Hotwire Reveals October 2012 Travel Savings Indicator

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Hotwire.com®, a leading discount travel site, today released the October 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 as compared to 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 for maximizing their travel dollars each month.

"The fact that eight destinations have repeated as top deals is very exciting to see, and because they're desert cities with atypical fall weather, travelers don't have to say 'good-bye' to deals or warmer temperatures just yet," said Clem Bason, president of the Hotwire Group. "However, even in major cities that are still in peak season, like New York, rates are dropping, which gives leisure travelers a fantastic last-minute opportunity to score great deals."

Hotel Price Drops
Two high-energy cities, Las Vegas and New York, are tied for first place this month, both with 10 percent drops. Las Vegas maintains its position for the third month in a row as convention business continues to be slow and hoteliers try to capture leisure travelers by lowering rates. And even in its high season of October, New York City is still offering great last-minute deals, especially at the 4-star level in the downtown and midtown areas.

The race for the lowest rates in Arizona continues this month with Tucson's seven percent drop taking third place on the list, meanwhile Phoenix is hot on its tail at number five with a five percent drop. Both cities are recovering from an exceptionally long, hot summer that has kept travelers at bay, and they're discounting to get those visitors back.  

In the Southeast, Raleigh moves down from third place in September to fourth place this month with a six percent drop. Like Vegas and New York, there isn't much convention traffic this month, which means there are plenty of deals for leisure travelers at 3.5 and 4-star hotels.

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

Air Price Drops
Even with increased gas prices, shoulder season airfare deals are appearing in popular cities across the country. Palm Springs jumps up the list from fifth to first place this month with a 17 percent drop. Toronto – still experiencing pricing competition for flights from the East Coast – also re-appears on the list this month with a 14 percent drop.  Meanwhile Baltimore – absent from the list since March - returns with a 14 percent drop.  Orlando and Washington, D.C., with 10 and 9 percent drops, round out the list at number four and five, respectively. It's currently a good time for folks to take advantage of fewer crowds at Orlando's theme parks, or head to our nation's capital just in time for Election Day.

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

Car Price Drops
Car rental prices are falling in locations all over the country with rates as low as $17 per day. Cincinnati is the only market to return to the list this month with a steep 29 percent drop, followed by Detroit with a 26 percent drop. Ft. Lauderdale, Kansas City, and Palm Springs round out the top five, all with 18 percent drops.  With low rates on both airfare and car rentals, and ideal weather this time of year, Palm Springs is a particularly good destination, making this Southern California city a hot deal market.

When compared to this time last year, the top five car rental price reductions for September 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, Inc. obtains 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 Hotwire, Inc. is an operating company of Expedia, Inc. CST # 2029030-50.  NST: 20003-0209.  For more information, visit http://www.hotwire.com. Hotwire.com operates sites 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 and www.carrentals.com.  

Hotwire, Hotwire.com and the Hotwire logo 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 # 2053390-50.

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

SOURCE Hotwire.com