Hotwire Reveals February 2012 Travel Savings Indicator

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Hotwire.com®, a leading discount travel site, today released the February 2012 Hotwire® Travel Savings Indicator, which features the top five cities in North America where hotel, air and car rental rates have dropped the most compared with the same time last year. Using extensive pricing research to cover the three most popular travel products, the report helps guide travelers to the best destinations to maximize their travel dollars each month.

"Travelers shouldn't rule out the idea of a winter vacation. We're seeing some great price drops in popular destinations that have not made our list in some time, and we welcome their return," said Clem Bason, president of the Hotwire Group. "Washington, DC and San Francisco have consistently been offering great deals throughout the season, but we're especially excited to see places like New York City, Las Vegas and San Diego presenting themselves as great options for getaways before spring break and summer travel begins to drive prices back up."

Hotel Price Drops

Taking the number one spot with a 22 percent decrease is the Reno/Tahoe area. Lack of snow has caused hotels in the vicinity to become more aggressive on their pricing across the board to generate more bookings. This competition has caused some big price drops and stellar deals on sites like Hotwire.

Last year, the Steelers made the NFL playoffs and made it all the way to the Super Bowl, providing a boost in hotel bookings in Pittsburgh.  This year, the team hasn't had so much success, so the hotels that would typically sell out during home playoff games have seen less demand, causing rates to decrease significantly.  With fewer events on the calendar for the beginning of 2012, travelers should be able to find good deals.

Cincinnati, Ohio drops from number one to number three this month with a four percent decrease. Overall, 2012 is shaping up to be a slower convention year for this big Midwestern destination, and with less citywide events, hotels in the area are reacting by offering great rates to attract more leisure guests.

Las Vegas and New York City are top markets that make the list this month, both with a three percent decrease. Convention business is picking up slower than usual in Las Vegas, resulting in ample last-minute deals for leisure travelers. Since the city has seen a building boom in hotels over the past few years, this has also helped keep prices especially competitive.

New York City has not appeared as a top market for hotel deals in quite some time, but is a great value destination for travelers right now. Midtown and Times Square area hotels have had a decent January and February, but not compared to this time last year, so many properties are dropping prices to drive more reservations. Throughout the rest of the winter season, consumers will be able to find great deals at the 4.5 and 5 star levels, and for those who really know the area well, Hoboken, Jersey City and Brooklyn will have some deep discounts as well.

When compared to the same time last year, the top five hotel price reductions for February 2012 include:

Air Price Drops

All of the top price drop markets for air are offering average fares under $260 per person, an especially great value for the winter season. Oakland, Chicago and Providence each boast a four percent savings vs. the same time last year, and San Francisco and Washington, DC follow closely behind with a three percent savings each. Northern California continues to be a hot market, with both Oakland and San Francisco continuing to show up on the list over the past several months. Washington, DC appears on both the air and car rental lists, also making it a hot market for travelers.

When compared to the same time last year, the top five airfare price reductions for February 2012 include:

Car Price Drops

Consumers can find car rentals for $21 or less per day in each of the top five deal markets this month. West Coast leisure destinations San Diego and Las Vegas both make a welcome return with a 60 and 59 percent decrease, respectively, and Las Vegas in particular is a hot market for travelers, appearing on the hotel list as well. Washington, DC, Boston and Atlanta all continue their discount offerings in the car rental market, and have appeared on the list over the past few months.

When compared to the same time last year, the top five car rental price reductions for February 2012 include:

For over 10 years, Hotwire has worked with hotels, airlines and car rental companies to fill unsold inventory. As a result, Hotwire offers travelers amazing deals, every day of the year, across a variety of markets. Through Hotwire's deep understanding of the industry and unique relationships, consumers have been able to save millions of dollars on all their travel needs.

About the Hotwire Travel Savings Indicator

The Hotwire Travel Savings Indicator runs results during the second week of each month. Results are calculated by looking at Hotwire booking data for select regions in the current month, and comparing prices in the current month against Hotwire prices in the same month in the prior year. Prices are compared within the same categories (e.g., star rating, class of car) for consistency, and the percent change in price for each region is generated as an overall average of the changes in those categories. The hotel prices in the charts above are examples for a particular Hot Rate® deal within that market. The airfare and car rental prices are average prices based on bookings across all car and seat classes. Actual prices may be higher or lower than the examples that are provided.

About Hotwire

Hotwire.com is a leading discount travel site with low rates on airline tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, cruises and vacation packages.  Launched in 2000, Hotwire negotiates deep discounts from its travel suppliers to help travelers book unsold airline seats, hotel rooms and rental cars.  Hotwire is an award-winning website and operating company of Expedia, Inc. CST# 2053390-50.  NST: 20003-0209.  For more information, visit http://www.hotwire.com. Hotwire sites operates in 8 countries worldwide: www.hotwire.com, www.hotwire.com/uk, www.hotwire.com/ie, www.hotwire.com/au, www.hotwire.com/nz, www.hotwire.com/se, www.hotwire.com/no and www.hotwire.com/dk.   In addition to Hotwire, The Hotwire Group of websites includes: www.hotwire.com, www.travel-ticker.com, www.carrentals.com.  

Hotwire, Hotwire.com, the Hotwire logo and Hot Rate are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Hotwire, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.  All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. © 2012 Hotwire, Inc.  All rights reserved. CST# 2053390-40.

Contact:
Andrew Reynolds
Atomic PR
(323) 648-5425
[email protected]

SOURCE Hotwire.com