AAA Predicts Biggest Holiday Travel Period Ever
16 December 1998
AAA Predicts Biggest Holiday Travel Period Ever ORLANDO, Fla., Dec. 16 -- A record 45.2 million people expect
to travel 100 miles or more from home this Christmas-New Year's, the greatest
number of travelers for any holiday period, according to AAA.
That figure represents a 2 percent growth over last year's 44.5 million
travelers. The previous heaviest travel period was Christmas-New Year's 1996
when 42.3 million people took a trip.
"Christmas-New Year's travel has skyrocketed this decade," said Jack
Mannix, managing director of AAA Travel Related Services Marketing and
Industry Relations. "Since 1990, travel during this period has jumped 66
percent. That compares to 35 percent growth for Thanksgiving and 46 percent
for the three major summer holidays."
Approximately 35.5 million people plan to go by auto this holiday, also a
2 percent increase over last year. Another 9.7 million will travel by
airplane, train or bus, up 1 percent.
Both the West and the Southeast are expected to have the greatest numbers
of auto travelers, with 9.2 million coming from each region. Other regions
and their expected numbers of motorists include the Northeast, 5.8 million;
Midwest, 5.7 million; and Great Lakes, 5.6 million.
According to AAA's survey, 38 percent of travelers plan to visit a city
while another 31 percent expect to go to a town or rural area. Other popular
destinations include: ocean/beach, 12 percent; mountains, 8 percent;
state/national park, 2 percent; theme/amusement park, 2 percent; lake, 2
percent; other, 4 percent; don't know or no response, 1 percent.
While 55 percent of travelers plan to stay with a friend or relative,
another 31 percent will be staying at a hotel or motel. Other lodging plans
include: cabin/condo, 5 percent; camper/trailer/RV/tent, 2 percent; boat/ship,
2 percent; bed and breakfast, 1 percent; other, 1 percent; no overnight stay,
2 percent; don't know/no answer, 1 percent.
AAA's holiday travel projections are based on a national telephone survey
of 1,500 adults conducted by the Travel Industry Association, which does
special research for AAA.
AAA is a not-for-profit federation of 93 clubs with more than 1,100
offices providing more than 41 million members in the United States and Canada
with services such as travel, insurance, financial and auto.
AAA news releases can be downloaded from http://www.aaa.com/news .
Projected Number of Christmas, 1998 Travelers
By Automobile/Truck/RV
By Census Region of Residence
Population Percent Number of
(Millions) Traveling Auto Travelers
by Auto (Millions)
Total United States 267.6 13% 35.5
Northeast 51.6 11% 5.8
Southeast 64.6 14% 9.2
Great Lakes 43.9 13% 5.6
Midwest 48.2 12% 5.7
West 59.4 15% 9.2
*NORTHEAST: New England: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New
Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont; Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, New York,
Pennsylvania; SOUTHEAST: South Atlantic: Delaware, District of Columbia,
Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West
Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee;
GREAT LAKES: East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio,
Wisconsin; MIDWEST: West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri,
Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota; West South Central: Arkansas,
Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas; WEST: Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho,
Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Wyoming, Utah; Pacific: Washington, Oregon,
California.
