Many Americans are waiting longer to book summer vacations this year. Here's why.
Show Caption
Hide Caption
Top three travel trends for summer 2025
Airbnb shares data behind the top summer destinations and motivators for 2025.
NEW YORK - This year's hottest summer travel trend? Waiting for deals.
Americans are scaling back travel plans from flights to drives or waiting to book only if the price is right, a tell-tale sign of an industry slowdown that's got travel companies worried.
Hotel summer bookings are either flat or falling from last year, and airline bookings are down even though airfares have also declined, as economic concerns fuel a pullback in spending.
Travel companies including Delta Air Lines, Marriott International, and online travel agency Booking Holdings have withdrawn or revised their 2025 annual forecasts as U.S. demand softens. Airbnb flagged shrinking booking windows as consumers take a "wait-and-see" approach and book trips closer to their check-in dates.
That has left companies with less visibility into the second half of the year. Delta said in early April it was premature to project the full year given macroeconomic uncertainty. United Airlines said there's a reasonable chance that bookings could weaken.
Europe travel deals: United Airlines says now's the time to book cheap flights from Newark
Wait and see
"It's very clear that consumers are waiting to make decisions, including for the summer," Southwest Airlines CEO Robert Jordan said at the Bernstein Annual Strategic Decisions Conference in late May, adding that demand was stable but lower than expected in January.
U.S. summer flight bookings are down 10% year-over-year, according to Flighthub, an online travel agency, even though airfares have dropped.
"You can't keep an airline seat on the shelf in a warehouse. If you don't fill that seat tomorrow and the airplane flies, it's gone," Steve Hafner, CEO of Kayak, a Booking Holdings unit, told Reuters.
Average summer flight prices declined 7%, with flights to long-haul destinations like Sydney, Australia 23% cheaper year-over-year, according to Kayak.
Hotel bookings have "actually fallen off and it gets weaker like a month out," Hyatt Hotels CEO Mark Hoplamazian told an audience at the NYU International Hospitality Investment Forum on Tuesday. "By the time you get to that month, it recovers."
Summer bookings in major U.S. cities are flat-to-down year-over-year, according to data from CoStar. Average room rates are expected to rise roughly 1.3% in 2025, down from a 1.8% increase in 2024.
"We're not getting that crazy pricing power we got in the early days of the recovery," Marriott CEO Anthony Capuano said, adding that the company was still seeing revenue per available room increase.
Weaker dollar
Travelers may start to find deals, such as a free third night for staying two nights, as hoteliers look to fill rooms, said Jan Freitag, national director of hospitality analytics at CoStar Group.
That's what Jackie Lafferty is hoping for. Her summer plans have shifted from a possible family vacation in Hawaii or Florida to her home state of California instead.
"By the time we broke down the cost of the flights, the hotel and the rental car, it looked expensive, it felt unreasonable," said Lafferty, a Los Angeles-based public relations director.
The dollar's weakness has driven up the cost of overseas vacations. In March, American travelers surveyed by Deloitte had planned to increase budgets for their longest summer trip by 13%. By April, Deloitte's survey found Americans planned on spending about the same as last year.
"The dollar is just not going as far and I think people are starting to realize that," said Chirag Panchal, CEO of the Ensuite Collection, a Dallas luxury travel concierge. The dollar has fallen about 10% since mid-January, when it was its strongest in more than two years.
Panchal's clients, who had booked big trips to Europe last year, are either staying domestic or going to closer destinations like Canada or the Caribbean.
"We might go international at the end of the summer. If we do, it will be last-minute and spur of the moment based on cheaper flights," said Rachel Cabeza, 28, an actor and fitness instructor based in New Jersey. For now, her only summer plan is a getaway to Martha's Vineyard in nearby Massachusetts.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Newsweek
17 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Five Things Causing Electricity Prices to Spike
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Artificial intelligence (AI) and cryptocurrency are among the technological advances driving up energy demand across the United States, which could result in higher energy prices for consumers. Why It Matters These innovative technologies are rapidly reshaping all aspects of global society, but have fueled concerns about energy usage. As technology like AI becomes more accessible and widely used, many critics are concerned about both its environmental impact and the potential to drive up energy demand and prices for Americans. Energy consumption in the U.S. is on the rise, according to a June U.S. Energy Information Administration report. Consumption is expected to hit 4,193 billion kilowatt-hours in 2025, up from 4,097 billion kilowatt-hours in 2024, according to the report. What To Know An aerial view of a large Google Data Center being built in Cheshunt, England, on May 31, 2025. An aerial view of a large Google Data Center being built in Cheshunt, England, on May 31, 2025. Richard Newstead/iStock via Getty Images Artificial Intelligence Millions of Americans now utilize AI in their day-to-day lives, whether for work, to quickly search for information online, or generative purposes. However, studies show that the widespread use of AI may come at a cost. A May 2024 study by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) found that AI data centers could account for 9 percent of U.S. electricity generation by 2030. This is largely because AI searches use approximately 10 times the energy of traditional searches through engines like Google. AI-generated photographs and multimedia use even more energy. These data centers consume a significant amount of power to process and store massive amounts of information, as well as to cool equipment to prevent it from overheating. PJM Interconnection, a transmission organization covering parts of the East Coast and Midwest, on Tuesday announced that electricity demand is likely to continue to "rapidly" grow, driven largely by data center expansion, electrification and economic growth. A Monitoring Analysis report from June pointed to the growing number of data centers as the "primary reason for recent and expected capacity market conditions." "It is misleading to assert that the capacity market results are simply just a reflection of supply and demand. The current conditions are not the result of organic load growth. The current conditions in the capacity market are almost entirely the result of large load additions from data centers, both actual historical and forecast," the report reads. Cryptocurrency Cryptocurrency is also driving up energy demand. According to Energy Star, the global annual energy consumption across the market is 68 terawatt hours. Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin require computers to solve complex mathematical problems to verify transactions, which consumes a high amount of energy, contributing to increased energy consumption. A 2021 University of Chicago study found that cryptomining could cost Americans up to $1 billion each year. "In Upstate New York, where a quarter of US crypto mining takes place, the researchers find that electricity rates have gone up in response to rising demand. Their study demonstrates that because of bitcoin mining's power usage, households paid an additional $165 million a year in energy costs, while businesses paid an extra $79 million," the report reads. AI and crypto are not the only reasons consumers are paying more for electricity; however, new technologies and societal developments could also be contributing to higher energy bills. Work From Home Many Americans may see their energy prices increase because they are working from home, which requires more energy for lighting and computers. A Power Wizard study released earlier in July found that remote work increases electricity prices by about 6.8 percent, or $109 more per year. That does depend on location, though. California saw the highest percent increase at 11 percent, while Louisiana ranked the lowest at only a 4.38 percent increase in energy bills for those working from home. Global Politics Electricity prices are also tied to the state of global affairs, as the cost of fossil fuels can fluctuate during times of conflict. The Russia-Ukraine war, which began in 2022, has seen many countries restrict the imports of Russian oil as a form of sanction against Moscow. The conflict also exacerbated inflation, an economic challenge already faced by much of the globe. A World Economic Forum study published in February 2023 found that the conflict nearly doubled energy costs worldwide. Conflict in the Middle East, where many countries produce oil, has also at times caused electricity prices to fluctuate. There have been concerns that simmering tensions between the U.S. and Iran could drive energy prices upward throughout the summer. One Big Beautiful Bill Act The Republican-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump, could also cause electricity prices to increase, according to some studies. The bill amends clean energy grant programs enacted by the former President Joe Biden administration, which critics say could lead to increased electricity prices due to higher demand for fossil fuels, even as demand is already rising due to the expansion of data centers. Energy Innovation found that by 2030, Nevada residents could see their prices increase by $300, the most of any state. What People Are Saying White House assistant press secretary Taylor Rogers previously told Newsweek: "Since Day One, President Trump has taken decisive steps to unleash American energy and drive oil and gas production to reduce the cost of energy. The One Big Beautiful Bill will turbocharge oil production by streamlining operations for maximum efficiency and expanding domestic production capacity, which will deliver further relief to American families and businesses." The International Energy Agency (IEA) said in an April report: "In the United States, power consumption by data centres is on course to account for almost half the growth in electricity demand between now and 2030. Driven by AI use, the US economy is set to consume more electricity in 2030 for processing data than for manufacturing all energy-intensive goods combined, including aluminium, steel, cement and chemicals. "In advanced economies more broadly, data centres are projected to drive more than 20% of the growth in electricity demand between now and 2030, putting the power sector in those economies back on a growth footing after years of stagnating or declining demand in many of them." What Happens Next The increase in electricity costs from AI centers remains a key issue that millions of Americans may face over the coming years, and one that lawmakers are already seeking to address. A bill introduced in New Jersey, for instance, would require AI data centers to be derived from renewable energy sources to avoid adding strain to the power grid.
Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's New Trade Deal Has a Clear Winner: Vietnam
In the lead-up to the "Liberation Day" tariff announcement in April, President Donald Trump often stressed the importance of reciprocity. He claimed that raising tariffs on imports from foreign countries was about fairness—and that America would drop tariffs if other countries agreed to do the same. After the announcement of a new trade deal with Vietnam, we can safely conclude that Trump was not telling the truth about that. Under the terms of that deal, announced Wednesday, American exports to Vietnam will face no tariffs while Vietnamese goods imported into the United States will face tariffs of between 20 percent and 40 percent. The higher rate is reserved for goods that are shipped through Vietnam from other origins. (The exact details of the deal are reportedly still being hammered out.) Vietnam is giving the United States "TOTAL ACCESS to their Markets for Trade," Trump wrote on Truth Social as he announced the deal. "We will be able to sell our product into Vietnam at ZERO Tariff." That's great, but what happened to reciprocity and fairness? Most of the trade between America and Vietnam is flowing in one direction. In 2024, America exported just $13 billion worth of goods to Vietnam but imported more than $136 billion worth of stuff from there. The U.S. was the top export market for Vietnamese goods, which include a wide range of products like electronics, industrial machinery, household goods, clothing, shoes, and toys. All of that, under Trump's trade deal, will face a 20 percent tax when it enters the country. The Penn Wharton Budget Model's tariff simulator estimates that a 20 percent tariff on all imports from Vietnam would generate between $18 billion and $29 billion in federal taxes, depending on how consumers respond. Yes, 20 percent is better than the astonishing 46 percent tariff that Trump threatened to slap on Vietnamese imports in April, but it's still a huge amount of taxes that will be paid by American consumers and businesses. In that regard, this deal looks a lot like the other preliminary deals Trump has struck with China and the United Kingdom. In each, foreign businesses and consumers got lower tariffs and Americans got hit with higher ones. Yes, in fairness, tariff-free trade into Vietnam is good news for American farmers and manufacturers that export goods to that country, as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has argued. And the reduction in tariffs may marginally increase our exports to Vietnam. For the vast majority of Americans, however, trade with Vietnam matters on the buying side, not the selling side. For them, this deal accomplishes very little. The deal also sends a clear signal to other countries that Trump's promise of reciprocity was bullshit. "Vietnam's trade deal with the US is a wake-up call for Asian governments grappling with the reality that higher tariffs are here to stay," reports Bloomberg. "What we learned from the Vietnam deal is, if anything, the tariffs are going to go up from here, not down," Sebastian Raedler, head of European equity strategy at Bank of America, told CNBC. Free trade between the U.S. and Vietnam would be a win-win for both countries. That's not what Trump has delivered with this deal. Vietnamese businesses and consumers got free trade. Americans got more taxes. There was a clear winner in this negotiation, and it wasn't Trump. The post Trump's New Trade Deal Has a Clear Winner: Vietnam appeared first on
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's 'Deal' With Japan Is Another Loser for Americans
The Trump administration is touting a "massive" trade deal with Japan that was struck just days before the (still uncertain) August 1 deadline when higher tariffs are set to hit. But, as with earlier "deals" struck with the United Kingdom and Vietnam, this agreement looks like a bad one for the United States. Not only does it raise taxes on American consumers, but it leaves American automakers at a distinct disadvantage relative to their Japanese competitors. Under the terms outlined by Trump in a Truth Social post on Tuesday, imports from Japan will be subject to a 15 percent tariff when they enter the United States. Yes, that's lower than the 25 percent tariff that the president has been threatening to impose on Japanese imports, but it is still a huge tax increase relative to existing tariffs on Japanese goods. Previously, the average tariff rate on American imports of Japanese goods was less than 2 percent, according to the World Bank's data. In other words, Trump's "deal" amounts to roughly a 650 percent tax increase on those imports. Those taxes, like all tariffs, will be paid by Americans. The higher tariffs on imports from Japan will hit a wide variety of products, because Japan is one of America's biggest trading partners. Americans imported over $148 billion of goods from Japan last year, including billions of dollars worth of cars, machinery, industrial equipment, electronics, and pharmaceuticals. Trump's new deal will make all of those items more expensive. Because cars are America's biggest import from Japan, that part of the deal is worth a bit more scrutiny. Indeed, when this deal is combined with some of Trump's other trade policy maneuvers, it looks like the White House might have delivered a huge victory for Japanese automakers—despite the Trump administration's professed interest in using tariffs to promote American manufacturing jobs. Keep in mind that the Trump administration has already slapped 50 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum, both of which are essential to manufacturing cars. On top of that, American automakers are facing a 25 percent tariff on imported car parts. Those tariff hikes on raw materials and intermediate goods are driving up costs for American automakers like General Motors, which earlier this week blamed tariffs for a $1.1 billion drop in profits during the second quarter. Now, the Trump administration is touting a deal that will apply a 15 percent tariff on cars imported from Japan (technically, it's a new 12.5 percent car-specific tariff on top of a 2.5 percent existing tariff on Japanese cars). In other words, it will be cheaper to import finished cars from Japan than it will be to import the steel, aluminum, and other parts necessary to build cars in the United States. The American auto industry has already noticed. "Any deal that charges a lower tariff for Japanese imports with virtually no U.S. content than the tarrif imposed on North American built vehicles with high U.S. content is a bad deal for U.S. industry and U.S. auto workers," Matt Blunt, president of the American Automotive Policy Council, told Car and Driver. In all, Trump's deal with Japan means that American consumers of Japanese products are facing a huge tax hike, while American manufacturers are now at a distinct disadvantage when compared to companies making finished products in Japan. It's also worth noting that the deal itself remains quite vague, at best. For example, Trump claimed that Japan has promised to invest $550 billion in America over the next few years, but the Japanese government can't simply order private businesses to do that. Additionally, Trump's announcement seems to lack many of the details typically included in trade deals. The White House has not yet released the text of the deal, and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told reporters that he was still reviewing the agreement, according to The New York Times. Despite all that, Trump is declaring victory. "It's a great deal for everybody," the president said on Tuesday night. In reality, this latest development in Trump's trade war once again demonstrates how his tariffs are distorting markets, harming Americans, and undermining his administration's economic goals. The post Trump's 'Deal' With Japan Is Another Loser for Americans appeared first on
