Expedia's Travel Trendwatch - Summer

The state of the economy has consumers on the fence about travel, but travelers don’t have to give up their vacations – they just need to become Value Detectives.  When planning your summer travel stories, please keep in mind the below information from Expedia’s Travel Trendwatch. 

·         I Want My Summer Vacation!

o   Travelers will be more cautious with their spending and will be on the hunt for vacation values.

o   To make this value vacation happen, travelers will try budget-conscious tactics, such as shortening the length of their trips, staying at less expensive hotels, having more picnics instead of expensive restaurant meals or driving instead of flying.

o   FAMILIES – Families might consider weekend stays at “extended stay” hotels such as Hyatt Summerfield Suites to keep costs down by cooking meals in the in-suite kitchens and taking advantage of the complimentary hot breakfast available every morning (a savings of up to $40 a day for a family of four)

§  Also, Hyatt Summerfield Suites offers nightly socials with heavy appetizers and a special Summer Grilling Social with full dinners every Wednesday night.

·         Know When and Where to Book

o   Mid-week offers the best deals, versus travel on the weekend – flights are generally less expensive on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

o   Not all prices are up this year – hotel rates in some “fly-to” destinations are down including Hawaii and Alaska.

o   More hotels are willing to offer promotional rates this summer

·         Latin America Increasingly Popular

o   While perennial European favorites – such as Rome, London and Paris – remain popular with American travelers, there is growing interest in Latin American destinations – such as Mexico, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.

o   The fastest growing Latin American destinations are more exotic, with more travel to Paraguay, Peru and Argentina.  Argentina alone, according to the country’s tourism office, saw the number of U.S. visitors grow 35 percent between 2005 and 2007.