In its annual Travel Trends Report, the card issuer where Americans are going offers new economic insights into why.
Americans are traveling in record numbers this year.
As we head into Memorial Day weekend, a new report from the Mastercard Economics Institute, which tracks anonymous spending data, shows that a record 15. 9 million Americans traveled in the first quarter of this year. Passenger traffic to foreign countries is now 20% higher than the pre-COVID-19 record.
Given the strength of the dollar and the relative health of the U. S. economy, economists see no signs of slowing demand. So it’s official: Americans can’t wait to get through the holidays. But this study also shows more clues about where U. S. consumers are headed. why they go there and how cost-sensitive they are when they do.
For example, consumers are extending their trips by an average of four to five days to have a more “immersive and meaningful” experience.
“In the delight economy, you see a customer who is largely price-tolerant, willing and able to spend. But they’re deploying more of that purchasing power toward delight than toward physical goods,” says Michelle Meyer, lead economist and director of the Mastercard Institute for Economics. It also notes that holiday spending accounts for 12% of tourism sales, the highest point in at least five years.
At the same time, costs have risen significantly. In the United States, average airfare increased by more than 20% in March 2024 compared to 2019; The average hotel room, during the same period, increased by 15%.
Consumers are adapting. Many decide to take a cruise instead of booking an expensive hotel. According to Mastercard, cruise spending will increase by 16% in 2024 compared to 2019, thanks in part to the perceived cost of vacations at sea. According to the report, “Given the persistent increase in prices in the hotel sector, the gap between cruise and hotel prices has widened, making cruises a relatively cheaper option in many cases. “
That said, cruises are brilliantly effective at increasing sales on multiple levels. Spending on wellness treatments, premium alcohol, or shore excursions (guided “experiences” sold as add-ons) can temporarily reduce the difference between paying for a hotel or a cruise. Today, all the major players, including Royal Caribbean, Windstar Cruises, Virgin Voyages and Celebrity Cruises, offer customized shore excursion packages, which turn out to be extravagant.
“People are becoming more strategic about how, when and where they organize and in 2024 we will see significant changes in habits,” Meyer adds. According to the most recent data from Mastercard, this is where demand “gains momentum over the next 3 months” among Americans.
“Travel Trends 2024: Breaking Boundaries”, a new product from the Mastercard Economics Institute.
Top 10 Trending Summer Destinations in 2024 for Americans
All of those places have a physically powerful tourist infrastructure and warm summer weather. Destinations like Cancun and San Juan are home to well-known resorts that actively attract Americans, with beautiful beaches and direct flights. Athens is the gateway to Greece and will soon be home to a new 600-acre park on a deserted airport beach. London is in third place thanks to Taylor Swift and her Eras Tour, which attracts American Swifties in droves in August. International football tournaments have a similar effect.
Tokyo has become a favorite after keeping its borders closed to tourists for nearly two-and-a-half years after the pandemic. Since then, tourism has soared, with a record influx of 3 million foreign visitors in March 2024, according to Japan. National Organization of Turismo. La historical weakness of the yen has played a vital role in this phenomenon.
The key takeaway is this: the affordability of a destination is very vital, and perhaps that’s why Paris, France, for the 2024 Olympics, isn’t on this list.
According to Mastercard’s economists and knowledge scientists, there is also a clear inverse relationship between the value of the destination and the additional number of days tourists spend in that destination. The less expensive the destination, the longer the stay, which in turn benefits locals. Economies.
On a macro level, today’s tourists are inundated with options and yet they are getting better at finding bargains and opting for destinations that offer value, they decide to define it.
For more information, see “Travel Trends 2024: Breaking Boundaries,” the full report from the Mastercard Economics Institute, in mastercardservices. com.
A community. Lots of voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts.
Our network aims to connect other people through open and thoughtful conversations. We need our readers to share their perspectives and exchange ideas and facts in one space.
To do so, please comply with the posting regulations in our site’s terms of use. Below we summarize some of those key regulations. In short, civilians.
Your message will be rejected if we notice that it appears to contain:
User accounts will be blocked if we become aware that users are participating in:
So how can you become a user?
Thank you for reading our Community Standards. Read the full list of publishing regulations discovered in our site’s terms of use.