[Music] Summer vacations are usually a pretty Big ticket item for most families but This year it could put an even bigger Dent in your wallet the economy and Inflation to the list of very important Issues for Americans in a recent CBS News poll more than half said gas prices Are now a hardship or difficult CBS News Senior Transportation correspondent Chris Van Cleave has more on how Inflation is impacting people's summer Travel plans Chris good morning Chris You look like you're already on vacation What's going on listen if you've got to Work you got got to take the vacation to You sometimes right and Marie and Lindsay good to be with you um inflation Though is is no joke I mean Americans Are feeling the impact but still they About 70% say they are taking a summer Vacation anyway and what they're going To find when that bill comes it's going To look a lot like it did last year but There are some real pain Points life a beach for the mclaughin Family this week getting an early start On the holiday weekend they drove a Couple of EXT hours from Charlotte to Virginia Beach when they spotted a deal Get a break from working and stuff and Then it's like just a family thing you Know you enjoy just having that time to With each other just focusing on each
Other so yeah away from it all compared To Memorial Day 2023 the overall cost of Travel is actually down slightly hotel Prices inched down while airfare Descended nearly 6% and rental car costs Slowed by 10% but vacationing in 2024 Still cost you 15% more than before the Pandemic Sally French tracks vacation Inflation for nerd wallet what we are Seeing is that prices are up pre Pandemic but what's interesting is that Travel prices are not up as high as the Overall rate a big factor is airf fares And not seeing huge price increases but This year many airlines raised the fees On checked bags that could be $5 and Then multiply that times two for your Round trip multiply that times four for Your family of four and you're seeing That the cost of travel actually does Feel like it's going up even if Individual prices are going down going Up is the cost of entertainment doing Things while on vacation Rose 3.4% and All those meals out will cost you more This summer and nearly 30% more than 2019 a lot of people won't Budget Restaurant price is when they're making That initial vacation plan they're Budgeting out the price of their hotel And their airfare with 38.4 million Americans expected to drive to their Memorial Day getaway gas prices have Been dropping for the last month now
Hovering around 4 cents more than last Year most of the summer this year could Be very close to last year more Affordable gas prices prices well below Their records that we saw in 2022 and Not a bad time for Americans to hit the Road so some ways you can say Flexibility is key both in when you Travel and where you travel if you're Able to leave on non peak days like say A Saturday instead of Thursday or Friday The Peak Travel days for a long weekend You can save some money that way on Airfare the other thing is be flexible In your destination you know we looked At where we would do this story from it Would have cost a lot more to be in South Florida on one of their beaches Than it was to stay here in Virginia Beach so if you just want a beach you Maybe go to a a less popular Less in Demand destination you get the sun you Get the sand you get the surf and maybe You get a smaller Bill the other thing Guys and this is a mistake I make in Fact our travel expert called me out About it hoarding those travel points Those credit card points it's a bad plan She says use them as you get them to cut Your travel costs because the only Guarantee with those points is they Become less valuable as time goes on Yeah I didn't even think about that Actually yeah you less bang for your
Buck essentially so this weekend is Expected to be one of the busiest travel Weekends in recent years what should People Know well we know that today and Tomorrow are going to be very busy at Airports perhaps record setting so at Airport checkpoints and they're the Busiest days to drive so if you're if You're getting on the road today or Tomorrow avoid basically noon to 700 P.m. uh to for the drive leave in the Morning leave in the evening but that Middle of the day you've got folks that Are heading on their destination and you Got people that are still working uh so That's going to be a lot of traffic in Some places you may see double the Traffic volumes so avoid that at the Airport you know there's going to be a Lot of people at the checkpoint so plan Ahead if you can the little things like Maybe you get your wallet out get your Keys get everything your phone put those Into your bag ahead of time while you're In line as opposed to when you're at the Counter waiting to put the stuff on the The Machine the person fumbling through Their wall and trying to find their License oh my goodness or they got like Complicated shoes that are hard to take Off and put back on come on people we Know how this works now by now anyways
Use your time in line wisely good advice Uh Chris Van Cleave on vacation work Thank you very much
