Storm clouds ahead for changing travel patterns
Where are US summer travelers going and how are they getting there?
With less money to spend, almost two thirds are planning to stay in the US, while almost half plan vacation time to visit family and friends, according to a joint survey by AOL Travel and Zogby International.
The survey said more than half of Americans have some sort of cost-savings plan.
“The survey also found that about half of the respondents planned to book all of their summer travel on the Internet with 42% preferring to speak to a person when making bookings,†according to Zogby.
In related travel news, record-high oil prices are threatening to ground millions of future travelers who have grown accustomed to flying for fun and business during the past 30 years.
“Air travel in the USA has grown at a rate five times faster than the population since 1978, when deregulation first allowed airlines to compete by setting their own prices and routes without government approval,†said USA Today.
But airline executives and aviation analysts say that with unprecedented fuel prices, only extreme fare increases and dramatic cutbacks in flights will enable the industry to cover a 2008 jet fuel bill that could be 44% higher than last year’s.
By this time next year, there could be as many as 20% fewer seats available if carriers respond to oil prices well above $100 a barrel by cutting as many flights as some are predicting.
That would be like shutting down a carrier the size of American Airlines, the world’s largest, which, with its regional carriers, operates 4,000 flights daily. That alone would sharply increase demand and prices for plane tickets.
Report by David Wilkening
David
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