|
Top Ten Destinations Travelers Would Most Like to Visit This Summer |
WASHINGTON, May 19, 2004 - Real recovery in the travel and tourism industry is clearly underway, with the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) forecasting a 3.2 percent increase in leisure travel for the 2004 summer season. According to TIA's Summer 2004 Forecast, Americans will take more than 334 million person-trips during June, July and August 2004. A person-trip is one person traveling 50+ miles, one-way, away from home. "For the first time in years, the summer travel season will start off
with a bang and we expect it to stay strong through August," remarked Dr.
Suzanne Cook, senior vice president of research for the Travel Industry
Association of America. "But there are some causes for concern, including
rising gas prices and higher inflation. We are also sensing a general
unease among Americans concerning the affordability of travel, which isn't
surprising considering travel prices have risen 7 percent since December."
The dramatic shift in travel trends over the past few years, such as Americans taking more driving vacations, staying closer-to-home and visiting more rural destinations, will still be prevalent this summer but there are signs the trends are softening. Air travel is expected to increase 5 percent this summer, primarily due to leisure travelers, compared to a 3 percent increase in auto travel. RV travel is likely to remain very strong this summer. Americans expect to stay away an average of 7.6 nights on their longest
pleasure trip, down slightly from last year. Travelers plan on spending
an average of $1,101 on their longest pleasure trip this summer, up 4.4
percent from summer 2003.
SUMMER 2004 HIGHLIGHTS
|
###
Travel Industry Association of America Web Site: http://www.tia.org |
Also See: | Hotels.com Booked Approximately 8 million Room Nights in 2003; Top Ten Destinations for 2003 / December 2003 |
Top 50 Destinations For Columbus Day Travel / October 2003 |