Record Fall Travel Costs Increase Popularity of Budget-Friendly Destinations

Staff Report From Georgia CEO

Tuesday, September 3rd, 2024

Travelers are gearing up for what could be one of the most expensive fall travel seasons to-date, with average trip costs up over 30% compared to last fall.

Analyzing traveler spending and survey data from thousands of travel insurance policies purchased for trips this fall, leading travel insurance marketplace, Squaremouth.com, reveals how rising trip costs are affecting traveler behavior.

High Trip Costs Spark Traveler Concerns
More than half of surveyed travelers are spending more on travel this fall, with an average trip cost of $7,600. The average cost of international travel, specifically, has risen to $8,100, up 38% from last year.

Higher trip costs can also mean bigger financial losses, leading to increasing traveler's concerns over protecting their fall trips with travel insurance. 77% of surveyed travelers said that they were more or equally concerned about protecting their trip costs this fall compared to previous years.

Affordable Fall Destinations on the Rise
As the cost of travel continues to rise, Squaremouth's data reveals that travelers are actively seeking out more affordable destinations this fall. This year, 8 out of the top 10 popular fall destinations have trip costs below the overall season average.

Below are the most popular affordable fall destinations this year based on insured trip costs.

Top 10 Affordable Fall Destinations:

Destination

Average Trip Cost

Bahamas 

$3,012

Dominican Republic

$3,315

Mexico

$3,331

Philippines

$3,362

Bermuda

$3,859

Aruba

$3,880

Jamaica 

$3,946

Puerto Rico 

$4,407

Belize

$4,496

Costa Rica

$4,523

Methodology: Squaremouth analytics compared travel insurance policy sales for trips purchased prior to August 29 with travel dates between September 1 and December 20.

Available Topic Expert: Jenna Hummer is available for comment and interview. [email protected]