How Optimistic Are Americans Feeling About 2023 Travel?

Americans may be feeling pinched by inflation and irked by sky-high airline ticket prices—not to mention the plethora of flight cancellations that dominate the travel process these days. But alas, none of those issues are dampening enthusiasm for travel in the year ahead.

A new survey from TripIt confirms as much.

The trip planning and flight tracking platform surveyed 1,500 U.S.-based users last month about their upcoming travel plans. And while the data revealed all sorts of interesting trends and takeaways, perhaps the biggest headline is this: Nearly three-quarters (72 percent) of Americans said they're feeling positive about their travel plans in 2023.

In other words, watch out world, minor (or major) inconveniences will not hold travelers back this year.

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The survey also found that almost three-quarters (74 percent) of American travelers plan to fly domestically by this August.

Additionally, half plan to fly internationally by summer’s end. And not to be overlooked, hotels will also benefit from this travel-fest with a whopping 82 percent of survey respondents saying they plan to stay in a hotel during this same time frame.

The question that demands answering of course, and which the TripIt survey so rightly asks, is what exactly is driving this overwhelming optimism? And is inflation having any impact at all?

Read on to find out more.

A wave of optimism

To begin with, the TripIt survey found that 72 percent of Americans said they feel “optimistic” or “very optimistic” about travel over the coming year. The reasons for that optimism vary. About 41 percent of the optimistic to very optimistic said their feelings are tied to an upcoming trip that they have planned and are excited about.

“Americans’ optimism is stoked by the innate joy of having plans to look forward to—despite rising costs and recent (and unprecedented) travel disruptions,” says the report.

About 23 percent said they're confident that travel disruptions will improve this year (fingers and toes crossed on that one!). Meanwhile, 18 percent said they’re feeling upbeat about travel in the year ahead because they’re not concerned about getting sick during their trip (Covid? What Covid?)

However. Full stop. Very few Americans are optimistic about travel costs. And who can blame them? The TripIt survey found that less than 5 percent feel confident that costs will go down in the coming year. (We’re with you on that one).

Neutral and not-so-optimistic travelers

Let’s move on to the other groups of travelers that the TripIt survey identified.

First, there’s the subset of survey participants that TripIt calls “neutral” travelers. They made up 19 percent of respondents. And they're people who feel neither optimistic nor gloomy about travel in 2023. Translation: perhaps these are people who have already experienced a disrupted travel experience in the new world of post-pandemic travel and as a result, they know what they’re in for. But at the same time, these folks also feel comfortable that they'll be able to adapt and respond to whatever comes their way.

In the next group, is the “not-so-optimistic” traveler. Here we have about 9 percent of Americans who said they feel “not very” or “not at all” optimistic. In addition 33 percent of this group went on to say they don’t feel confident travel disruptions will improve this year (probably a safe bet there.) Additionally, 26 percent of the not-so-optimistic folks are worried about the cost of travel and 13 percent are concerned about getting sick during their trip.

Now for a dose of some reality from the survey. TripIt data showed that nearly half (47 percent) of all survey respondents who traveled in the past three months did in fact experience some type of disruption. About 40 percent had a flight delayed an hour or more, while 16 percent had a flight canceled.

Don’t be fooled, money is an issue

While the majority of travelers do appear to be excited about travel in 2023, there are still concerns about costs.

A significant 79 percent of Americans surveyed by TripIt said inflation has impacted their travel planning. That’s a 22 percent increase over TripIt’s September 2022 survey. But how exactly has inflation “impacted” travel decisions?

Here’s your answer:
—Over a quarter (26 percent) said inflation has caused them to budget more than usual for travel
—18 percent said inflation has caused them to plan fewer or different types of trips

The key takeaway from the TripIt survey it seems, is that in spite of all the challenges, Americans are done sitting on the sidelines after years of pandemic worries. They may be setting aside more money or altering trips slightly, but they fully intend to travel boldly in 2023.

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