High Gas Prices Won't Deter Travelers This Holiday Weekend

Higher gas prices will not stop many from traveling this Memorial Day weekend, according to a AAA survey released last week.

Travel for Illinois residents is even expected to increase slightly this year. According to AAA, 1.8 million, most of which will be driving, are expected to travel in Illinois this weekend — up 2 percent from last year.

While gas prices averaged $4.17 per gallon in Illinois for regular gasoline last week when the survey was released, six out of ten surveyed by AAA said the higher prices would not impact their travel plans.The remaining four out of 10 said they will take a shorter trip or find an alternate way to travel or would find other ways to save money, according to AAA.

Other findings from the AAA survey are as follows:

• Overwhelming majority of Americans to travel by automobile, but down slightly from last year: Approximately 30.9 million people plan to drive to their destination, a small decline from the 31 million who drove last year. In spite of gasoline prices more than a dollar per gallon higher than a year ago, automobile travel continues to be the dominant mode of transportation. Almost nine out of ten holiday travelers (88 percent) will take to the nation’s roadways during the Memorial Day holiday weekend.
• Number of air travelers expected to increase by 11.5 percent: Nearly 2.93 million leisure air travelers (eight percent of holiday travelers) will fly during the holiday weekend, an 11.5 percent increase from last year’s 2.63 million air travelers. The remaining three percent of holiday travelers are expected to travel by other modes, including rail, bus and watercraft.   
• Airfares, hotel rates and car rental rates all rise: According to AAA’s Leisure Travel Index, Memorial Day holiday airfares are expected to be 14 percent higher than last year with an average lowest round-trip rate of $201 for the top 40 U.S. air routes. Hotel rates for AAA Three Diamond lodgings are expected to increase five percent from a year ago with travelers spending an average of $148 per night compared to $142 last year. Travelers planning to stay at AAA Two Diamond hotels can expect to pay 10 percent more with an average cost of $109 per night. Weekend daily car rental rates will average $38, just $1 higher than last year.
• Average travel distance up 27 percent; median spending down 14 percent: According to a survey of traveler intentions, the average distance traveled by Americans during the Memorial Day holiday weekend is expected to be 792 miles, which is 27 percent greater than last year’s average travel distance of 626 miles. Air Travel is expected to gain a larger share of overall travel, and is likely the cause of a substantial increase in the average travel distance compared to a year ago. Median spending is expected to be $692, a decrease of 14 percent from $809 last year.