Tourism and Travel Statistics in 2022

the tourism and travel industry has faced a long rebound process¹. This year, we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Leisure travel during summer 2022 is expected to be off the charts, eclipsing 2021 numbers and nearing pre-pandemic vacation numbers.\What do we mean when we say “pre-pandemic numbers?” How many people have traveled this year, and how long can you expect to wait in TSA for your holiday vacation? Read on for a complete list of 2022 tourism and travel statistics.

What do we mean when we say “pre-pandemic numbers?” How many people have traveled this year, and how long can you expect to wait in TSA for your holiday vacation? Read on for a complete list of 2022 tourism and travel statistics.

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Air travel statistics

If you plan to fly on your next vacation, you better be prepared to pass through airport security. What can you expect from TSA in 2022?

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TSA 2022 statistics

• According to TSA checkpoint travel statistics, roughly 2.5 million passengers went through airport security on July 1, 2022, making it the most popular summer travel day thus far.²
• Over the past four years, TSA’s checkpoint travel numbers for July 1st show how air travel has rebounded since the height of the pandemic in 2020:³‍

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• TSA screened over 11 million travelers during the 2022 Fourth of July weekend, about 93% of the volume for the same five-day period in 2019.⁴
• During the busy weekend, 95% of TSA PreCheck passengers waited less than 5 minutes, while 92% of the passengers in standard screening waited less than 15 minutes.
• Transportation Security Officers have already prevented more than 3,000 firearms from entering aircraft passenger cabins this year.
• On average, TSA catches 17 firearms at checkpoints each day. At the current pace, firearm catches will surpass the previous full-year record of 5,972 firearms in 2021.

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Flight expenses

• According to the most recent data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), the most expensive average flight from a U.S. state is Hana, Hawaii, where the average flight was $1,164.⁵
• The cheapest average flight comes from Wilmington, Delaware, with an average fare of $86.28. Click here to find the average cost from your local airport.
• The average American’s leisure travel budget was $3,797 at the start of the year.⁷
• The average cost of airfare in May 2022 was 19% higher than the month before and 38% higher than in May 2021.

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Road trip vacation statistics

Are you trying to save money by hitting the road rather than taking to the skies? Keep these statistics in mind while you plan your next vacation.

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Car rental statistics

• According to Statista, the average revenue per user (cost per rental) is expected to reach $193.09 this year.⁸
• Revenue from car rentals reached $89.34 billion in 2019, dropped to $56.55 billion in 2020, and is expected to reach $83.02 billion this year (2022).
• Statista expects that the number of car rental users will increase to 604.2 million by 2026.
• Car rental prices in May 2022 were roughly 70% more than in May 2019.⁹

Other road trip statistics

• According to a survey by The Vacationer, 80% of American adults taking a summer vacation plan to travel by car rather than plane.¹⁰
• Over half of those planning a road trip will stay within 500 miles of their home.
• 41% of American travelers say rising gas prices will affect their vacation plans in the next 6 months.¹¹

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Miscellaneous vacation statistics

• Travel spending reached $101 billion in May, a new post-pandemic high.¹²
• 36.04% of Americans plan to travel once this year, while 44.8% plan to travel more than once.¹³
• 20.44% of Americans plan to travel internationally this year.¹⁴
• 42.06% of Americans plan to travel more this year than last summer, while 46.08% will travel the same amount and 11.86% will travel less.¹⁵
• 55% of American travelers say they are willing to go on longer trips this year because they can work remotely.¹⁶
• According to Hostaway, 28+ day vacations have increased 106% since 2019.¹⁷
• In May, Airbnb.com received 99.4 million visits worldwide.¹⁸
• Airbnb was the third leading online travel agency in 2021, only behind Booking and Expedia.¹⁹
• 78% of millennials would rather spend their money on experiences (travel) than things.²⁰
• 90,562 hotel and motel businesses exist in the U.S., up from 77.9 thousand in 2020 when the average occupancy rate was only 44%.

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Help employees travel with Dónde

According to a recent Forbes survey, more than half of summer vacationers say the cost of goods and services affected their travel plans.²¹ That may seem harmless, but in today’s workplace, employees face increasing pressures and burnout rates. Taking vacations to disconnect from work is healthy.²²

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That’s where we come in.

Dónde is a tool that helps companies maximize their PTO by helping their employees save for a vacation. Our support team helps employees pick the perfect experience or vacation and start saving to reach their goals. The employer can help by matching employee contributions or offering performance bonuses that go directly to the employee’s travel plan. Check out our website to see how we can help your company maximize its PTO.