SOUTHLAKE, Texas, Nov 08, 2006 (BUSINESS WIRE) — It seems that nothing can come between Americans and their turkey. Travelocity’s parent company, Sabre Holdings reports a 15 percent increase in both passenger volume and ticket prices this year compared to the same time period last year. In a recent Travelocity holiday poll, 41 percent of respondents surveyed say they “dread” the actual journey, even though it’s not enough to keep them away from family and friends. Seventy two percent say they make the trip to spend time with loved ones.
According to the holiday poll, 91 percent of travelers refuse to let the recent changes in security restrictions affect their travel. Security changes and higher fares are not deterring travelers this year either. In fact, according to Sabre data, 42 percent of all Thanksgiving travelers booked their travel earlier this year.
“It seems that the busy summer season sent a clear message to holiday travelers: if you want to be sure to get a seat, you’d better book it early,” says Amy Ziff, Travelocity’s editor-at-large. “Airports are going to be crowded and chaotic this holiday. The new security rules will be the number one problem for travelers this season.”
Below is Travelocity’s 2006 holiday travel snapshot:
Thanksgiving Destinations With a Growth in Share, Year Over Year:
— New York City (up 15%)
— Charlotte (52%)
— Kansas City (18%)
— Columbus (25%)
— New Orleans (52% but still down 28% from 2004)
— Cancun (24%)
Top Air Destinations for Thanksgiving
1. New York
2. Washington, DC
3. South Florida (Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, West Palm Beach)
4. Los Angeles
5. Chicago
6. Orlando
7. Las Vegas
8. Denver
9. Dallas / Fort Worth
10. San Francisco
Top Air Destinations for the Holidays Overall are:
1. Orlando
2. Las Vegas
3. Denver
4. Chicago
5. Dallas / Fort Worth
6. Los Angeles
7. Atlanta
8. New York
9. Phoenix
10. Boston
Most Crowded Airports for Departures 2006 Holidays:
1. Los Angeles
2. Denver International
3. Chicago O’Hare
4. Boston Logan
5. Dallas / Fort Worth
6. Newark
7. New York Laguardia
8. San Francisco
9. Philadelphia
10. Atlanta
With a bigger picture of the sheer volume of travelers taking to the skies this year, it’s no surprise that Travelocity’s recent holiday poll discovered that most are NOT looking forward to their journey home. Travelocity’s 2006 holiday poll conducted over the week of October 25-31, 2006 consisted of responses from approximately 1,800 Travelocity members and obtained information about travelers’ travel plans and tendencies this holiday season. A snapshot of survey highlights are below with additional results available at www.travelocity.com/holiday2006.
— Getting to and from their holiday destinations is the number one thing on peoples minds this holiday season (41 percent), followed by dread of going back to work (32 percent) and gaining a few extra pounds (24 percent)
— Catching up with family and friends is the most popular reason for traveling during the holidays (72 percent), followed by only 12 percent who just look forward to the time off from work
— The effects of security alerts and regulations on passengers:
— Increased security alert levels only have an effect if the threat level is red (38 percent), otherwise it has no effect on holiday travel plans (45 percent)
— The recent airport security changes do not necessarily make people feel any safer while they are traveling (51 percent)
“Be smart about your holiday travel this year and be sure to know the new TSA and airline security guidelines before you even start your holiday packing,” said Ziff.
For more tips and advice on holiday travel, packing advice and even how to stay healthy while traveling this year visit www.travelocity.com/holidaytips.
About Travelocity
Travelocity is committed to being the traveler’s champion — before, during and after the trip – and is the only online travel company that guarantees not just the price, but the entire travel experience – see www.travelocity.com/guarantee for details. This customer-driven focus, backed by 24/7 live phone support, great prices and powerful shopping technology has made Travelocity the sixth largest travel agency — booking $7.4 billion in travel worldwide in 2005. Based in Southlake, Texas, Travelocity also owns and operates Travelocity Business(SM) for corporate travelers, lastminute.com, a leader in European online travel and ZUJI, a leader in Asia-Pacific online travel. Travelocity is owned by Sabre Holdings Corporation (NYSE:TSG), a world leader in travel commerce.
SOURCE: Travelocity
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Andrea Collins, 212-715-2222
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