Americans Making Leisure Travel A Priority this Summer

Patrick Clarke
by Patrick Clarke
Last updated: 10:00 AM ET, Thu May 14, 2015

According to a national survey of 8,600 Americans conducted by D.K. Shifflet & Associates last month, U.S. travelers intend to increase the days they dedicate to leisure travel this upcoming summer by nearly eight percent.

They also intend to increase their spending on summer leisure travel by more than five percent.

The DKSA survey broke down the results by generation, revealing that traditionalists and baby boomers intend to spend more time and money on leisure travel this summer than gen Xers and millennials.

Traditionalist respondents, comprised of Americans ages 70 and up, plan to increase leisure travel days by roughly nine percent and spending on leisure travel by more than 10 percent this summer. Meanwhile, baby boomers, or respondents ages 51 to 69, revealed that they intend to increase leisure travel days by eight percent and spending by just under eight percent.

Gen Xers, categorized as people ages 35 to 50, indicated they intend to increase leisure travel days this summer by more than seven percent and spending by just over four percent.

Finally, millennials, or respondents whose ages fall in the range of 18 to 34, indicated they aim to increase their leisure travel days by just over six percent, but only intend to increase their spending on summer leisure travel by less than two percent.

"Perhaps Traditionalists intend to make the most of their final years," said DKSA vice president Chris Klauda in a statement speculating as to why they beat out the other generations in both areas.

While every case is unique, DKSA's research seems to show that as travelers age they tend to dedicate more time and money to leisure travel during the summer season. But there are a number of different factors at play, including location, job status and family situation.


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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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