The majority of Australian families (77%) are opting for domestic travel over going overseas in 2016, according to a recent study of 1,000 Australian parents commissioned by Ford.
The most popular option for family holidays is to visit iconic Australian locations such as the Great Barrier Reef, Uluru and the Great Ocean Road. Safety, reliability and comfort are top-rated considerations when choosing a vehicle, with 67% saying that an SUV is the vehicle of choice for such trips. More than half (54 per cent) of Australian families are also keen to travel long distances of up to 1,000km for family holidays.
The survey findings show:
- 42% of Aussie parents rate safety as top priority o 47% of Aussie parents with children aged 0-5 years rate safety as top priority
- 37% of Aussie parents say that reliability is most important
- 15% of Aussie parents say that storage capacity is most important
“We noticed a trend of Australian families choosing to drive to family holidays rather than opting for more expensive overseas travel,” said Graeme Whickman, Ford of Australia President and CEO.
“At Ford we aim to understand the needs of our owners and are committed to providing fuel efficient SUVs with a five star ANCAP rating to Aussie families. The Ford Kuga offers advanced technologies including fuel-saving innovations such as Auto-Start Stop and driver assistance features such as Active City Stop, available as part of an option pack on Trend and Titanium, that can apply the brakes if drivers do not respond in time to hazards detected ahead.”
“The Ford Kuga also comes with SYNC2 – Ford’s in-car infotainment system – helping families stay connected and entertained during road trips.”
Family holiday study
The Ford-commissioned research also unveiled the highs and lows of Aussie family road trips nowadays. Among the findings:
- 47% of parents report entertainment options as the biggest change to family road trips since they were kids
- 27% of parents report the comfort of traveling (air conditioning, seats, etc.) as the biggest change to family road trips since they were kids
- 63% of parents say that tablets are the best way to keep kids entertained
- 69% of parents with kids of are 6-12 years old
- 31% of parents say that mum controls the music selection on long car journeys
- 38% of females say this as compared to 23% of males
