U.S. Travelers Planning to Hit the Road This Summer, but Wary of Prices at the Pumps

86 Percent Planning Summer Trips Compared to 83 Percent that Traveled Last Year; But Nearly 40 Percent said Gas Prices are Affecting Plans

News provided by

TripAdvisor

May 16, 2011, 06:00 ET

NEWTON, Mass., May 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- TripAdvisor®, the world's largest travel site*, today announced the results of its annual summer travel survey of more than 2,000 U.S. respondents. Eighty-six percent of travelers are planning leisure trips this summer; up from 83 percent that said they traveled last summer. While most Americans appear committed to taking vacations this summer, they are conscious of gas prices as 39 percent said the rising cost of fuel is affecting their summer travel plans. Eighteen percent of respondents expect to take fewer trips by car, 12 percent intend to take shorter driving trips and five percent are not planning to travel at all this summer, as a result of rising fuel prices.

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Aghast at Pump Predictions

The majority of U.S. travelers expect gas prices to continue to rise throughout the summer. Seventy-six percent expect gas prices to hit at least $4.50 per gallon for regular fuel, 26 percent predict prices at the pump will reach $5.00 per gallon, and 13 percent foresee prices exceeding $5.00 per gallon. Eighteen percent said they will bypass car trips if gas prices reach $5.00 per gallon, and an additional 20 percent said they will avoid road trips if costs exceed $5.00 per gallon.

Long Distance Decisions

As a result of the rising gas prices, 24 percent of travelers said the maximum distance they are willing to drive for a leisure trip this summer is 200 miles. However, if it meant significant savings on airfare costs, 21 percent would be willing to spend ten hours or more driving to a destination this summer.

Summer Spending

More than a quarter of travelers surveyed (26 percent) said they will spend more on leisure travel this summer than last, while 42 percent expect to spend the same amount. Of those traveling this summer, 63 percent said they will drive and 62 percent expect to fly. Sixty-six percent said they will check into hotels this summer, 28 percent will stay with family or friends, and 18 percent will stay at vacation rental homes.

Memorial Day Movements

One-third of travelers surveyed (33 percent) plan to travel this Memorial Day weekend, up from 29 percent that said they traveled for the holiday last year. Twenty-one percent of respondents will drive to their Memorial Day weekend destinations. Of those respondents driving, 71 percent will travel more than 100 miles, and 23 percent will drive more than 300 miles.

While more travelers plan to travel for Memorial Day this year, fewer expect to travel by car and more intend to fly:


	2011	2010
Driving for Memorial Day weekend	66%*	70%**
Flying for Memorial Day weekend	35%*	29%**

*Among respondents who are traveling for Memorial Day 2011

**Among respondents who traveled for Memorial Day 2010

Twenty-nine percent said rising fuel prices have affected their Memorial Day travel plans. Fifteen percent said they are not planning to travel as a result, and seven percent will take a shorter trip by car.

City Trumps Ocean

When asked about the destination setting type for their vacation this summer, 50 percent of those traveling said they will take a city leisure trip. Forty percent noted they will stay at an ocean location, 18 percent will visit a national park, and 16 percent will travel to a lake. New York City, Boston, and Washington, D.C. are the three most popular U.S. spots this summer, according to the survey.

Take a Hike, Ride a Bike

Americans are again looking to take advantage of the great outdoors this summer. Hiking is the most popular activity (33 percent) travelers are planning this summer, followed by water sports (22 percent). Biking and cycling is a growing trend — 22 percent plan to ride on two wheels this summer compared to 17 percent that said they did last summer. Camping is also up slightly — 12 percent are planning camping trips, compared to 10 percent one year ago.

Travelers' Choice Top U.S. Destinations for Great Summer Escapes

TripAdvisor recently announced the Travelers' Choice® Destinations awards honoring top travel spots in the U.S. and world based on millions of real and unbiased opinions from TripAdvisor travelers. Award winners were determined based on a combination of travelers' favorite places and overall destination popularity.

1. New York City, New York

2. Honolulu, Hawaii

3. San Francisco, California

4. Las Vegas, Nevada

5. Lahaina, Hawaii

6. Kailua-Kona, Hawaii

7. New Orleans, Louisiana

8. San Diego, California

9. Sedona, Arizona

10. Seattle, Washington

"Time and time again we see that U.S. travelers are undeterred by outside influences when it comes to summer travel," said Karen Drake, senior director of communications for TripAdvisor. "While rising gas prices will continue to keep Americans mindful of mileage, the vast majority intend to hit the road for leisure trips this summer."

About TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor® is the world's largest travel site, enabling travelers to plan and have the perfect trip. TripAdvisor offers trusted advice from real travelers and a wide variety of travel choices and planning features (including Flights search, TripAdvisor Mobile and Instant Personalization) with seamless links to booking tools.

TripAdvisor® Media Group, operated by TripAdvisor LLC, attracts more than 50 million unique monthly visitors* across 18 popular travel brands**. TripAdvisor-branded sites make up the largest travel community in the world, with more than 40 million unique monthly visitors***, 20 million members, and over 45 million reviews and opinions. The sites operate in 29 countries worldwide****, including China under daodao.com. TripAdvisor also operates TripAdvisor for Business, a dedicated division that provides the tourism industry access to TripAdvisor's millions of monthly visitors. The division includes Business Listings, which allows hoteliers to connect directly to millions of researching travelers, and Vacation Rentals, which helps property managers and individual home owners list their properties and showcase hotel alternatives.

TripAdvisor Media Group websites have been recognized as top travel resources in 2010 by Condé Nast Traveller, Good Housekeeping, TIME magazine and Travel + Leisure.

TripAdvisor Media Group generated $486 million in revenue in 2010. TripAdvisor and the sites comprising the TripAdvisor Media Group are operating companies of Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE).

TripAdvisor, Travelers' Choice and the TripAdvisor logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of TripAdvisor LLC in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners.

*Source: comScore Media Metrix for TripAdvisor Media Group Sites, Worldwide, August 2010

** In addition to TripAdvisor, The TripAdvisor Media Group of websites includes: www.airfarewatchdog.com, www.bookingbuddy.com, www.cruisecritic.com, www.everytrail.com, www.familyvacationcritic.com, www.flipkey.com, www.holidaylettings.co.uk, www.holidaywatchdog.com, www.independenttraveler.com, www.onetime.com, www.seatguru.com, www.sniqueaway.com, www.smartertravel.com, www.travel-library.com, www.travelpod.com, www.virtualtourist.com and www.kuxun.cn.