What Labor Day Travel Data Tells Us About the State of Travel

Image: Fluctuating gas prices could be one reason that slows down Labor Day travel. (Photo via rclassenlayouts / iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Image: Fluctuating gas prices could be one reason that slows down Labor Day travel. (Photo via rclassenlayouts / iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Rich Thomaselli
by Rich Thomaselli
Last updated: 11:46 AM ET, Mon August 22, 2022

According to the fine folks at travel insurance tech company Squaremouth.com, there will be fewer travelers than expected for Labor Day 2022.

What does that tell us about the state of travel? Well, it depends on how you look at it.

Squaremouth offered up three trends for Labor Day that give a snapshot of how Americans feel about travel now and how that could affect travel plans going forward. And according to the company, with Labor Day looming in two weeks, travel bookings for the holiday are down 30 percent.


Fluctuating Gas Prices

So far, gas prices have continued to come down from the peak of $5 a gallon in some places as the summer began.

Gas prices and airline fuel prices passed on to passengers in airfares were two reasons why Squaremouth found that more than half the travelers it insured spent more money on travel this year than last.


Flight Delays

Travelers are rightfully expressing major concerns about the stories that have permeated the news about delays and cancellations of flights throughout the spring and summer, not to mention massive congestion at airports and lost luggage.

Squaremouth reports a 92 percent increase in Labor Day travelers looking for "Travel Delay" coverage, as well as 24 percent increase in "Cancel For Any Reason" searches.


Affordability

This could be considered a notch on the plus side of the pro and con list.

Labor Day weekend travelers are spending almost 60 percent less than trips scheduled throughout most of the year, with the average trip cost around $2,400.


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Rich Thomaselli

Rich Thomaselli

Associate Writer

Editor Associate Writer true 9281 14744 Rich Thomaselli has written for TravelPulse since 2014 and has been a professional journalist for nearly 40 years. His work has appeared in USA Today, the New York Times and New York Yankees publications. He is an 11-time writ

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