Owning a home is the American Dream, right? Hold that thought. Research commissioned by travel search engine liligo.com found that 22 percent of Americans surveyed actually save more money to travel than they do to buy a home. And that's not where the travel obsession ends.
The study of 1,002 adults, which was conducted by research firm YouGov, revealed that one-third (33 percent) are spending more time researching their short getaways than which doctor to visit. About the same amount (34 percent) spend more time researching travel plans than working out, while one in 11 people spend more time planning a vacation than hanging out with their significant other.
Why so much research if Americans are barely using their vacation days anyway? Besides the fact that a vacation is something you can enjoy now, while it might take years to save up for a down payment, the study suggests something different. In an attempt to maximize limited paid days off (on average ten a year), people are spending more time trying to plan that perfect vacation for those few sweet days.
“Planning a vacation shouldn’t be stressful, but because Americans take such little time off there is a lot of pressure to plan the perfect trip,” Eric Urbain, U.S. Marketing Director for liligo.com, told Condé Nast Traveler. “The fact that our survey revealed Americans are spending more time researching their travel plans than engaging in everyday activities like reading the news and cooking really reflects how important travel has become to our society.”
And it's clear that FOMO plays a role. One in seven Americans fear a better deal will pop up after they’ve booked their trip, spend more time researching the best deals for their trip than where to actually go on vacation, specifically choose their travel destination based on price, and reveal they would actually change their original travel plans if they found a better deal. This traveler mindset could be why Google Destination’s algorithm suggests possible places to visit based on where you are and what you want to pay. The company even noted that 70 percent of travelers surveyed by the company were not sure about exactly where they wanted to go, hence the recommendation function. And Scott Keyes of Scott's Cheap Flights revealed in the September 2 Travelogue podcast that many of his subscribers would be open to getting a good deal for a destination they weren't interested in instead of paying full price for a hot spot like London or Paris.
When it comes to planning that perfect trip, there is one thing that doesn’t fly for many Americans: layovers. Liligo's research also found that 38 percent of people would choose a ten-hour drive over a layover. Maybe they just haven’t checked out one of these 10 amazing airport lounges and spas or stopped in an airport that offers a free city tour.
Originally Posted Here
