Mastercard’s November 26, 2024 announcement presented survey findings about European Gen Z and experiential gifts. It reported that 63% of surveyed 18- to 24-year-olds were increasing their spending on experiences, more than other age groups according to the company. The underlying fieldwork took place in January, so this is reported intention or behaviour at that time, not measured November holiday sales.

The experiences that are having the biggest impact on Gen Z are visiting a bucket-list destination, seeing a live performance of their favorite artist, eating at a dream restaurant, and staying at a unique or world-famous hotel. Nearly half of the Gen Z respondents cite personal connections as their primary reason for investing in an experience.

The data behind the story

Experiences European Gen Z described as life-changing

Subjective survey responses from January 2024.

% of surveyed European Gen Z
Source
Stockings full of memories: European Gen Z's love for experiential gifts

Overlapping subjective responses, not gift purchases or market shares. European Gen Z subgroup size and country weights are undisclosed. The January fieldwork predates the November release and does not measure holiday sales growth.

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Experiences European Gen Z described as life-changing (% of surveyed European Gen Z)
Category% of surveyed European Gen Z
Bucket-list destination68 % of surveyed European Gen Z
Favourite artist live53 % of surveyed European Gen Z
Dream restaurant42 % of surveyed European Gen Z
Unique or world-famous hotel41 % of surveyed European Gen Z

Beatrice Cornacchia, executive vice president of Marketing and Communications for Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, Europe at Mastercard, stated that this holiday season is the perfect time for European shoppers to rethink what truly brings joy, especially when choosing gifts for teenagers and young adults. Cornacchia added that experiential gifts resonate powerfully with Gen Z, giving them opportunities to share special moments with friends and family.

The survey also found interest in both large and more intimate, local experiences. Travel and tourism led the categories Gen Z wanted to try more of, at 50%. Vitreous Worldwide conducted fieldwork on January 2–9, 2024 for Mastercard: 14,125 respondents in 20 European markets and 2,016 in Australia, Brazil, China and the US, making 16,141 across 24 markets. The European Gen Z subgroup size and country weights are not disclosed.

The findings describe respondents’ interest in adventure, connection and memorable experiences. They can inform which experiences a gifting business considers, but they do not measure a change in gift-card purchases or prove a general rejection of physical gifts.