Gas costs cut into vacation travel

More than a third of Americans are rethinking vacation plans because of record-high gas prices, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll shows, and some destinations are feeling the squeeze as the summer travel season officially begins this holiday weekend.

Of those altering travel plans, 37% are scrapping trips and one in four won’t go as far or stay as long, the poll finds. “We’re pretty close to the toughest summer ever, at least for consumers,” says Rick Seaney, CEO of Farecompare.com, an airfare search site.


“It’s looking very bad. People just aren’t coming,” says Jackie Gentry, manager of the Seashore Inn in Seaside, Ore. The hotel isn’t sold out for Memorial Day weekend, she says, “and we have hardly any reservations for June.” A room that usually goes for $139 can be booked online for $109.

The average price of a gallon of gas nationwide is $3.83. The federal Energy Information Administration expects a $3.66-per-gallon average this summer. Prices are reshaping the season:

USA Today