Underlying the tighter travel budgets is a more muted money mood. — Reuters
WASHINGTON: The holiday rush may lose some of its momentum this year – even among high-income travellers – as a report from Deloitte yesterday shows Americans are planning to take fewer trips and spend less on them amid growing financial concerns.
The average number of planned holiday trips has dropped to 1.83, down from 2.14 last year, while average planned travel budgets are down 18% to US$2,334, the report said.
Underlying the tighter travel budgets is a more muted money mood, the report said.
Notably, nearly one in five households earning over US$100,000 annually, or high-income Americans, said they were worse off financially than a year ago, and about 80% of that group plans to choose cheaper travel options.
Holiday travel is also at risk from the prolonged US government shutdown, which has forced carriers to cut flights and already delayed about 3.2 million passengers, according to estimates by airlines. — Reuters
