NATIONAL REPORT—According to Tripadvisor, Americans remain more optimistic about travel than the rest of the world despite rising COVID cases, with 55% planning on traveling this holiday season, compared to only 30% globally.
Tripadvisor’s End-of-Year Holiday Travel Trends:
- Consistent with Thanksgiving, December holiday travel is down (20%) from 2019, but more than half of Americans (55%) still plan on hitting the road this holiday season.
- Only 7% of Americans plan to stay in a hotel for the holidays.
- 70% of Americans will drive to their holiday destination, while 19% will fly. Air travel, although down overall, is up 7% from Thanksgiving.
- While 45% of holiday travelers are visiting family, more than two-thirds (39%) are taking some R&R and going on vacation.
- Top priorities: Travelers are looking for discounts, health and safety tips, cancellation policies and restaurant recommendations.
- 63% of Americans plan on dining out at least once over the holidays.
- Travelers are getting into the holiday spirit, with 61% excited for the upcoming holiday season and 51% looking forward to giving gifts.
“After a challenging year, confidence in future travel plans continues to rise. Seventy percent of Americans feel at least moderately safe to travel this holiday season,” said Christopher Hsi, consumer market research lead analyst for Tripadvisor. “As we look ahead to 2021, flexibility and safety will remain top priorities. And with recent positive news about vaccine developments, confidence is likely to grow. In fact, more than half (52%) of Americans believe travel will rebound within three months.”