Deloitte has officially published the results from a new report, which reveals that Americans do plan on travelling more, but at the same time, their trips become less extensive moving forward.
Named as “Right-sized American Summer: 2025 Deloitte Summer Travel Survey,” the stated report examines trends that could shape the upcoming summer travel season, particularly revealing how Americans’ financial concerns may impact the landscape. More on the same would reveal that this report includes data from two different surveys, one conducted between March 23 and April 1, and the other fielded between April 7 and April 9.
Talk about the former survey on a slightly deeper level, we begin from the way it discovered that, while financial pressures may be top-of-mind, Americans remain committed to taking their summer trips, as 53% plan to travel and stay in paid lodging, up from 48% last year. Many of them are also making it work by taking more frequent, but shorter, trips.
Next up, when asked about budgets in March 2025, the respondents revealed plans to spend $3,987 (13% higher than 2024). Having said so, just one month later in April 2025, Americans would update plans to spend an average of only $3,471 on their longest summer trip.
Another detail worth a mention is rooted in the fact that prices would force adjustments across many Americans’ trip plan, including more of them saying they will drive vs. fly (22%) or they will stay with friends and family instead of at hotels at some point in the past year (24%).
Markedly enough, if we look past financial considerations, technology, remote work, and sustainability were also found to influence summer travel plans. We get to say because the number of Americans, who will use GenAI to book, stood at 15% this year. On the other hand, nearly a quarter (23%) planned to work during their summer trips.
Turning our attention towards the April survey, it discovered that Americans plan to take an average of 3.1 summer trips (compared to 2.3 in 2024).
Next up, it got to know how more travelers are looking for a quick getaway: 41% plan to take a summer trip of three nights or fewer, compared to 37% last year. However, when it comes to their longest planned trip of the summer, many are actually adding days. as 45% of travelers say their longest trip will last a week or more, up from 39% in 2024.
Financials also impact travelers’ plans once they get to their destination. You see, those who said they feel financially worse off this year are naturally less likely to splurge on excursions such as a guided day trip or sightseeing tour (30% vs. 42% of those feeling financially better), a ticketed or public event like a festival or concert (27% vs. 31%), or a small group or one-on-one class (9% vs. 17%).
The impact of remote on travel plans also held study in this particular study after nearly a quarter (23%) of travelers revealed plans to work on their longest trip this summer, up slightly from 2024 (21%).
Among other things, we ought to mention that respondents, who plan to reduce their travel spend, will take shorter trips (43%), stay at budget hotels (33%), stay with family and friends (30%), and pick cheaper airfare classes (20%).
As for those still spending significantly more on their longest 2025 summer trip (19% as of April, compared to 23% in March), they attributed it to the trip now feeling more special. In the April survey, 49% of respondents attributed the higher spend to bucket list trips, versus 41% who said the same in March.
We must also mention how, across the two studies, more than 1 in 5 (22%) respondents say they decided to drive instead of fly this year due to airfare prices. Meanwhile, nearly a quarter (24%) planned to stay with friends and family instead of at a hotel due to room rates this year.
High-income travelers are also looking to cut costs, particularly on flights, as more of them plan to book lower-fare tickets with their preferred airlines (36% vs. 28% in 2024).
