Americans to Spend $475 Billion on Vacations in 2016

Image: PHOTO: Money falling from the sky. (photo courtesy of Thinkstock)
Image: PHOTO: Money falling from the sky. (photo courtesy of Thinkstock)
Patrick Clarke
by Patrick Clarke
Last updated: 2:00 PM ET, Tue February 16, 2016

Photo courtesy of Thinkstock

Despite its growing popularity and perceived threat to the hotel industry, Americans are nearly eight times more likely to book a hotel room than an Airbnb listing ahead of their next vacation, according to a survey conducted for foreign exchange specialist Travelex.

Of the millions of Americans planning to vacation this year, nearly one-third (31 percent) will book a hotel, compared to just four percent who will stay with Airbnb. Although more popular among travelers aged 25-34 (eight percent), it appears Americans favor the reliability hotels offer compared to the sharing economy.

The study also revealed that a majority of those travelers planning to book a hotel plan to book with a brand name (23 percent).

What's more, the survey of more than 2,000 Americans predicts that U.S. travelers will spend upwards of $475 billion on vacations in 2016. The survey uncovered that 95 percent of respondents plan to take at least one vacation this year, spending an average of $2,041 on their getaway.

As for where Americans are heading on vacation this year, Mexico is the most popular destination, with 6.3 percent of survey respondents listing it as their top choice.

READ MORE: How 'Digital Elite' Travelers Take More Vacations, Spend More

But the Caribbean isn't far behind at 5.8 percent.

While Mexico is most popular with Gen-Xers traveling with their families, it seems that young professionals prefer the warmth and sunshine of the Caribbean.

Although plenty of Americans will travel to both destinations at some point this year, nearly one-third of U.S. travelers are all but guaranteed to fall short of their dream vacation in space.

According to Travelex's survey, 29 percent of Americans indicated that their dream vacation would take them out of this world to space, including 43 percent of millennials.

Nonetheless, if space vacations ever become reality, it's safe to say Americans won't enjoy getting there. After all, the Travelex survey found that a mere two percent of U.S. travelers look forward to the flight to their vacation destination.


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Patrick Clarke

Patrick Clarke

Senior Editor

A Maryland native and wanderer who has lived across the U.S. from North Carolina to SoCal, Patrick Clarke graduated from Towson University with a B.S. in journalism. He previously worked for Bleacher

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