U.S. sees sharp decline in travel due to COVID-19, according to AAA forecast

SALT LAKE CITY — A recent travel forecast by AAA predicts a significant decline in summer travel this year due to COVID-19.

The forecast predicted that Americans will take 700 million trips this summer, which is down 15% from last year and is the largest decline since 2009.

Travel in the U.S. has fallen sharply since the beginning of the pandemic, with airlines and hotels taking the biggest hit.

“We are seeing the impact coronavirus is having on the travel landscape and keeping people off the road, physically distancing and staying home as much as possible,” said Aldo Vazquez, spokesman for AAA Utah. “In a perfect world without COVID-19, AAA had anticipated a 3.6% increase over last year’s summer travel.”

He said the pandemic “essentially wiped out over 150 million person-trips this summer.”

Kent and Mariam Black, of Garland, Box Elder County, had been planning a trip to Egypt and Israel in June for two years before the pandemic hit.

“We signed up with a group of other teachers and their families to go to Egypt, so we’ve been saving for two years for this. We’ve been going to classes every month to learn about Jerusalem and Egypt and what we’d be seeing there,” Kent Black said.

With that off the table, the Blacks said they are now considering taking a trip to Yellowstone next week, but it depends on the park’s social distancing protocols because Mariam Black is in the high-risk category for COVID-19.

“We have to check and see how well (people) are social distancing,” Kent said.

He said if they do take the trip, then they would be staying with family because they are still uncertain about the safety of staying in hotels during a pandemic.

“Americans will get out and explore this summer, though they’re taking a ‘wait-and-see approach’ when it comes to booking and are likely to book more long weekend getaways than extended vacations,” Vazquez wrote in a news release. “When they do venture out, the greatest share of travelers — 683 million — will take to the road to satisfy their wanderlust.”

People are booking more spur-of-the-moment trips based on data showing travelers making plans a couple of days to a week in advance, which is “significantly higher” than in previous years, according to AAA’s data.

According to the forecast, travel by vehicle is the preferred method at 97% in favor, which is a nearly 10% increase from the last five years’ average.