The U.S. vacation and leisure travel market reached $115.3 billion in 2004, the highest rate for the reporting period of 1999-2004. Economic woes and the terrorist attacks of 2001 caused declines in the market in 2001 and 2002, but with the economy stabilizing and the threat of terrorism diminishing consumers are returning to travel. Baby Boomers are recognized as the biggest target demographic, and as they age into retirement so increases the time available for them to take longer trips.
The main challenge the industry faces is getting consumers to take trips longer than 5 days, with many of the promotions currently available being geared toward the last minute, short break traveler. The Internet presents the ideal opportunity for this, with an increasing number of U.S. households connected. Continual advancements in technology will enable a greater level of ease for researching and booking travel online. Competition among online providers will keep pricing down, a plus for the budget conscious traveler.
Another challenge is the perceived image of the airline industry. While price wars keep costs down, with that comes the risk of flight disruptions due to factors such as labor disputes. Low-cost carriers continue to be a threat to major airlines, and consumers have indicated that they are willing to pass on perks in order to save money on flights.
Mintels report includes a thorough analysis of the leisure traveler. This includes an evaluation of top concerns and priorities when choosing airlines, a breakdown of preferences and behavior by demographic characteristics, and statistics of purchasing frequency. A five-year market forecast estimates the future of the market, with a statistical forecast of market performance until 2009 and an outline of demographic and travel trends.
For the purpose of this report, vacation or leisure travel is defined as a domestic trip of five or more nights away from home with at least one night of paid accommodation (i.e. staying in a hotel or bed and breakfast or cruise ship). The analysis focuses mainly on commercial accommodation for hotels, motels and bed and breakfasts. In addition, where applicable, self-catering accommodations will be discussed (cabins, camping).
Contents
Introduction and Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Other relevant reports
- Definition
- Abbreviations & terms
- Abbreviations
- Lifestage
- Divisions
Executive Summary
- Leisure travel on the rebound...
- ...but competition from short breaks continues
- Internet continues to grow
- Leisure travelers take multiple long breaks
- Retirees travel more
- Baby Boomers remain a key demographic
- The family vacation
- Pre-family travel
- The single traveler
The Long Vacation Traveler
- Introduction
- Incidence of taking long vacations
- Figure 1: Incidence of taking long leisure vacations* in previous year, by gender, age, marital status, presence of children, region and urban/rural status, January 2005
- Gender
- Age
- Marital status
- Presence of children in household
- Location of residence
- Number of vacations taken
- Figure 2: Number of long vacations* taken in the past 12 months, gender, age, presence of children, marital status and urban/rural status, January 2005
- Figure 3: Graph: Number of long vacations* taken in the past 12 months, by age, January 2005
- Age
- Gender
- Presence of children
- Marital status
- Location of residence
Use of Plane or Car for Long Vacations
- Use of plane, personal vehicle or rental car for long vacations
- Figure 4: Mode of travel for most recent long leisure trip, January 2005
- Figure 5: Mode of travel for most recent long leisure trip, by gender, January 2005
- Figure 6: Mode of travel for most recent long leisure trip, by age, January 2005
- Figure 7: Graph: Mode of travel for most recent long leisure trip, by age, January 2005
- Figure 8: Mode of travel for most recent long leisure trip, by household income, January 2005
- Figure 9: Mode of travel for most recent long leisure trip, by presence of children, January 2005
- Figure 10: Mode of travel for most recent long leisure trip, by urban/rural status, January 2005
- Summary
Travel Planning Timeline
- Figure 11: Timeline of travel planning for long vacations, January 2005
- Figure 12: Timeline of travel planning for long vacations, by age, January 2005
- Figure 13: Graph: Timeline of travel planning for long vacations, by age, January 2005
- Figure 14: Timeline of travel planning for long vacations, by household income, January 2005
- Figure 15: Timeline of travel planning for long vacations, by presence of children, January 2005
- Figure 16: Graph: Timeline of travel planning for long vacations, by presence of children, January 2005
- Figure 17: Timeline of travel planning for long vacations, by marital status, January 2005
- Figure 18: Timeline of travel planning for long vacations, by urban/rural status, January 2005
- Summary
Method of Booking
- How flights are booked
- Figure 19: Method of flight booking, January 2005
- Car rental booking method
- Figure 20: Method of rental car booking, January 2005
- Hotel booking methods
- Figure 21: Method of hotel booking, January 2005
- Figure 22: Method of hotel booking, by gender, January 2005
- Figure 23: Method of hotel booking, by age, January 2005
- Figure 24: Graph: Method of hotel booking, by age, January 2005
- Figure 25: Method of hotel booking, by household income, January 2005
- Figure 26: Method of hotel booking, by presence of children in household, January 2005
- Figure 27: Method of hotel booking, by urban/rural status, January 2005
- Summary
Number of Nights Away and Amount Spent
- Introduction
- Number of nights away, amount spent on last trip
- Figure 28: Number of nights away and amount spent on last trip, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 29: Number of nights away and amount spent on last trip, by age, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 30: Number of nights away and amount spent on last trip, by race/Hispanic origin, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 31: Number of nights away and amount spent on last trip, by number of people in household, May 2003-April 2004
- Summary
Destinations of Long Vacation Travelers
- Introduction
- Where traveled, by state
- Figure 32: Leading U.S. destinations for long vacation travel, by state, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 33: Leading U.S. destinations for long vacation travel, by state, by age, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 34: Leading U.S. destinations for long vacation travel, by state, by race/Hispanic origin, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 35: Leading U.S. destinations for long vacation travel, by state, by region of respondent, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 36: Leading U.S. destinations for long vacation travel, by state, by presence of children, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 37: Leading U.S. destinations for long vacation travel, by state, by number of people in household, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 38: Leading U.S. destinations for long vacation travel, by state, by household income and number of people in household, May 2003-April 2004
- Where traveled, by region and lifestage
- Figure 39: Where traveled in U.S. on last trip, by region*, by lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Pre-/no family lifestage
- Figure 40: Where traveled in U.S. on last trip, by region*, by pre-/no family lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Family lifestage
- Figure 41: Where traveled in U.S. on last trip, by region*, by family lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Third age lifestage
- Figure 42: Where traveled in U.S. on last trip, by region*, by third age lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Retirement lifestage
- Figure 43: Where traveled in U.S. on last trip, by region*, by retirement lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Summary
Mode of Travel
- Introduction
- Figure 44: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 45: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by age, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 46: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by race/Hispanic origin, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 47: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by household income, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 48: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by region, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 49: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by number of people in household, May 2003-April 2004
- Lifestage
- Figure 50: Graph: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Pre-/no family lifestage
- Figure 51: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by pre-/no family lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Family lifestage
- Figure 52: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by family lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Third age
- Figure 53: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by third age lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Retirement lifestage
- Figure 54: Mode of travel on last long leisure trip, by retirement lifestage, May 2003-April 2004
- Summary
Airline, Hotel and Cruise Brands
AIRLINES USED
- Figure 55: Airline type used on last trip, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 56: Airline type used on last trip, by race/Hispanic origin, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 57: Airline type used on last trip, by household income, May 2003-April 2004
- Figure 58: Airline type used on last trip, by region, May 2003-April 2004
Hotel/motel type used
- Figure 59: Hotel/motel type used on last trip, May 2003-April 2004
- Economy hotel/motel brands
- Figure 60: Economy hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, April 2003-May 2004
- Figure 61: Economy hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, by age, April 2003-May 2004
- Figure 62: Economy hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, by race/Hispanic origin, April 2003-May 2004
- Figure 63: Economy hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, by household income and size, April 2003-May 2004
- Mid-range brands
- Figure 64: Mid-range hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, April 2003-May 2004
- Figure 65: Mid-range hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, by age, April 2003-May 2004
- Figure 66: Mid-range hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, by race/Hispanic origin, April 2003-May 2004
- Figure 67: Mid-range hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, by household income and size, April 2003-May 2004
- Upscale brands
- Figure 68: Upscale hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, April 2003-May 2004
- Figure 69: Upscale hotel/motel brands used by long vacation travelers, by household income and size, April 2003-May 2004
- Summary
Cruises
- Figure 70: Incidence of cruise vacations, by gender, age, race/ethnicity, marital status, presence of children and household income, January-September 2004
- Figure 71: Number of cruise ship vacations taken in the past three years, January-September 2004
- Cruise brands
- Figure 72: Cruise line used for last cruise, by long vacation takers, January-September 2004
- Summary
Appendix: Research Methodology
- Consumer Research
- Sampling & Weighting
- Presentation & Definition
- Further Analysis
- Trade Research
- Informal trade research
- Formal trade research
- Desk & Internet Research
- Sources
- Definitions
- Forecasts
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