Airbnb announces its Experience-Led Travel Insights, which show that young travellers are increasingly planning trips around live concerts and music festivals, using these events as opportunities to discover new cities, extend stays, and explore local neighbourhoods beyond the main event.
For this generation, travel decisions are influenced less by calendars and more by culture. Live events and in-real-life experiences are shaping where they go, who they travel with, and how they engage with destinations.
Music is influencing how young travellers plan and experience travel
In 2026, music is expected to play a larger role in travel behaviour, with 62% of Gen Z planning trips around concerts and music festivals. This intent is reflected in current behaviour, as 36% begin planning travel as soon as they hear about an event.
Instead of planning trips around seasonality, holidays, or long weekends, young travellers are prioritising experiences. Their motivations include exploring a new destination and participating in a cultural moment linked to live events.
The influence of music is also evident in willingness to travel internationally. Over 40% of respondents are open to travelling abroad to watch artists perform live, with destinations across the USA, Europe, and Asia included in their considerations.
Concert-led travel and its impact on destinations
While concerts and festivals act as the main draw, their influence extends beyond event venues. 65% of Gen Z travellers prefer staying close to event locations, which often serve as starting points for wider exploration.
More than half, or 53%, extend their trips to spend time in local cafés, nightlife areas, cultural spaces, gigs, and neighbourhoods, contributing to local businesses and communities. This trend is supported by group travel patterns, with 70% attending concerts with friends or in groups.
Spending behaviour reflects the importance placed on these experiences. Six in ten respondents are willing to allocate 21–40% of their monthly income to music-led travel, while one in ten are willing to spend up to 50%. On average, respondents spent ₹51,000 on their most recent event-led trip.
Concert-led travel is also contributing to tourism dispersion. 76% of respondents said they visited a city for the first time because of a concert or music festival, indicating how live events are introducing young travellers to new cities, neighbourhoods, and cultural districts.
Amanpreet Singh Bajaj, Country Head, India and Southeast Asia, Airbnb said, “Growing interest in music concerts and festivals has paved the way for a new kind of traveler – someone who sees music as a gateway to discovering new destinations. At Airbnb, we’re seeing how concert tourism is opening up entire neighborhoods and communities to young travelers, and the meaningful impact this creates. This emerging form of exploration is reshaping traveler behavior, driving a rising demand for stays that allow groups to spend time together, gather comfortably, and create memorable shared experiences which is perfectly aligned with what Airbnb offers.”
Concert tourism as a planned travel behaviour
Concert-led travel is increasingly being planned in advance and budgeted for as part of lifestyle choices among young travellers.
Large-format festivals such as Lollapalooza India reflect this shift, with thousands of attendees travelling to Mumbai for earlier editions. 62% of attendees say the festival atmosphere influences repeat attendance, and 98% indicate intent to return.
Airbnb has partnered with Lollapalooza India as part of its first global live music partnership. The collaboration will offer guests access to fan-focused experiences and stays during the 2026 edition of the festival, scheduled to take place in Mumbai on January 24–25 at Mahalaxmi Racecourse.
Airbnb’s Experience-Led Travel Insights indicate a future where cultural events continue to play a central role in how Gen Z plan and experience travel.
