Slump Cutting Into Vacations, Study Says

Americans’ summer vacations this year are expected to be shorter than in 1990 and more likely will be by car because of the recession’s squeeze on their finances, the U.S. Travel Data Center said Tuesday.

“Americans still want to take their summer trips this summer despite the current economic conditions. They will just be changing the way they traveled in past summers,” Data Center Executive Director Suzanne Cook said at a joint news conference with the American Automobile Assn.

The data center, supported by the U.S. travel industry, said it forecasts that car travel will account for 84% of all summer vacation travel this year, compared to 82% last year.

The forecast said vacations will be “shorter in duration, involve more stays with friends and relatives and have a stronger emphasis on automobile travel.”

“Despite the recession, Americans are going to travel this summer. But they are going to look at value and price more closely than at any time in recent years,” said Richard Hebert, the AAA’s public affairs manager.

The American Automobile Assn. estimates that a family of four on vacation this summer will pay an average of $180 daily for food and lodging, up $7 from last year. It said families should budget an additional $29 for other expenses for each 300 miles of driving.

The Midwest is generally the least-expensive region for auto travelers, while the Northeast is the most costly, it said.

While costs vary widely by region and state, AAA said the typical family of four should expect to spend $84 a day for lodging, $96 a day for meals and $9.70 for each 100 miles of driving.

Hawaii has the highest average daily lodging rates at $183.96, the survey said, while the District of Columbia has the highest average daily meal rates at $34.50 for a family of two adults and two children.

North Dakota, at $41.91, has the lowest average daily lodging rates, while South Dakota has the lowest average daily meal rates at $16.10.

The survey said this year’s summer travel is expected to include 326 million vacation “person-trips”--referring to persons traveling at least 100 miles away from home--about the same rate as last year.

But the length of overnight summer vacation trips is expected to decline to an average of 4.9 nights this year from 5.1 nights in 1990.