National Survey Shows Nearly $7 Billion Bump in Summer Vacation Spending

Nearly six million more American households have plans to take a vacation this summer compared with last year, leading to an almost $7 billion projected increase in summer vacation spending. That’s according to a survey released today by global travel assistance company Mondial Assistance USA and its Access America brand of travel insurance. In all, Americans plan to spend $76 billion on summer vacations in 2010.

“An almost $7 billion bump in revenue will be significant for everyone selling travel this summer.”

The Access America Summer Vacation Survey asked 1,000 Americans a series of questions about their upcoming vacation plans and their past vacation activity. The survey found that 40 percent of respondents are confident they’ll take a vacation in the next three months, up from 35 percent who took a summer vacation in 2009. That 5% increase in summer travel translates to nearly $7 billion additional dollars pumped into the travel economy. The average expected vacation spending reported by respondents is $1,653 per household, which is slightly less than their reported 2009 spending of $1,730. Forty-nine percent of respondents said they typically take a summer vacation.

“More people taking vacations this summer is a great sign for the travel industry and the economy,” said Daniel Durazo, director of communications for Mondial Assistance. “An almost $7 billion bump in revenue will be significant for everyone selling travel this summer.”

When asked why they decided to take a vacation, 42 percent of those who plan to take a summer vacation identified stress or the need to get away as the primary reason. A special occasion (such as weddings or anniversaries) was the second most-cited reason at 26 percent. Interestingly, the poll found that men (46 percent) are more likely than women (34 percent) to be confident that they’ll take a summer vacation this year, as are those whose family earns more than $75,000 a year (52 percent) when compared with those who earn between $25,000 and $75,000 (38 percent) or less than $25,000 a year (27 percent).

Among a list of potential vacation plans, four in ten (43 percent) say their plans include going to the ocean or beach, while an equal proportion indicates that they’ll go on a road trip (43 percent). Two in ten (20 percent) will be drawn to the mountains, while 15 percent will head to an international location. One in ten (11 percent) will head out on the waters on a cruise, while similar proportions will cruise the country in an RV (9 percent) or head to Disneyland/Walt Disney World (7 percent). Others (14 percent) will use their time off to enjoy a relaxing staycation, while 6 percent don’t yet know what they’ll do with their time off.

Survey Methodology

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted June 3-7, 2010. For the survey, a nationally representative sample of 1,000 randomly-selected adults residing in the U.S. interviewed by telephone via Ipsos’ U.S. Telephone Express omnibus. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate within ±3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire population of adults in the U.S. been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/gender composition reflects that of the actual U.S. population according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The dollar figures were calculated based on a total of 114,825,428 U.S. households.

About Mondial Assistance

Mondial Assistance, part of the Allianz group of companies, is a global leader in specialty insurance and emergency assistance services. In the United States, Mondial Assistance is a brand name of World Access Service Corp., which is best known for its Access America® brand of travel insurance and assistance services. The U.S. operation, one of 29 business units, serves major travel suppliers, health insurers, credit card, and entertainment companies with insurance products, international travel assistance, and concierge services. For more information, please visit www.mondialUSA.com and follow Mondial Assistance on Twitter at twitter.com/Mondial_Assist.

Logos, product and company names mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

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