Vacation Spending Survey: 6 in 10 of Americans Will Go On Vacation

BELOIT, Wis.-- FatWallet.com, the one-stop resource for online coupons and deals with cash back savings, announced results from its Vacation Spending Survey* (TNS Global). Of 1,000 American adults surveyed online, 83% said they regularly go on vacations and 6 in 10 go on vacation every year, with 3 in 10 saying they go on two or more vacations per year. Surprisingly, 17% said they never go on vacations, jumping to 21% for 40-somethings and 35% for those that earn less than$30k/year.

According to the US Travel Association, total domestic leisure travel is forecast to exceed $1.6 Billion in 2014. FatWallet's vacation survey also reveals that almost half (46%) will spend more than $1,500 on their next vacation, while 13% will spend more than $3,000(20% for those that earn $75k/year or more). To save money, 73% of vacationers said they look online for special offers and travel deals, use miles and points or look for cash back rewards. Clothing and souvenirs rank as top choices for what vacationers will shop for.

Key vacation survey results:

• Frequency:  Total of 83% of Americans said they go on vacations (93% for those who earn +$75k/year), of those, 32% go more than once a year, 27% once a year, 6% every other year, 18% every few years and 17% never go on vacation.

• Spending:  54% will spend less than $1500 on their next vacation (71% under the age of 30), 46% will spend more than $1,500and of those, 13% said they will spend more than $3000.

• Booking:  48% book 1-6 months in advance, 11% +6 months ahead, 15% less than 1 month and 2% wait until the last minute. 46% get vacation information and advice from family and friends while only 7% use a travel agent for this. 60% said they will use a travel web site and/or a coupons and cash back sites to book their next vacation.

• Saving:  Free WiFi (72%), Free Breakfast Buffet (67%) and Free Parking (66%) are the most important hotel amenities. When booking, special online offers and deals (42%), points or miles (18%) and cash back rewards (13%) will be used most to save when booking their next vacation.

• Shopping:  Vacationers mostly shop for wearables (58%), health & beauty products (30%) and swimwear (28%) to take with, while souvenirs (65%), clothes (39%) and jewelry (16%) were tops for bringing back home. Notably, 1 in 4 will shop for coupons to use and save on their vacation activities.

"Late April is prime time when consumers look to book and save the most on their summer vacations," stated Brent Shelton, FatWallet spokesperson. "FatWallet offers vacationers easy opportunities to save more by earning cash back from more than 100 of top travel sites, including Booking.com, Priceline, and Hotels.com." FatWallet members will stack cash back savings with hundreds of the most current airfare, car rental and hotel deals. The FatWallet Deal Discussion forum is host to smart travelers that share insider information and travel tips for finding the best domestic and international vacation rates.