Summer travel outlook: sunny skies

The summer leisure travel season is expected to be very healthy in both the US and Canada, according to predictions by the Travel Industry Association (TIA) of America and Canada’s Business Outlook (BO).

The TIA is forecasting a 3.2% increase in leisure travel this summer.

“For the first time in years, the summer travel season will start off with a bang and we expect it to stay strong through August,” said Suzanne Cook, the TIA’s senior vice president for research.

She added, however, that rising gas prices and higher inflation were ongoing concerns.
She said there’s been a 7% rise in travel prices since December.

The shift in travel such as Americans taking more driving vacations should continue this summer, she said. The trend of staying closer-to-home and visiting more rural destinations is also continuing.

Air travel is expected to increase 5% this summer. “RV travel is likely to remain very strong,” she said.

Canadian travel is expected to increase 8% this summer, according to the BO. The biggest gains are expected to be in leisure travel.

Report by David Wilkening