded content studio of BBC Global News. Focused on working with brands from around the world, they use the same formula for storytelling that has made the BBC one of the most known media brands in the world.
Travel and travel-related stories are a huge part of their platform, as they introduce their viewers to the wonders of the world.
What are some of the most interesting changes you’ve seen in travel over the last couple of years?
It has certainly been an interesting time to be working in the travel industry and in my role at BBC StoryWorks (the BBC’s branded content studio), I am always in conversation with travel brands from across the region. Of course, there have been a lot of changes in the last couple of years and with the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a lot of thoughtfulness that has entered people’s consciousness about travel, stemming from both the time spent close to home as well as the rise in awareness around sustainability.
This awareness and interest, particularly in sustainability, crosses all industries. In fact, we saw this in our own research in 2021 with 79% of consumers saying sustainable practices and commitments are an important consideration when making purchase decisions so this is undeniably something travellers will also be conscious of.
People are thinking more deeply about having really life-changing experiences, looking for the unique factors that come from immersion in other cultures, and seeking out natural outdoor beauty, as well as being conscious of their impact on the environments they encounter and their preservation for the future.
Destinations alike are becoming more conscious of these factors, focusing on preserving local characteristics, some of which recovered from over-tourism during the pandemic through actions such as limiting visitor capacity or working with local food sources and businesses. It is a time of flux for everyone involved in the travel industry, but we can see in our own statistics from BBC Travel that audiences are still very much focusing on dreaming big and “discovering the world,” in fact on average 24% more travel-related content was viewed in 2021 as compared to 2020, showing that the appetite for travel is continually growing which is really encouraging to see after the last couple of years.
Will travel be able to rebound if there is still so much confusion around regulations?
Confusion and fear around regulations have limited travel as it has become more available in the last year, mostly due to uncertainty over things changing at the drop of a hat. However, as we seem to be moving into a more stable and upwards recovery from the pandemic across the world, people are willing to deal with some uncertainty and increased processes around travel to unleash some of their pent up wanderlust, and pending any unforeseen changes, that seems to be increasing at a rapid rate.
Travel even at the best of times has always come with some degree of uncertainty, and governments and travel businesses are also doing their best to help put travellers at ease with options for flexibility on things like travel changes and lower cost testing options like ART as opposed to PCR.
And although across the BBC we certainly see audiences being interested in articles focused on COVID-19 related travel measures we can still see our readers particularly fascinated by wider travel pieces – for example, two of our most popular viewed videos on BBC Reel (The BBC’s premium video and short documentary destination) last year were the 1 Euro houses for sale in Italy and the hidden 1000 metre maze in Morocco; both of these videos received nearly half a million views and so we are really still seeing a huge appetite for travel despite the confusion around restrictions and regulations.
Has the way we travel changed forever?
Change is a constant everywhere in life, and the way we travel is no different to anything else. So yes, I think it has changed forever, and I think it will continue to evolve as we move out of the pandemic and as our appreciation for a more sustainable world continues to grow. It will not just be the administrative procedures involved in travel or what we have to deal with to travel, but a complete change in the way we think about travel and how we look to experience other places and other cultures, as well as perhaps a renewed appreciation for the wonders on our doorstep.
What are your picks for the next hot travel destinations in the world?
I think that the interest in experiencing cultural immersion will have people seeking out more far-flung places in the world, and those places that can prioritise the preservation of the things that make them unique. One of my travel to do’s is Papua New Guinea, where there are still tribes living without a lot of contact with the outside world.
There are also a few places that I think present incredible opportunities to visit in Asia at the moment that has not yet bounced back to their pre-pandemic levels of tourists, such as Angkor Wat in Cambodia and beautiful hidden beaches in Vietnam, that have traditionally been packed with people but are now relatively serene. I am certainly not alone in making these plans, recent GWI Zeitgeist survey showed that 1 in 4 Asians are setting plans for their next trip and in fact, only 15% are yet to think about it!
Where are you travelling to next?
I will be travelling to Majorca next, to its historic old town of Deia for a friend’s wedding. Despite growing up in the UK, I have never spent much time in Spain, having prioritised Asia and Africa and other countries in Europe such as Italy, Switzerland and Greece for my travels. While it was not my decision to make that my next stop, I am extremely excited to visit a European beach again and the beautiful historic hilltown.
