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Holiday Travel
The holiday travel season is typically the busiest time of the year.
But, this year, the coronavirus pandemic combined with travel restrictions – both domestic and international – have complicated things. So, what will this 2020 holiday travel season look like?
Here’s some predictions from top travel experts:
Travel increase
Travel expert Amanda Norcross expects an increase in travel this holiday season, despite fewer people traveling overall. “Many will be traveling to see family and friends for the first time since quarantine began, and are likely to score lower airfares as cash-strapped airlines compete to offer the best deals,” Norcross says.
Hopper’s new Holiday Travel Confidence Report also suggests an increase in travel is likely. According to a poll, 39% say they plan to travel during the holidays this year. However, 21% have said they do not plan to travel, though in a typical year, they would. About 50% plan to fly over Thanksgiving and 75% say they will for the December holidays.
More traffic
When it comes to road travel, the American Automobile Association (AAA) is the go-to source for data. The association typically releases its travel forecasts for the Thanksgiving and year-end holidays in November and December. A spokesperson at AAA says given the implications of COVID, it is difficult to make any estimations of what travel around the holidays will look like this year.
AAA says the summer travel forecast may be the best guide. This summer, Americans were expected to take more than 700 million trips from July through September, a decline of 15% compared with last year.
Gas prices fell by a little more than two cents in the past two weeks.
According to industry analyst Trilby Lundberg, the national average price for regular gas now sits right around 2 dollars and 22 cents a gallon.
Gas prices continue to fall nationwide (Courtesy: NBC News Channel)
The drop continues a trend started in September, a response to oversupply meeting very weak demand.
Next week's end of Daylight Saving Time is also a demand-cutting event.
Experts forecast a cut in demand over Thanksgiving as well because so many consumers have little or no discretionary funds for travel and entertainment.