CHART CLOSE-UP FROM THE STORY:
Americans Less Likely to Vacation This Summer »
scroll down to read the full story

Americans Less Likely to Vacation This Summer

Fewer people are planning to have a summer vacation in 2008 than in 2007: One-third (33%) of those polled say they’re planning a summer vacation, a drop of 7 percentage points from the 40% who reported that they had a summer vacation in 2007, an Ipsos poll found.

The telephone survey of 1,000 Americans was conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs on behalf of Access America Travel Insurance and Assistance.

Some of the findings from the study:

• Among those who took a vacation last year, only 57% say they plan to travel again this summer.
• Most of those who took a vacation last year, but do not plan to do so this year, cite economic reasons: High gas prices (20%), the fact that they just can’t afford it (20%), the uncertain economy (13%) and a weak dollar (2%).
• Among those planning to take a vacation, the primary destinations are the Southern US (21%) and the Western US (19%).
• Some 19% are planning to travel outside of the country, with the top destinations being warm-weather locations such as Mexico (5%) and the Caribbean (5%).
• Although one-third (33%) of Americans are planning to take a summer vacation in 2008, almost half of these people (48%) say their plans will be scaled-back due to the uncertain economy. The two most likely ways in which their plans will be scaled-back are eating out less (27%) and staying closer to home on their vacation (24%).

About the study: The Ipsos poll was conducted April 7-14, 2008. For the survey, a nationally representative sample of 1,000 randomly selected adults age 18 and over residing in the US interviewed by telephone via Ipsos’s US Telephone Express omnibus. The data were weighted to ensure the sample’s regional and age/gender composition reflects that of the actual US population according to data from the US Census Bureau.