Picture this: A family of four is hurtling down a zipline through the Costa Rican rainforest. The parents (both millennials) aren't checking their phones. For the first time in months, they're fully present, hearts racing, kids squealing with delight. Some variation of this scene is playing out thousands of times a day across the globe, and it's quietly revolutionizing the travel industry.
Here's what the data is telling us and why it matters.
The new face of family travel has arrived
Forget everything you thought you knew about family vacations. The generation that has disrupted many industries is now rewriting the rules of family travel and they're bringing their kids along for the ride.
Nearly 80 percent of children under 12 now live in millennial-led households. This isn't a niche market. This is the market. Understanding what millennials value can help the travel industry better meet their needs.
New Visa Business and Economic Insights Global Travel data reveals that millennial families aren't just traveling differently, they're breathing new life into a sector many had written off as stagnant: adventure parks.
Adventure parks are having a moment (and it's not slowing down)
While traditional attractions struggle with over-tourism and sustainability concerns, adventure parks are experiencing explosive growth. Visa's analysis of anonymized transaction data shows that in just the 12 months ending September 2025:
Domestic adventure park spending jumped 11 percent
International adventure park spending surged 18 percent
This isn't random. This shift reflects changing priorities among parents who have limited time and want vacations that feel meaningful rather than passive.
Here's the part that should make destination marketers sit up straight: Adventure park visitors spend two to four times more annually on their Visa credentials than the average traveler.
They're wealthier, yes, but they're also willing to pay for experiences that matter. For destinations grappling with how to grow tourism revenue without simply adding more volume, this may be your answer.
Why millennial parents crave adventure (more than millennials without kids)
It seems counterintuitive. Wouldn't having kids make you less likely to seek out physically demanding vacations?
The data says otherwise. Sixty percent of millennial parents prefer destinations with physical activities, compared with just half of millennials without children.
The reason? Time pressure. These parents are juggling careers, childcare and the constant pull of digital life. When they finally get away, they don't want to passively sit by a pool (though they love beaches too). They want to feel something. They want to make every precious vacation day count.
Active leisure isn't just recreation for them; it's stress relief, connection and memory-making compressed into limited windows of freedom.
The four-day advantage
Here's another data point that destinations should tattoo on their strategic plans: When North American travelers visit Mexico, Jamaica or Costa Rica and include adventure parks in their itinerary, they stay an average of four days — double the two-day average of other travelers.
Longer stays mean more meals purchased, more hotel nights booked, more local experiences consumed. It's the kind of high-value, lower-impact tourism that sustainable destinations dream about.
What this means for your next vacation (or your tourism strategy)
If you're a millennial parent reading this and nodding along, you're not alone in craving adventure-filled family trips. The data confirms that millennial parents want more from their vacations.
If you're a destination marketer or tourism operator, the message is clear: The families who will define the next decade of travel want active, immersive, experience-rich adventures. They have the money to spend and the willingness to stay longer, if you give them what they're looking for.
As spring and summer vacation planning kicks into high gear, one thing is certain: The future of family travel isn’t just about increasing tourist numbers to traditional vacation locations. It's also about attracting the right tourists — those seeking meaningful experiences, willing to pay for quality and eager to stay longer.
Adventure parks are capturing this wave. The question is: what will your destination do to ride it?
Millennial families are reshaping global tourism, and adventure travel is their language. For destinations ready to engage this segment, this generation represents both growth and the future of sustainable, high-value tourism.