Business travel slowing
While spending on group travel such as meetings and conventions bounced back in 2010 and 2011, the Global Business Travel Association expects uncertainty in the economy to result in a spending slowdown for meetings travel next year.
The association projects groups and meetings travel spend to grow at 3.5 percent in 2012, about half as fast as the expected 6.8 percent growth this year.
Overall business travel will maintain its upward trajectory in 2012, but a stagnant U.S. economy is driving increasing corporate uncertainty and leading to projections of slower U.S. business travel spending growth next year, the association estimated. It expects total travel spending to increase 6.9 percent this year from 2010, dropping back to a 4.3 percent growth rate in 2012, with much of that the result of price increases on items like airfare and hotels.
“Companies are still investing in travel because they have become smarter and more conscious about the level of business travel that is critical to driving growth,” said Michael McCormick, CEO of Alexandria, Va.-based Global Business Travel Association, in a prepared statement. “They recognize where they cut back too much during the recession and won”™t make the same mistakes twice.”
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September hospitality figures decline
After eight consecutive monthly gains, employment in the travel industry fell by 10,000 jobs in September to some 7.5 million in total, according to a U.S. Travel Association analysis of U.S. Department of Labor figures.
Through the first nine months of the year, the U.S. travel industry added 94,000 jobs; on a year-over-year basis as of August, New York had added nearly 19,000 leisure and hospitality jobs, but Connecticut”™s leisure and hospitality industry was down slightly from a year ago.
“The fact that employment in the travel industry has expanded at a pace 60 percent faster than the rest of the economy highlights the fact that travel in the U.S., whether by domestic or international persons, has been an important force in 2011 U.S. job creation,” said David Huether, senior vice president of economics and research for the U.S. Travel Association, in a prepared statement.
Priceline: 4 percent hike in holiday travel
Due to some of the biggest U.S. airlines cutting back on flights earlier this year, the national average for Thanksgiving airfares is up 4 percent this year, according to Priceline.com Inc.
Norwalk-based Priceline.com calculated the average airfares for Thanksgiving and Christmas based on published prices of airline tickets booked by its customers between July 1 and Oct. 4.
“It”™s always possible that travelers may balk at higher airfares and airlines will respond with sales,” said Priceline.com spokesman Brian Ek, in a prepared statement. “However, with ticket inventories already reduced, that”™s not likely to happen. Travelers who want to go somewhere over the holiday season might want to think about locking in their tickets before fares start to rise and seats are taken.”
