Gap Year Students head to South America

29% more gappers are planning to soak up the culture and history of South America this year compared to 2007.

Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, San Jose and Lima all make it into our top 10 fastest growing destinations. This growth in popularity has largely been driven by falling airfares, prompted by an increase in airlines flying into the region. Nepal and Vietnam also make it in to the top three as gappers look to get off the traditional gap trail and find more challenging destinations.

Australia still remains the most popular destination with 5% more gappers planning to head there this year compared to last year. Whilst the traditional tourist spots continue to do well, other cities such as Cairns, Brisbane and Perth are attracting more gap year travellers due to the good all year round weather conditions, abundant job opportunities and the new two year working holiday visas.

John Constable, managing director of Sta Travel said: "The list of fastest growing destinations is significant because young travellers often set the mainstream industry trends for the future. South America is the 'hot' destination this year and we have seen volume to destinations such as San Jose and Lima grow by as much as 39% over the last year.

"We have also seen changes in the way young people approach their travels. More and more gap year travel is becoming shorter and better planned to get the most out of their time abroad. The once carefree, spontaneous year of travel is now a three to six month carefully researched trip often involving voluntary projects, learning a skill and earning money along the way."

A recent survey by STA Travel shows that one gap year trip is not enough for many young people, with 35% saying that they planned to take another. 81% of respondents said that spending time overseas during their gap year left them wanting to emigrate after completing their studies.

8 September 2008