A panel discussion led by Visit Fort Worth Director of Research Lauren Philips on 6 April 2021 explored the perspectives and experiences of Black travelers, and their potential impact on future travel decisions.

Key findings:

• Black people still don't see people who look like them in travel ads.
• Despite being underrepresented in advertising, and wishing they were less so, Blacks say they are going to continue to travel.
• Blacks make extensive use of social media networks to share personal travel experiences, and to promote to their friends those destinations where they had good experiences.
• Blacks approach travel - both historically and currently - with caution, inherently acknowledging that "everything is a calculated risk."

Details are in the video, below.

Comment: The lesson for destinations here is obvious: if you welcome Black travelers, and want to be more competitive in this major market, make your advertising more inclusive in order to mitigate that "calculated risk".