by Thanksgiving travelers faced major price hurdles this holiday.
Decades of inflation, coupled with an ongoing travel recovery due to the COVID-19 pandemic, are driving higher prices for almost everything travel-related, including plane tickets, hotels and gas. Inflation cooled slightly in October but still reached 7.7%.
WHILE THANK YOU TRAVEL PRICES FORCED AMERICANS TO STAY HOME OR TALK THE BANK, PEOPLE OF NEW JERSEY ARE VOTING
Domestic flights booked for Thanksgiving week in early November were an average of 48% higher than 2021, according to Kayak.
(Fox News)
The median fare for a domestic round-trip flight during Thanksgiving week was $468 when booked in early November, with prices only increasing throughout the month, according to Kayak. That’s a 48% increase from 2021. And another headache: United Airlines expects the holiday to be its busiest time since the pandemic began.
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Things don’t get any better once travelers reach their destination either. The average Thanksgiving hotel stay was $173 per night in early November — a 14% year-over-year increase, according to Hopper.
Thanksgiving hotels cost 14% more than last year for a room booked in early November, according to Priceline.
(Fox News)
At least rental car prices are down slightly year-over-year — to $84 a day for Thanksgiving, which Priceline says reflects a 1% decline from 2021, when demand far outstripped supply. But that price is still 62% higher than what a rental car cost before the pandemic.
Thanksgiving car rental prices increased 62% over 2019 when booked in early November, according to Priceline.
(Fox News)
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However, most travelers are expected to arrive by car, with AAA forecasting nearly 49 million will take to the streets.
Gas prices have increased slightly since last year. A standard gallon averaged $3.64 Tuesday — up about 24 cents from 2021 but well below the summer high of $5, according to AAA.
Overall, AAA forecasts there will be nearly 55 million travelers this Thanksgiving — nearly 98% of pre-pandemic volume and the third largest since 2000, when the group began collecting the data.
