Americans are canceling travel at an unprecedented rate
because of Covid-19, but many are still holding onto plans for spring and summer
travel.
An Omnitrak poll of 2,505 adults who have traveled at least
once in the past year shows 29% have canceled leisure trips and 12% have canceled
business travel since January.
However, only 8% with plans to travel between March and
August said they have canceled leisure trips, while 6% said they have canceled
business trips because of the pandemic.
Still, to maximize a rebound in travel as the pandemic
eases, the survey indicates consumers will need access to better and more
reliable information.
On a scale of 1 to10 -- with 1 being not at all satisfied --
travelers rated the timeliness of pandemic information at a mean of 6.7 and
reliability at a mean of 6.5.
While 59% said the top factor in their decision-making is
advice from national health officials and scientists, just 29% said their
decisions would be based on advice from national political leaders.
“As the pandemic will clearly affect U.S. travel sentiment
for some time to come, it’s important that the travel industry help all
Americans to make sound decisions based on current science-based public health
information,” said Omnitrak CEO Patricia M. Loui.