Does it cost too much to travel?
For people like Tim Plyant, the answer is yes. This summer, he plans to avoid travel entirely -- it's just too expensive.
"I can’t believe what they’re charging," says Plyant, an architect from Austin, Texas.
He's especially upset about the soaring cost of food at the airport. "I’m on an expense account and I still have a hard time procuring food at these prices," he says.
The cost of travel has risen by 23 percent since 2019, according to the U.S. Travel Association. Affordability affects everyone, but it's a particular problem for young people. A poll by EF Go Ahead Tours found that 72 percent of Gen Z and Millennials say the cost of travel is too high. The likely culprits? Inflation and other non-travel expenses have made it increasingly difficult to pay for a vacation.
"Nearly every part of the journey, from flights and hotels to everyday add-ons, comes with surprise fees and fluctuating prices," says Melissa DaSilva, Trafalgar's deputy CEO. "Many travelers are waiting longer to book, hunting for the lowest fare, and looking for more price certainty up front."
Source: Oysterlink
How expensive is travel?
I could show you a series of graphs with airfares, hotel rates and gas prices to illustrate the rising cost of travel. One of the most dramatic would be the surge in average U.S. hotel rates, from $103 a night in 2020 to $162 a night in 2025, an increase of almost 58 percent.
But there's a bigger picture. It's not just the base fares and gas prices, but a combination of the destination, your travel preferences -- and the extras the travel industry throws at you when you arrive
And lately, there have been a lot of extras.
Dave Dzurick, a project manager from Tucson, Ariz., says he would not travel at all if his kids didn't live on the other side of the country.
"Airlines have removed any vestige of comfort," he complains. "A checked bag and a seat assignment used to be part of the ticket -- now you have to pay extra for it. At least they're not charging to use the bathrooms … yet."
In other words, the base prices tell only part of the story. It's also the surcharges that few people talk about that combine to make travel less affordable.
So what's the answer to the question: How expensive is travel? For many Americans, it's just too expensive.
Maybe the travel industry has lost touch with its customers
I'm always on the road, and I have a chance to see this from a different perspective. Sure, I get to pay some of the crazy prices everyone else does. Like Plyant, I'm outraged by the cost of airport food, and not just in the States. I spent more than $30 on two sandwiches in Bangkok recently. Come on!
But I also get to talk to airline executives, hotel owners and vacation rental managers to get their points of view. And they're honestly perplexed when people don't fork over hundreds of dollars a night for their products. They seem to forget that inflation has eaten up a lot of their customers' disposable income.
These industry leaders have cut their products to a shell of what they once were. Airline tickets, which once included a carry-on bag, a checked bag, a seat assignment and a meal, are now stripped-down versions of their former selves. The seats have shrunk, and you pay extra for everything, sometimes even for a carry-on item. Some of the hotels I've visited lately don't change your towels and sheets or clean your room every day, and have also eliminated amenities like soap and lotion. And they're charging much more than they used to (see chart).
I think large parts of the travel industry have lost touch with their customers. They're charging more for less and they don't understand the economic realities their customers are facing.
Can you still travel affordably?
Fortunately, there are still ways of traveling without breaking the bank.
- Buy in bulk. That's the idea behind companies like EF Go Ahead Tours, which caters to a younger crowd, and Trafalgar, a tour operator that has a more mature client base. Buy your flights, hotel rooms and meals as part of a package, and you can save money.
- Choose a company that gets it. For example, airlines like Turkish Airlines, Qatar Airways, and Emirates often include a checked bag in their economy class fares. I've also come to appreciate brands like Holiday Inn and Hilton Garden Inn for having a quality product at a fair price.
- Zig when everyone else zags. If you're thinking about traveling during the upcoming spring break and summer travel season, here's my advice: Don't do it. It's open season on travelers' wallets. The industry knows it has you over a barrel, and it will try to extract the highest prices and give you the lowest levels of service. Instead, travel during the shoulder season and choose your destination carefully.
It's a shame this is happening. Travel used to be a reward -- a chance to unwind, reconnect, and explore. But for some Americans, it’s become an unaffordable luxury. The only question is, at what point will we reach the breaking point, when people just refuse to go anywhere?
I suspect we're closer to it than anyone thinks.
Christopher Elliott is an author, consumer advocate, and journalist. He founded Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps solve consumer problems. He publishes Elliott Confidential, a travel newsletter, and the Elliott Report, a news site about customer service. If you need help with a consumer problem, you can reach him here or email him at chris@elliott.org.
