What do travellers fear most about flying? It’s easy to assume that turbulence tops the list: the sudden jolt that makes you double-check your seatbelt and glance anxiously at the flight attendants. Yet according to Booking.com’s Travel Trends 2025 study, the greater source of stress isn’t flying itself, but the uncertainty of delays and cancellations.
On further consideration, “cancellation anxiety” is in fact more rational, as the likelihood of missing your flight is immensely higher than being in an aircraft accident. 2024 statistics from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) recorded just 1.13 accidents per million flights – almost literally one in a million – whereas flight delay statistics from Travelperk show that the likelihood of experiencing a delay is as high as 37%.
Both real and perceived risks play into the decision making processes of most travellers, whether they are aware of it or not. This is why airlines place such emphasis on maintaining and projecting a strong safety image: anxiety can be a decisive factor in choosing an airline. But this decision making process does not stop at flying. During the coronavirus pandemic, infection worries topped the list of concerns among travellers worldwide, and hotels responded with greater infection control protocols and international conflicts continue to deter tourism in the affected countries and regions.
This text is an exerpt from the October 2025 edition of Statista and Booking.com's Travel and Tourism Insights newsletter. Sign up here for more tourism industry data insights - straight to your inbox.
