New Study Shows What to Expect from Winter Travel

If you’re planning on traveling this month or next, you’re not alone. According to a new study from Vacasa, more than half of U.S. residents have travel plans for December 2022, January 2023 or February 2023. A little under half of those people plan to travel for the holidays specifically, while about 20 percent are unsure of exact travel dates.

Vaasa’s recent winter and holiday travel trend report, though, didn’t just look at how many people were traveling this season — it also looked at how they travel.

The study found nearly all travelers expect rising travel costs to impact them this year, whether that impact is made evident in the need to save up more cash ahead of time, adjust travel plans to get better deals or to ask family or friends to meet at a halfway point to save money. Nearly 60 percent of travelers say they plan on working during their winter travel, particularly in the case of working parents. The majority expect to stay in the country for winter travel, though more will travel further from home than they did last year.

Overall, looking forward, the survey found many U.S. travelers expect to travel more often in 2023 than they did in 2022, particularly millennials and Gen Z travelers.