ALBUQUERQUE, NM--(Marketwire - June 2, 2010) - New Mexicans will be taking more vacations compared to 2009 and 2008 but are more likely to economize on their trip budgets, according to the third annual summer travel poll conducted by AAA New Mexico.
On their first trip of the summer, New Mexico residents are more likely to drive to their destinations than during the past two years (62 percent this year vs. 58 percent in 2009 and 56 percent in 2008), slightly more likely to be traveling with four or more people (14 percent this year vs. 12 percent last year and 9 percent in 2008), and continuing to be most likely to take trips between four and seven days in length (48 percent this year vs. 51 percent in 2009 and 47 percent in 2008), according to the survey.
In all, 89 percent of the AAA New Mexico members who participated in the poll said they plan to take at least one overnight trip this summer, higher than the 85 percent in 2009 and 84 percent in 2008 who took at least one summer vacation.
Forty-two percent of those polled said they would take three or more trips this summer, a hefty increase from the 30 percent who took that many trips last year and the 32 percent who took three or more summer trips in 2008.
Sixty-five percent of travelers plan to spend less than $1,000 on their first vacation of the summer, up from 62 percent in 2009 and 57 percent in 2008.
"Travelers who booked trips for this summer have tended to focus more on getting the most value for their money," said Ana Gonzalez, AAA New Mexico regional manager. "However, right now we are seeing people who are more willing to come in and book more expensive 'dream trips' for the future beyond this summer, which is a signal that they are feeling more optimistic about their economic situations."
The top method cited by survey takers for saving money this summer on travel and other entertainment was searching for specials and discounts and/or spending more time with family and friends (both chosen by 33 percent), staying closer to home (30 percent), spending more time at home (30 percent), and choosing less expensive entertainment options (29 percent).* The top method among those polled for seeking out discounts for vacation trips was looking in local area guides and magazines (67 percent), followed by using coupons (65 percent), and using AAA discount tools such as the AAA.com website, AAA New Mexico Journey magazine, or the AAA Discounts iPhone app (61 percent).*
"This survey revealed that 67 percent of polled travelers seek out coupons or discounts at least sometimes as a factor in deciding which attractions, restaurants, and/or retailers to visit while on vacation," said Denise Bialek, AAA Discounts program manager. "Because of this increased consumer interest, we have seen more visits to the discount portion of our website, and the AAA Discounts free iPhone app is one of the most popular 'lifestyle' apps out there, with more than 814,000 downloads nationwide to date."
For New Mexican travelers, the top city destinations for the first trip of the summer are Denver (5.3 percent vs. 9.3 percent in 2009), San Francisco (4.2 percent vs. less than 2 percent in 2009) and Las Vegas (4.0 percent vs. 4.2 percent in 2009). Almost 20 percent of travelers are planning their first trip within the state, about the same as last year.
In choosing and planning their trip, 48 percent of those surveyed relied on recommendations from friends and family, followed by 38 percent who looked at AAA Diamond, star or online ratings for hotels, and 23 percent who researched travel guide books such as AAA TourBooks.*
The Internet was cited as the top method to choose which attractions, restaurants and/or retailers to visit while on vacation (84 percent), followed by family/friend recommendations (56 percent), guide books (50 percent) and local area magazines at the destination (39 percent).*
For all those polled, whether they planned to take a vacation or not, the most popular entertainment activity cited for spending money this summer was dining out and nightlife (72 percent), followed by going to the movies (47 percent), visiting museums (47 percent), pursuing a hobby (45 percent), visiting attractions (39 percent), attending live shows (38 percent), attending live sports events (23 percent), attending fairs (23 percent) and doing a family activity like miniature golf or laser tag (19 percent).*
The AAA New Mexico summer travel survey was conducted online from April 27 to May 3 by the AAA New Mexico Marketing Research Department, and was taken by more than 250 members in the state and a total of 2,300 AAA members around the country. It has a margin of error of +/- 6 percent.
*This was the first year this question was asked in the summer travel poll, so there are no comparisons available for 2008 and 2009.
Contact Information:
Contact:
Dan Ronan
(469) 221-8217 (cell)
Marie Montgomery
(714) 885-2333