Over 82% of American travelers already have existing trip plans. 58% have a leisure trip planned, while 51% will visit friends and family, 15% have planned business travel, and 9% have convention/conference travel. More than 28% report having plans to travel for leisure in the month of November (which is up 4-points compared to one month ago) and over 30% plan to travel in December (up 2-points from last month). 26% of American travelers have plans to travel for Thanksgiving (up from 20% in 2021), 30% report Christmas travel plans (up from 27% in 2021) and 14% plan to travel for New Year’s (up from 12% in 2021).
Despite headwinds of a mild recession, significant reductions in business travel are not anticipated. This is largely because many companies are still in the process of resuming business travel and activity has not yet recovered to pre-pandemic levels. Business travelers employed by smaller companies are more certain about business travel plans in the next six months than travelers from larger companies. The most frequently cited reasons for business travel uncertainty were video conference substitutes and company cost constraints. During Q3, 2022, there was an over 10% year-over-year uplift in demand from travelers with a business travel profile, demonstrating the value of face-to-face meetings.
The cost-per-attendee for meetings and events this year is expected to be around 25 percent higher than in 2019, and it’s forecasted to rise an additional 7 percent next year, with little relief in sight until 2024. Here are some practical tips to achieve the best return on investment while still meeting event and client objectives in the face of steeply rising costs.
This report provides a glimpse into how 10 classic American cities offer meeting planners extra value during off-peak times. Added flexibility, competitive rates, and less overcrowding can be significant drivers for courting off-season business, while still diversifying the mid-week visitation market.
The share of travel rewards program members who said they are planning a trip because they have points or rewards saved up has been climbing since the summer — over 1 in 5 now say it’s a factor in their plans. While some of these points may cover holiday travel with friends and family, some are taking solo adventures: The share of this group saying the purpose of their upcoming trip is “to spend time on my own” has climbed 7 percentage points since July. Here are a few trends that show the consumer’s path to booking leisure and business travel.
The wine industry will generate over $276 billion for the U.S. economy in 2022. The industry supports 1.84 million jobs and $22.8 billion in total taxes. The wine industry is a significant driver of tourism-driven expenses. America’s “wine country” regions will generate 49.18 million tourist visits and $16.69 billion in annual tourism expenditures, benefiting local economies and tax bases.
The social aspect of travel will be more important than ever next year, from the staff in our tourism businesses to local community relationships to how and with whom customers choose to travel. Multigenerational travel boomed in 2022, as travelers sought to regain precious moments with loved ones after two years of lost connections. Beyond recycling and reducing use of single-use plastics, the social, economic, and cultural impact of travel on destinations and communities are becoming equally important markers of engagement.
Traveling responsibly is playing a vital role in shaping healthy communities and advancing environmental sustainability initiatives. Sustainable travel is paving the way for climate resilience initiatives, rebuilding healthy, self-sustaining communities and conservation efforts worldwide. Here are a few examples of global trends in sustainable travel that are elevating the travel and tourism sector by giving it an intentionally bigger purpose.