About 79% of U.S. travelers will experience at least one “travel-related problem” by 2022, according to a summer travel survey. The findings, published Monday by Bankrate, a personal finance company, come as Americans continue to struggle with rising inflation and high energy and travel prices.
According to Bankrate, 33% of American adults have already traveled for leisure at least once in 2022, with 12% of adults traveling for business. Of this group surveyed, 79% of travelers said they had experienced at least one problem affecting their travel considerations.
The biggest headache reported to travelers was unexpected travel costs: At least 57% of travelers found that the prices were higher than they were used to. Experts linked this rise to the country’s rapidly rising inflation rate, which has kept spending on flights and car rentals steady, even as overall bookings have declined.
“Bookings rose above 2019 levels when we arrived in 2022, and there was a lot of enthusiasm about travel, “Vivek Pandya, chief analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, told CBS MoneyWatch. . until 2019, but spending is still quite high due to the price increases we are seeing. ”
Other problems travelers experienced during their 2022 trips were long waits, difficult availability and poor customer service. At least 14% of traveling Americans have lost money due to canceled or disrupted plans.
During the holiday weekend of July 4, airlines reported thousands of canceled and delayed flights as airlines struggled to keep up with rising demand. Only 21% of 2022 travelers said they had no travel-related problems in the Bank Rate poll, which surveyed 3,378 U.S. adults on June 15-17, 2022.
Experts predict that high inflation and the Consumer Price Index will continue to affect all aspects of travel, including prices for flights, gas and accommodation.
“While many Americans are excited to travel again after being merged over the past few years due to the pandemic, they are experiencing significantly higher costs and long waits,” said Ted Rossman, senior operations analyst at Bankrate. “The situation may worsen before it gets better, as pent-up demand is unleashed this summer.”
First published on 11 July 2022 / 12:27
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