US traveller sentiment rises above pre-recession high
Americans’ attitudes towards travel are now more positive than the benchmark score recorded just prior to the Great Recession, according to the latest travelhorizons survey of 2,300 active travellers. This milestone, according to officials, augurs well for the continued growth of the travel industry during the forthcoming summer travel season. The Traveler Sentiment Index (TSI), tracked every calendar quarter since March 2007, is a derivative of six factors that measure Americans’ attitudes towards travel and serves as a predictor of travel behaviour during the coming six months. While the overall TSI has been declining since last April, February marked the first time the TSI surpassed the benchmark score of 100 established in pre-recession March 2007. All six components of the TSI revealed gains in February, with the overall index increasing 10 points in February 2013 (100.8) compared to October 2012 (90.4). The perceived “affordability of travel”powered the score forward, having grown from 102.6 in October 2012 to 114.5 in February 2013. The six TSI factors include interest in travel, time for travel, personal finances available for travel, affordability of travel, quality of travel services and safety of travel. An estimated 57% of all US adults, or 136 million people, plan to take at least one leisure trip during the next six months. Business travel intentions also displayed a five-point jump in February, with fully 20% of all respondents intending to take at least one overnight business trip during the next six months – up from 15% in February 2012, and fully seven points from the 13% incidence first recorded in February 2009. This increase may signal the beginning of a robust recovery of demand for business travel services, barring any unforeseen disruption of the continued recovery of the US economy. (http://www.mmgyglobal.com)
