Hit or miss? In 2014 experts predicted how we'd travel in 2024

Cast your mind back to 2014; arguably a happier, simpler time. Pharrell Williams was beseeching us to clap along every time we tuned on our radios, Kim Kardashian’s behind was on the cusp of breaking the internet and Brexit was but a twinkle in David Cameron’s eye. Life was good.

It was also the year that Skyscanner published a report predicting what travel would look like in 2024. Now those ten years have elapsed, it’s time to compare those predictions to the reality of 2024. Spoiler alert: we really had no idea what was coming.

Accomplished airports

The report predicted that by 2024, airports would be “uplifting, intelligent spaces providing passengers with a sense of wellbeing”. Travellers would enjoy an entirely automated airport journey and biometric data cards would replace passports, thereby eliminating check-in desks and queues. 

Departure halls, the report predicted, would become filled with art galleries, gardens, 3D cinemas, yoga retreats and even rooftop pools - and all the while, passengers would be attended to by holographic staff.

I’ll give you a minute to stop laughing.

It goes without saying that most of the above has not come to pass. It’s true that there have been efficiency-improving developments in some airports. Self check-in for your luggage, in-app boarding passes, and biometric passports have all become much more widespread.

However, getting to the gate generally remains a drag. Queues can still be long, departure lounges can still be busy, and there’s not a hologram in sight. 

Perhaps the development most in line with the report’s predictions is Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore which contains the tallest indoor waterfall in the world - the futuristically-named Rain Vortex. 

But aside from that, let’s be honest - if a rooftop pool on top of Heathrow with breathtaking views over the M25 did exist, would you opt for a dip in the 23 minutes before your flight takes off into the rainy Tuesday afternoon? No thanks. The adorable little robots that can be found sweeping the floors in the departure lounge can stay, though.

Revolutionary rooms

The report predicted that by 2024, travellers would “have no need to encounter a single human being” from the moment they arrived at their accommodation. Hotel rooms would have undergone a total digital transformation, and the pillows would be “embedded” with electronics to provide neck massages to wake you up in the mornings. Holographic personal trainers would show up in your room to help with a workout, and showers would utilize “sound technology” to “agitate” dirt from your body.

While the above sounds somewhat horrifying, in fact the Pandemic did accelerate the need for a “contactless” accommodation experience. Self-check-ins rarely raise eyebrows nowadays, though these tend to be reserved for budget options. At the other end of the spectrum, a conspicuous lack of human staff has become something of a gimmick. 

As the name suggests, the Robot Hotel in Tokyo claims to be the first hotel in the world staffed by robots, with inexplicable hat-wearing robotic dinosaurs handling your check-in. Meanwhile at Blow Up Hall 5050 in Poland, there’s no check-in desk at all; instead, guests’ smartphones provide access to the building. 

In New York, the lobby of Yotel Times Square is dominated by a massive robotic arm that deals with luggage storage. So, while wire-stuffed pillows that pummel you awake thankfully haven’t become standard, the report wasn’t a million miles off with this one.

Space travel

The report predicted that by now, commercial space travel would have become relatively affordable - by which they meant that a trip into space would set you back almost £60,000. This, quite simply, hasn’t happened. 

Calling sixty grand “affordable” is something of a stretch, but in reality, prices remain six times that figure. In 2023, a ticket for a 90-minute trip to space with Virgin Galactic cost £355,000. 

The 2014 prediction may have been influenced by the fact that SpaceX had just launched its first commercial mission for a private customer. The company has grown substantially since then, and in 2022 it sent the first all-private crew to dock at the International Space Station. 

However, at an eye-watering price tag of £43.5m per passenger, a stop at the ISS is unlikely to become a common tourism trend any time soon. The three crew members did get all their meals included, though.

To give the prediction its due, commercial space travel has certainly become more popular. Virgin Galactic have now launched six commercial space trips, and intend to increase the frequency of flights until they run monthly. 

Despite the astronomical cost, there are those who are willing to pay the price. Several hundred customers are reported to be in line to experience weightlessness, and the once-in-a-lifetime chance to glimpse of the curvature of the earth. The handful of people who’ve so far travelled on commercial space flights confirm that gazing down on our planet is profoundly moving.  

Underwater experiences

According to the report, subaquatic hotels would be a “far more mainstream proposition” by 2024 - certainly more so than space travel. Unfortunately, though, both predictions have a similar story. 

While underwater hotels do exist, the boom that the report predicted hasn’t seen the light of day. The Poseidon Underwater Resort in Fiji, for example, began construction in 2001 and was originally set to open in 2008. It was due to be the world’s first underwater resort, featuring 25 suites, a bar, a gym, and even a wedding chapel, all located forty feet under the sea. 

Sounds cool, right!? Apparently lots of people thought so, with an estimated 150,000 guests on the waiting list. But by 2014 it was still nowhere near ready - and in the year of our Lord, 2024, the resort seems to have been abandoned entirely. Some even speculate that the entire project was a marketing ploy for a submarine company. A bit of a damp squib, really.

Never fear, though! In 2018, the five-star Conrad Rangali Island hotel in the Maldives opened The Muraka, a luxurious suite submerged 16 feet underwater. However, when a room cost over £6m to build, you can bet that a stay there doesn’t come cheap. Rates start at £8,000 per night, but can skyrocket up to £29,000. 

There are cheaper underwater rooms to be found in the Maldives as well as in Australia and Dubai - but at these prices, calling underwater stays “mainstream” would be a bridge too far.

Local travel

The report predicted that by 2024, between 5-10% of people could be renting out their homes to travellers. It predicted that “social travel” – which could include everything from accommodation to personalised travel experiences led by locals – would become an increasingly important part of a trip.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner! Local travel turned out to be the report’s most accurate prediction. In 2024, travellers are making a concerted effort to engage with the traditions, customs and communities of the places they visit. 

While over-tourism of some famous destinations, like Venice, has become a problem, services like Rough Guide’s Tailor Made Trips offer a responsible way for travellers to have more sustainable, authentic travel experiences. Initiatives such as this are becoming increasingly popular, as they allow visitors to support the communities they have the privilege to engage with by focusing on personalised trips, organised through local experts. 

Visitors can help to ensure that a larger proportion of the money they spend on their trip ends up benefiting the local economy, as well as allowing for a more unique holiday. Both are increasingly important to today’s travellers.

The real future of travel

So what have we learned? Well, travel in 2024 is not all about robo-staffed space parties and luxurious underwater getaways as Skyscanner predicted a decade ago. While those sorts of holidays are becoming increasingly accessible for the super-rich, far more travellers are looking for something more authentic and opting more for responsible and local travel. 

And what of the next ten years? I’ve polished my crystal ball and I can see that our current trends will continue to deepen and develop. No futuristic hullaballoos here; instead, as our collective understanding of the climate crisis deepens, so will our love of slow travel as we seek to immerse ourselves in and protect our environment. 

Travellers will seek to visit places ever-closer to home, and they’ll increasingly choose longer stays, and authentic local experiences. Long, scenic train journeys will make a huge comeback, as will visits to unknown destinations, and foodie trips. Above all, personalised travel will be king.

Oh, and holographic airport staff are due at the check-in desk any day now.

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