As midnight approaches, dark groups huddle on the freezing slope of one of the seven hills overlooking the soft yellow lights of the city of Edinburgh.
11.12.2023 - 09:33 / skift.com / Meghna Maharishi
Droves of Americans are expected to travel with the holidays right around the corner.
In total, around 115.2 million travelers will fly, drive, ride the bus or take the train during the holiday travel season, according to a forecast from AAA.
The total number of travelers expected in 2023 marks a 2.2% increase from 2022, and is one of AAA’s highest holiday forecasts on record. The actual record was set in 2019, with 115.6 million travelers.
Air travel is expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels, with AAA predicting 7.5 million travelers will take to the skies, surpassing a 2019 record of 7.3 million.
U.S. airlines experienced a rocky comeback from the pandemic, but 2023 has so far been a lot smoother. Cancellation rates for the first nine months have so far stayed below 2%, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
However there is more pressure on U.S. airlines to ensure their operations are ready for the holiday travel season, especially in the event of any extreme weather.
Last year, a winter storm caused the airlines to cancel thousands of flights, and Southwest Airlines was hit the hardest with the cancellation of around 16,700 flights from Dec. 21 to New Year’s Eve last year.
Southwest has repeatedly said it is prepared for extreme weather this year as it invested billions in new technology, de-icing equipment and better crew coordination. During a third-quarter earnings call, Southwest executives said the airline was already seeing stronger bookings for the holiday season compared to last year.
AAA anticipates that 104 million travelers will drive and around 4 million will either ride a bus or train or take a cruise.
Even as the post-pandemic trend of “revenge travel” wanes, travel still remains strong and in some cases, has either caught up to or surpassed pre-pandemic levels.
A Deloitte holiday survey found that approximately 48% of Americans planned to take at least one trip during the holidays. And it found an increasing number of Americans were taking vacations rather than visiting friends or family.
In fact, Deloitte found that around 29% of travelers planned to pay for lodging during a holiday trip, up from 13% in 2021. The trend is primarily driven by Gen Z and millennials, along with those who have higher incomes.
A Chase Travel study based on its bookings data found the most popular holiday destinations this year were in South America and Asia, along with beach destinations in Mexico and the Caribbean.
As midnight approaches, dark groups huddle on the freezing slope of one of the seven hills overlooking the soft yellow lights of the city of Edinburgh.
Southwest Airlines experienced an epic meltdown last holiday season due to its outdated technology. Though it avoided any problems this year, there is still one issue it can’t avoid.
From January to December 2023, the Turks and Caicos Islands welcomed over a million visitors. The Turks and Caicos Islands received 1,432,844* visitors combined for air and cruise for January -November 2023. There were 595,503* air arrivals and cruise visitors were 836,341* for the period. The air arrivals represent a 6.35 percent increase over the corresponding period in 2022 which saw 559,941 arrivals and 54.49 percent over the same period in 2021 which saw 365,460 arrivals.
Few traditions are as cherished and timeless as the annual performance of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker by the New York City Ballet, which will be performing through December 31, 2023. This beloved production has become an integral part of the holiday festivities, attracting over 100,000 spectators annually.
An estimated one to four million people will travel to see next year’s total solar eclipse, according to a report made by Great American Eclipse.
The Department of Transportation has ordered Southwest to pay a $140 million fine for numerous consumer-protection violations that resulted from last year’s holiday travel meltdown.
With nearly 40 million people slated to fly during the holidays this year, airlines are preparing for what could be one of the busiest holiday travel seasons on record.
Chase Travel has at least one asset that CapitalOne doesn’t have — Chase owns its own technology while CapitalOne relies to some extent on Hopper.
Nearly every peak travel period in 2023 brought air travel records, and airports are again bracing for large crowds as the end-of-year holidays approach.
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Good morning from Skift. It’s Monday, December 12. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.