And the SURVEY SAYS: EBATES Survey Reveals that Americans Prefer Road Trips to Other Types of Travel!
–That Summer Is Their Favorite Season For Hitting the Road,
— And That 60 percent Do Not Travel Internationally!
Summer is here, and, according to new data from Ebates, a leader and pioneer in cash back shopping for retail and travel and subsidiary of the global internet services company Rakuten, most Americans will be taking the opportunity to hit the highway.
The Ebates Summer Survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults, conducted online by Propeller Insights on behalf of Ebates in June 2018, revealed how, where and for how much Americans will be spending their summer vacations.
Road Tripping: The Great American Tradition
Most Americans (82 percent) take 1-3 vacations a year, and a lot of that vacationing happens over the summer: more than half of Americans (56 percent) say it’s their favorite time to travel.
The vast majority of Americans (92 percent) will be traveling domestically this year,
Photo courtesy of Quirkcars.com
—Americans prefer road trips (40 percent) to all other forms of travel—
including:
–planes (38 percent),
–boats (7 percent),
–hiking (6 percent),
–trains (5 percent).
Of the international destinations Americans would most like to visit, Italy topped the list:
Photo courtesy of hollywoodburbankairport.com
Italy — 34 percent
Canada — 24 percent
France — 24 percent
England — 23 percent
Australia — 23 percent
For Travel Inspiration, Americans Phone a Friend
When in need of vacation destination inspiration, Americans are more than twice as likely to turn to friends (51 percent) and family (58 percent) than to travel TV shows (23 percent), sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp (23 percent), or social media (23 percent).
However:
● Millennials are much more likely than other Americans to turn to social media (37 percent), Pinterest (17 percent) and travel bloggers (18 percent)
● Gen Xers (28 percent) find more inspiration than other Americans in travel TV shows
● Seniors (25 percent) enjoy travel magazines more than other Americans
● Men are much more likely than women to turn to coworkers (18 percent versus 14 percent) and travel agents (13 percent versus 7 percent)
Speaking of coworkers: second only to strangers, coworkers are Americans’ least favorite travel companions.
Americans most love traveling with their significant others and kids. Work is also the number one thing people most look forward to leaving behind when on vacation, and 60 percent of Americans who travel for business say they sometimes turn their business trips into personal vacations.
What We Love When We Vacay
Regardless of age or gender, what Americans most want out of their vacations is relaxation (83 percent) and fun (68 percent). About half of Americans are also looking for adventure, and fewer than a third hope to find romance, although, for Millennials, adventure (62 percent) and romance (34 percent) are a much higher priority.
What kinds of vacations do Americans most love and hate?
| Americans most love: | But cringe at the thought of: |
| Cruises and amusement parks — 55 percent | Solo backpacking trip — 37 percent |
| Trips with friends — 42 percent | Adventure excursion — 23 percent |
| All-inclusive vacations — 40 percent | A guided tour of a country — 17 percent |
Most Americans like to spend about a week on vacation. Some, however, vacation for a bit more time (19 percent), and some for a bit less (35 percent), although women (11 percent) are almost twice as likely as men (6 percent) to prefer a quick weekend getaway of 1-3 days.
For those Americans who don’t travel, the cost is the biggest obstacle (53 percent).
Image courtesy of Shutterstock/ableok.com
How—and How Much—Americans Spend on Travel
When booking travel, about a third of Americans (36 percent) spend $500-$1,000 on plane fare and accommodations, another third (34 percent) spend $1,000-$2,000, and the remaining 30 percent spend more than $2,000. In total, most Americans (70 percent) typically spend less than $3,000 when they vacation.
How far in advance of travel are Americans booking plane tickets and hotel rooms?
It’s a pretty even split between advance planners and procrastinators:
| Plane tickets: | Hotel rooms: |
| A year or more — 14 percent | A year or more — 11 percent |
| Six months — 20 percent | Six months — 16 percent |
| Three months — 32 percent | Three months — 28 percent |
| One month — 20 percent | One month — 23 percent |
| Within two weeks of the trip — 15 percent | Within two weeks of the trip — 21 percent |
Interestingly, 43 percent of Americans say they book travel directly through the brand. Another 36 percent use consolidator sites like Orbitz and Kayak, and 21 percent book travel through a site that specializes in travel deals, like Ebates.
“Our survey shows that this summer is going to be a fun one for the many Americans hitting the highway.” said Amit Patel, CEO of Ebates. “Our survey also revealed that the top reason some Americans don’t travel is because of cost. Ebates makes it easy to find incredible travel ideas and deals so everyone can enjoy their ideal summer vacation—even on a tight budget.”
Travelers can visit Ebates.com or download the free Ebates Browser Extension button for Google Chrome, Firefox and Microsoft Edge or the free Ebates.com app at Google Play and the AppStore.
About Ebates:
Logo courtesy of Ebates
Ebates rewards members with cash back on purchases while also providing access to thousands of coupons, discounts, promotions and special deals, including free shipping. Free membership allows consumers to shop online at over 2,000 of their favorite top-name retailers, online travel agents and travel brands while earning a percentage of every purchase they make. To date, Ebates members have earned nearly $1 billion, paid out quarterly in the form of a “Big Fat Check” or via PayPal. Because shopping with Ebates is hassle-free—no rebate forms to fill out and no points or miles to redeem—the site supports a strong community of savvy shoppers across the country and around the world. Founded in 1998 and acquired by Rakuten, Inc. in 2014, Ebates is headquartered in San Francisco.
Thanks to the Ebates for this insightful piece on traveling. How does this stack up with your traveling habits? Let me know either here by commenting OR hit me up on twitter.com/lastory
Stevie Wilson
LA-Story.com
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