Live Music Fans Take 38% More Trips, and Where Artists Play Drives Where They Go Next

Live music fans are some of the world’s most active travelers.

New research across 13 countries found that they took 38% more trips in the past year than other travelers. Those trips included vacations, work, cultural getaways, sporting events and live music.

The research spans the full live music calendar, including concerts, tours, festivals, and residencies. As artists move between cities and countries, fans build travel around where and when they can see them.

Nearly 7 in 10 plan trips around tour dates and festival lineups, and almost 6 in 10 plan family vacations around live music trips. When choosing where to see a show, 78% say the artist or lineup matters more than the location.

A concert can set the date for a trip, introduce fans to a city and give them a reason to return.

Artists are putting new places on the map

When an artist announces a tour, fans start looking at dates, cities and flights. They decide quickly, often choosing whether to attend within a week of hearing about the show. The ticket usually comes first, and the rest of the trip takes shape around it.

That order can introduce fans to places they had never considered visiting. Nearly 7 in 10 have traveled somewhere they would not otherwise have visited because of a concert or festival. For 91%, live music played an important role in their first visit to a destination.

That influence crosses borders. Nearly two in three fans have traveled to another city or country for live music. Some follow a global tour to the stop that works for them. Others use a festival or residency as the reason to experience a place for the first time. In Belgium, 73% of fans have crossed an international border specifically to attend a live music event.

Artists have become a powerful source of travel inspiration. A single tour announcement can put a new city on someone’s radar, inspire an international trip or bring friends from several places together in a destination none of them would have chosen on their own. That influence is particularly strong in Thailand, Mexico and Ireland, where more than 7 in 10 fans say live music has taken them somewhere new.

The ticket shapes the rest of the trip

Fans tend to build several days of travel around a show, with 87% staying for more than one night. Nearly 3 in 4 venture beyond the host city to explore nearby towns, another major destination or somewhere across the border. Along the way, they meet up with friends arriving from different places, work remotely to extend their stay and turn a single event into a longer, multi-stop trip.

Each extra day brings another meal, hotel night, ride, activity or purchase. Fans spend 40% of their live music travel budget on the event and 60% on the rest of the trip. Food, flights and accommodations are the areas where they are most willing to spend.

Spending also begins well before the trip. 86% buy something in advance, including clothing, footwear, luggage, portable technology, beauty products and travel insurance.

That spending reaches airlines, hotels and destinations, as well as banks, payment providers, restaurants, retailers, beauty brands, mobility services and technology companies. Each one has a role to play in the journey surrounding the show.

One show can lead to years of return visits

Live music gives fans a reason to discover a place. Their experience there can give them a reason to return.

Three in four have gone back to a destination they first visited for a concert or festival, rising to 89% among fans in Thailand. Nearly 7 in 10 have returned several times because of a recurring festival, residency or live music event.

A fan may arrive for an artist and find a favorite restaurant, neighborhood, beach or hotel. The next visit may center on another show, a vacation with friends or a completely different reason.

That pull is especially strong around festivals. Fans return year after year for camping events like Sweden Rock, Rock Werchter and Rhythm & Vines. But the pattern is not limited to the campsite. Three in five fans traveling to Las Vegas for EDC have attended before, making the city part of a tradition that extends well beyond a single weekend.

For destinations, this creates a chance to turn a concert weekend into a lasting relationship. One night of live music can keep a city on someone’s travel list for years.

Many possible trips still do not happen

Even when interest is high, turning a show into a trip requires fans to coordinate several parts of the experience, from travel and accommodations to timing and group plans.

Accommodation is the number one consideration for fans deciding whether to travel for live music, with 88% factoring it into their plans. Proximity remains a challenge, with 71% struggling to find somewhere to stay near the venue.

Fans are looking for practical help. They want transportation to and from the event, relevant hotel recommendations, flexible ways to pay and support when plans change. They also want tickets, travel and accommodations to work together.

Many are willing to reconsider their usual travel brands in exchange for that support: