Travel Bookings Return to 2002 Levels, According to AAA Travel Barometer
ORLANDO, Fla.--June 5, 2003--In an encouraging sign for the travel industry, travel bookings have returned to their 2002 levels, according to the most recent AAA Travel Barometer.The National Travel Barometer for the week of May 26 to June 1 showed overall travel agency bookings - cruises, tour packages, car rentals and hotels - at 28,100 bookings, about even with the 28,200 bookings for the same week last year. The barometer reflects a decline of 17 percent from the previous week of this year, which is in keeping with a normal drop-off in travel bookings immediately following the Memorial Day holiday.
Online TripTik(R) routings dropped by 3 percent from their Memorial Day peak, to 152,200 from 157,000 the previous week. Despite the slight drop, these trip routing requests are 47 percent higher than they were at the start of the U.S.-Iraq war, reflecting the many Americans planning summer drive trips.
The AAA barometer is based on a sample of 13 clubs representing more than half of the association's 46 million members. It is intended to help gauge the strength of the leisure travel market.
"Americans' travel demand dropped significantly following the start of the war in Iraq, but it appears to be well on the way to recovery from war and terrorism concerns," said AAA Travel Vice President Sandra Hughes.
A summary of the National Travel Barometer's measurements for the week of May 26 to June 1 (compared to the same week in 2002 and to the previous week of 2003):
| -- | Tour packages (7,700) were 112 percent of their 2002 level and 84 percent of the previous week's total (9,200). |
| -- | Hotel bookings (11,100) totaled 91 percent of their 2002 level and 80 percent of the previous week (13,800). |
| -- | Car rental reservations (4,400) were at 97 percent of their 2002 level and 88 percent of the previous week (5,000). |
| -- | Cruise bookings (5,000) were at 108 percent of their 2002 levels and 86 percent of the previous week (5,800) |
Visits to AAA travel offices (34,800) were at 106 percent of their 2002 levels and 95 percent of the previous week (36,700). (All numbers are rounded to the nearest hundred.)
As North America's largest motoring and leisure travel organization, AAA provides its members with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services. Since its founding in 1902, the not-for-profit, fully-tax-paying AAA has been a leader and advocate for the safety and security of all travelers.
(Note to editors: This is the final weekly version of the AAA National Travel Barometer. With leisure travel demand now returning to near normal levels following the Iraq War, AAA will continue its reporting of travel sector data on a monthly basis, beginning after the July 4 holiday.)
