You can learn a lot about people from their travel habits generally and their attitudes toward winter travel in particular. After all, winter travel can be especially trying, on both our patience and our wallets.
To get a better sense of how U.S. consumers are feeling about their ability to get away heading into the most expensive time of the year, WalletHub conducted a nationally representative online survey. You can find the results in the following infographic.
Key Stats
- Cost is the second biggest worry when traveling during the winter holidays.
- Almost 1 in 3 Americans would pay a credit card annual fee in exchange for better perks.
- Almost 6X more millennials plan to apply for a card to save on winter travel compared to baby boomers.
- 61% more people with high income compared to low income say they will not travel because they need to save money.
- 2 in 5 people plan to use credit card rewards to help with winter holiday spending.
- 6 in 10 people will consider the most rewarding card before making a travel purchase.
Ask the Experts
For advice and insight, we asked a panel of experts to share their thoughts on the following key questions:
- WalletHub’s survey results show that roughly 33 million Americans (13% of adults) feel they cannot afford to travel this winter - why do you think that is, and is it a bad sign for the economy?
- Nearly 6X more millennials than baby boomers plan to apply for a new credit card to save on winter travel this year - what explains such a big disparity?
- Only one-third of people would pay an annual fee for better hotel/airline credit card perks - are the other two-thirds missing out?
Ask the Experts
- Maxim Starkov
Adjunct Instructor, New York University Tisch Center for Hospitality & Tourism
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- Richard Coughlan
Associate Professor of Management at University of Richmond
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- Xiaoxiao Fu
Assistant Professor, Rosen College of Hospitality Management, University of Central Florida
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- Amanda "AJ" Templeton
Ph.D. – Assistant Professor of Hospitality Management, Dixie L. Leavitt School of Business, Southern Utah University
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- Michael DiVecchio
Owner, MJD Restaurant Consulting, Hospitality and Educational Specialist & Adjunct Professor at Northampton Community College
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- Christine L. Storrie
Assistant Professor, School of Economics and Business, SUNY Oneonta
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Full Details Overall
| Do you plan to travel away from home this winter? | |
|---|---|
| Yes | 65% |
| No | 35% |
| If no, what is the main reason you’re not planning to travel away from home this winter? | |
| Can’t afford it | 38% |
| Don’t feel like it | 28% |
| Need to save money | 23% |
| Saving vacation days | 11% |
| How will your winter travel spending compare to last year? | |
| Same | 49% |
| More | 30% |
| Less | 21% |
| What do you worry about most when traveling during the winter holidays? | |
| Weather | 44% |
| Cost | 38% |
| Packing appropriately | 7% |
| Spending time with in-laws / relatives | 7% |
| Terrorism | 4% |
| Do you plan to apply for a new credit card to save on travel this winter? | |
| No | 86% |
| Yes | 14% |
| Do you plan to redeem credit card rewards to help with your winter holiday spending? | |
| No | 62% |
| Yes | 38% |
| If yes, what do you plan to redeem for? | |
| Travel | 43% |
| Cash back | 41% |
| Gift cards | 10% |
| Merchandise | 6% |
| Is it worth paying an annual fee to get a hotel or airline credit card with better perks? | |
| No | 69% |
| Yes | 31% |
| Do you consider which credit card will be most rewarding before making a travel purchase? | |
| Yes | 60% |
| No | 40% |
| How would you rate the wait times at security checkpoints in airports? | |
| Good | 40% |
| Bad | 26% |
| OK | 20% |
| Horrible | 9% |
| Great | 6% |
Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.