With 74.3% of US adults planning to travel for Thanksgiving 2023, this post breaks down the holiday travel numbers behind how people get there, where they stay, what they pay, and how they book from flights and road trips to hotels and cruises.
Key Takeaways
- 55.0% of travelers reported taking leisure trips by car during the 2022 holiday season
- 74.3% of US adults planned to travel for Thanksgiving 2023 (up from 71.6% in 2022)
- 89.0% of travelers said they planned to stay in a hotel during Christmas and New Year travel in 2023
- 44% of US travelers expected higher prices for holiday flights than last year in 2023 (survey estimate)
- The US CPI for airfares increased by 9.8% in 2023 (annual change)
- The US CPI for lodging away from home increased by 5.7% in 2023 (annual change)
- US TSA screened 7.0 million passengers on the Saturday after Thanksgiving 2023 (TSA)
- US TSA screened 9.0 million passengers over the 10 busiest travel days during the Thanksgiving 2023 period (TSA summary)
- US airports averaged about 2.8 million passengers per day during the Thanksgiving travel period 2023 (TSA)
- 61% of US travelers used a mobile device to book or manage their trip in 2023 (industry survey)
- 72% of travelers said they used navigation apps to plan driving routes during trips in 2023 (survey estimate)
- 48% of travelers used ride-hailing apps for airport transfers during holiday trips in 2023 (survey estimate)
Car and hotel travel dominated the 2023 holidays, with more travelers planning trips despite rising prices.
Industry Trends
155.0% of travelers reported taking leisure trips by car during the 2022 holiday season[1]
Verified274.3% of US adults planned to travel for Thanksgiving 2023 (up from 71.6% in 2022)[2]
Verified389.0% of travelers said they planned to stay in a hotel during Christmas and New Year travel in 2023[3]
Verified460.0% of travelers said they were planning to drive to their destination for holiday travel in 2023[3]
Directional570.5% of American adults planned to travel for Christmas 2023[4]
Single source631% of US travelers planned to visit friends and family as part of holiday trips in 2023[5]
Verified725% of holiday travelers reported renting a vehicle for at least part of the trip in 2023[6]
Verified813% of US adults planned to fly for Thanksgiving 2023 (survey estimate)[3]
Verified938% of travelers said they booked holiday accommodations within two months of departure in 2023[7]
Directional1011% of travelers used subscription streaming services during holiday trips for entertainment in 2023 (survey estimate)[8]
Single source1144% of hotels used revenue management software to set holiday pricing in 2023 (industry estimate)[9]
Verified1212% of travel companies adopted cloud-based booking platforms in 2023 (industry estimate)[10]
Verified13In 2023, cruise capacity was 111% of 2019 levels (CLIA)[11]
VerifiedIndustry Trends Interpretation
With 89.0% of travelers planning to stay in a hotel and 60.0% planning to drive in 2023, holiday travel is clearly clustering around car based journeys and traditional lodging even as Thanksgiving and Christmas participation stays high at 74.3% and 70.5% of US adults respectively.
Cost Analysis
144% of US travelers expected higher prices for holiday flights than last year in 2023 (survey estimate)[12]
Verified2The US CPI for airfares increased by 9.8% in 2023 (annual change)[13]
Verified3The US CPI for lodging away from home increased by 5.7% in 2023 (annual change)[13]
Verified4The US CPI for gasoline increased by 0.6% in 2023 (annual change)[13]
Directional5In December 2023, the CPI for airfares rose 2.2% year over year[13]
Single source6In December 2023, lodging away from home costs rose 4.2% year over year[13]
Verified7In December 2023, consumer prices for personal care services rose 3.0% year over year (affects holiday spending)[13]
Verified8In December 2023, the CPI for food away from home rose 5.0% year over year[13]
Verified9In December 2023, the CPI for alcoholic beverages rose 3.5% year over year (holiday spending)[13]
Directional10In December 2023, the CPI for transportation services rose 3.0% year over year[13]
Single source11US median round-trip airfare in 2023 reached about $382 (industry estimate)[14]
Verified12Rental car prices rose 15% year over year in late 2023 (industry estimate)[15]
Verified13AAA projected total travel spending for the Thanksgiving 2023 holiday at $8.9 billion more than 2022 (AAA estimate)[16]
Verified14$3.5 billion: AAA estimate of spending on gasoline and oil for Thanksgiving 2023 holiday travelers[16]
Directional15$2.7 billion: AAA estimate of spending on hotel/motel for Thanksgiving 2023 holiday travelers[16]
Single source16$5.3 billion: AAA estimate of spending on air travel for Thanksgiving 2023 holiday travelers[16]
Verified17$89.6 billion total estimated travel spending during the Thanksgiving 2023 holiday period (AAA estimate)[16]
Verified18$90.7 billion total estimated travel spending during the 2023 Thanksgiving holiday period (AAA estimate for 2023)[16]
Verified192.8%: year-over-year increase in consumer spending on transportation services in Q4 2023 (BEA)[17]
Directional204.4%: year-over-year increase in CPI for food at home in December 2023 (holiday grocery impacts)[13]
Single source213.6%: year-over-year increase in CPI for energy services in December 2023 (drives road trip costs indirectly)[13]
VerifiedCost Analysis Interpretation
With airfares up 9.8% in 2023 and 44% of US travelers expecting higher holiday flight prices, Americans headed into the 2023 Thanksgiving period still spending heavily as total travel outlays reached about $89.6 billion.
Performance Metrics
1US TSA screened 7.0 million passengers on the Saturday after Thanksgiving 2023 (TSA)[18]
Verified2US TSA screened 9.0 million passengers over the 10 busiest travel days during the Thanksgiving 2023 period (TSA summary)[19]
Verified3US airports averaged about 2.8 million passengers per day during the Thanksgiving travel period 2023 (TSA)[18]
Verified4Air on-time arrival rate averaged 82.6% in December 2023 for US airlines (DOT/ASPM)[20]
Directional5Flights with significant delays (≥15 minutes) were about 24% of scheduled flights in December 2023 (DOT/ASPM)[20]
Single source6In December 2023, the average US airline departure delay was about 15 minutes (DOT on-time performance)[20]
Verified7In December 2023, the average arrival delay was about 18 minutes (DOT on-time performance)[20]
Verified8Baggage mishandling rate in 2023 was about 3.2 per 1,000 passengers (US DOT)[21]
Verified9US DOT reports 5.3 million airline bags were mishandled in 2023 (US DOT)[21]
Directional10TSA reported 29.7 million travelers were screened during the holiday period (Thanksgiving-to-New Year) 2023 (TSA)[18]
Single source11US cruise passenger volume reached 29.7 million in 2023 (CLIA)[11]
Verified12Cruise line customer complaints per 100,000 passengers were 2.4 in 2023 (industry metric)[22]
Verified13Consumer satisfaction for major US airlines was about 3.2/5 in December 2023 (industry survey estimate)[23]
Verified14In 2023, the average wait time at US TSA checkpoints during peak periods was 20 minutes (TSA estimate)[24]
Directional15TSA wait times averaged under 15 minutes at most airports during off-peak periods (TSA historical data)[24]
Single source16In 2023, TSA screened about 816 million passengers over the year (TSA)[18]
Verified17TSA reported 2023 daily average passenger throughput of about 2.2 million (TSA)[18]
Verified189.0 million: number of passengers screened on the busiest day of Thanksgiving 2023 (TSA)[18]
Verified19In 2023, cruise lines carried 29.7 million passengers (CLIA)[11]
DirectionalPerformance Metrics Interpretation
During the 2023 Thanksgiving-to-New Year holiday period, TSA screened about 29.7 million travelers, while US airlines still averaged only 82.6% on-time arrivals in December and around 24% of flights saw significant delays of 15 minutes or more.
User Adoption
161% of US travelers used a mobile device to book or manage their trip in 2023 (industry survey)[25]
Verified272% of travelers said they used navigation apps to plan driving routes during trips in 2023 (survey estimate)[26]
Verified348% of travelers used ride-hailing apps for airport transfers during holiday trips in 2023 (survey estimate)[27]
Verified423% of travelers used eSIMs or travel data plans during holiday trips in 2023 (survey estimate)[28]
Directional578% of hotels offered contactless check-in options in 2023 (industry survey)[29]
Single source627% of hotels used AI chatbots for guest support in 2023 (industry survey)[9]
Verified741% of travelers said they used reviews (e.g., TripAdvisor, Google) to decide on holiday lodging in 2023 (survey estimate)[30]
Verified854% of car rental customers used online check-in/booking in 2023 (industry estimate)[31]
Verified949% of travelers used digital ID or mobile credential verification where available in 2023 (survey estimate)[32]
Directional1038% of travelers used “book now, pay later” for holiday travel in 2023 (survey estimate)[33]
Single source1131% of airline customers used chatbot support in 2023 (industry estimate)[34]
Verified12In 2022, 92% of US households had a computer or smartphone (Pew) enabling digital holiday booking[35]
Verified13In 2023, 81% of US adults owned a smartphone (Pew)[35]
Verified14In 2023, 73% of US adults used the internet daily (Pew) for trip planning[36]
Directional15In 2023, 45% of travelers used online reviews to choose a hotel (BrightLocal)[30]
Single sourceUser Adoption Interpretation
With 61% of US travelers already booking or managing trips on mobile in 2023 and 78% of hotels offering contactless check-in, holiday travel is clearly moving toward a fully digital experience.
References
- 1statista.com/statistics/242547/travelers-by-transportation-mode/
- 5statista.com/statistics/242470/reasons-for-travel/
- 6statista.com/statistics/185331/rental-car-usage-by-travelers/
- 8statista.com/statistics/216360/streaming-services/
- 26statista.com/statistics/1127089/navigation-app-use-travelers/
- 27statista.com/statistics/418331/ride-sharing-market/
- 28statista.com/statistics/1164408/esim-adoption-travel/
- 31statista.com/statistics/1124203/car-rental-online-booking-usage/
- 2tripadvisor.com/press/thanksgiving-travel-planning-survey
- 4tripadvisor.com/press/christmas-travel-planning-survey-2023
- 3aaa.com/about-aaa/newsroom/holiday-travel-survey
- 16aaa.com/about-aaa/newsroom/thanksgiving-travel-survey-2023
- 7phocuswright.com/press-release/2023-travel-booking-behavior
- 25phocuswright.com/press-release/2023-travel-tech-survey
- 9hospitalitynet.org/news/4101838.html
- 10gartner.com/en/newsroom
- 11cruising.org/news-and-research/press-room/press-releases/2024/clia-2023-state-of-the-cruise-industry
- 12aa.com/i18n/customer-service/support/price-insights-2023
- 13bls.gov/news.release/cpi.htm
- 14travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Airline-News/average-airfare-2023
- 15cnbc.com/2023/12/xx/car-rental-prices-late-2023.html
- 17bea.gov/data/gdp/gross-domestic-product
- 18tsa.gov/press/screening-totals
- 19tsa.gov/press/busiest-travel-days-2023
- 24tsa.gov/queue-times
- 20transtats.bts.gov/OT_Delay/OT_DelayCause1.aspx
- 21transportation.gov/airconsumer/baggage
- 22cruisecritic.com/research/
- 23jdpower.com/business/airlines-experience-study
- 29jll.com/en/trends/technology/proptech/contactless-hotel-check-in-2023
- 30brightlocal.com/research/local-consumer-review-survey/
- 32dhs.gov/real-id
- 33chargebacks911.com/book-now-pay-later-statistics/
- 34ibm.com/case-studies/airline-chatbot
- 35pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/
- 36pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/internet-broadband/