ORLANDO, FL— An estimated 84% of leisure travelers who have Internet access plan to take a vacation this summer, according to a new national poll just released by Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown & Russell. Visiting friends and relatives (45%) and beach/lake vacations (23%) topped the list of intended vacations. Theme park vacations were mentioned by 14% and cruises by 5%. Fully 40% of leisure travelers expect to take at least one vacation this summer with children. Only 20% of leisure travelers stated they were “more likely” to take a vacation at home this year versus last, while 35% stated they were “more likely” to take a vacation closer to home. Domestic destinations that topped the list of places leisure travelers intend to visit this summer include: * 1. Florida 18% * 2. California 16% * 3. New York 10% * 4. Tennessee 9% * 5. Las Vegas 9% Note: Florida and California responses indicate intention to visit a destination within the state. Fully 13% of travelers are planning to take a summer vacation outside of the United States, even though more than half (54%) stated they were “less likely” to take a sightseeing trip outside of the United States this summer versus 2002. Almost three out of ten (27%) leisure travelers stated they anticipated spending more on their summer vacations this year than last. Only 18% of leisure travelers stated they were “more concerned” about their personal safety and security when traveling this summer versus last. Among those who expressed this concern, 57% said they would take fewer international trips and 50% said they would drive rather than fly as a result. Only 5% said they would cancel a domestic vacation. Consumers continue to utilize the Internet for vacation planning purposes in record numbers. Seventy-two percent of wired leisure travelers stated they were planning to utilize the Internet and/or an online service to obtain information to plan their summer vacation. Forty-two percent of those who plan to utilize the Internet typically do so between the hours of 6-10 p.m. Interviews were conducted with 1,000 active leisure travelers with Internet access between June 2-5.
