At The Last Minute

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(ORLANDO, FL) -- Time is of the essence...a popular expression today for sure, yet one rarely heard in discussions about vacation planning. Yet it now appears to be a mantra embraced by the growing percentage of American leisure travelers who take "last minute" trips.

Given the frenetic pace of contemporary life it probably comes as no surprise that more Americans are taking "last minute" vacations. Simply coordinating schedules to get time away from work represents a greater obstacle than the actual cost of the trip for many travelers today. But who would have guessed that three out of every ten (27%) took a last minute trip last year? Equally surprising, who would have surmised they planned those trips an average of just six days prior to their departure?

Clearly, one of the market forces accelerating this trend is the growing use of "flash sales" by travel service suppliers. These impulsive offers, delivered through unsolicited emails, have become more commonplace during the past 12 months as suppliers have tried to liquidate what would otherwise be unsold inventory. Some of the deals are so irresistible it's no wonder they drive impulsive demand (fully one out of seven recipients of these unsolicited emails reports purchasing a travel service as a result). Yes, one might expect the recipients of these offers to book a weekend flight or hotel room on a whim, but a complete vacation package (38%) or a cruise (21%)? Unprecedented.

And, as revealed below, fully one out of four leisure travelers took a vacation in their local area as an alternative to vacationing in a destination that would have required more extensive travel (aka a "staycation") during the past year. This type of vacation appears to be yet another manifestation of the trend toward more impulsive vacation behavior:

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