It seems that a lack of funds isn't going to stop the American people from heading off on the post-COVID vacations they've been waiting for this year.
According to Allianz Partners USA's 14th Annual Vacation Confidence Index, roughly one in three Americans (32 percent) report that they're 'revenge traveling' in 2022, unabashedly taking those vacations they were forced to miss out on during the pandemic.
The report also found that 71 percent of Americans feel they desperately need a vacation this year, despite the fact that 43 percent admit they can't really afford one. Especially amid record inflation and costs of living that are continuing to rise.
Among those who conceded that they can't actually afford a vacation this year, 31 percent said they're revenge traveling anyway. Their mindset can likely be attributed to the pent-up desire to make up for vacations missed during the past two years or to use their accrued vacation days from work; as well as the fact that Americans are now equating the act of vacationing with self-care and looking after their own mental health.
While some folks are going on their getaways despite falling short on their travel budgets, a significant number of Americans reported that they were able to sock away some extra funds during the pandemic when travel wasn't much of an option. Close to half (49 percent) of respondents told Allianz Partners they've been able to save money during the pandemic to put toward their next dream vacation, allowing them to spend more on travel this time around.
Unfortunately, those extra dollars might not go as far as they once did. More than half of study participants (55 percent) said they'd had to scale back their vacation plans because of ungodly inflation rates.
And rising costs aren't the only formidable obstacles to taking one's dream vacation right now. With air travel demand surging back relatively suddenly, airlines and airports have been unable to keep up, resulting in widespread flight disruptions that show no sign of abating any time soon.
"Our survey found that a third of Americans are planning 'revenge' travel trips this summer despite rising travel costs. Driving this trend is the significant majority of travelers who say they desperately need a vacation after two years of travel uncertainty," said Daniel Durazo, director of external communications at Allianz Partners USA. "Overwhelming demand for travel can mean there's more room for travel plans to go awry, so it's important to plan ahead with a travel insurance policy that can protect your investments and make sure your revenge travel stays sweet."
For the study's purposes, a vacation was defined as leisure travel to a destination that's at least 100 miles away from home, lasting a minimum of one week. The Vacation Confidence Index has been conducted each summer since 2009 by national polling firm Ipsos Public Affairs on behalf of Allianz Partners USA.
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