Travel trends: Are you a “Four-Percenter” when it comes to travel?

If you spend enough time traveling, you’ll start seeing people that qualify as “Four-Percenters” — individuals who took 3+ foreign trips in the past 3 years AND 3+ domestic trips in the past 12 months; they represent only about four percent of the US population. We call them “Four-Percenters,” because they take to the air or the highways more often than the other 96% of their fellow Americans. They aren’t just travelers. Rather, they are People Who Travel.

How does a Four-Percenter travel differently than the other 96% of Americans?

In general, Four-Percenters are the kind of people who —

  • tend to travel independently instead of in an organized group;
  • swap lost luggage stories in airline lounges or brag about frequent flier statuses;
  • know every trick in the book to score an upgrade;
  • offer travel tips freely (maybe too freely?);
  • are likely to mistake Up in the Air for an autobiographical film;
  • choose a different destination for every new trip they take;
  • spend an average of $3,100 on foreign travel each year (nearly $700 more than average) and take 60% more domestic trips than other Americans.

Maybe you’re a homebody at heart — not likely if you’re reading Gadling — who’s forced to travel for work, or you might be an aspiring globetrotter that just hasn’t racked up enough miles. Whatever your situation, do you agree or disagree with how the Four-Percenters think about travel?

Are YOU a Four-Percenter?

Data source: 2009 Survey of the American Consumer