SALEM, Ohio — A recent survey of group travelers showed some surprising insight on the social makeup of people who enjoy traveling with a group.

Not surprisingly, the survey showed that although 71 percent of group travelers are female, they are not necessarily single or widowed. In fact, 73 percent of group travelers are married.

“The group travel market is a healthy and growing segment of the travel industry,” said Charlie Presley of The Group Travel Family, the organization that conducted the survey. The Group Travel Family is an organization that represents more than 25,000 group travel leaders. The survey included 1,000 travel groups that take more than 200,000 people on overnight tours annually.

The survey also found that 9 percent of group travelers are single and only 18 percent are widowed. It also established the average age of a group travel passenger as 64.

“It is very important that the travel industry understand that the group travel market is stable,” Presley said. “Think about it: An average group traveler will be a viable customer for the next 16 years.”

For details on the group travel survey, visit: www.grouptravelfamily.com