Maui Second Most-Popular Travel Destination in US
Kahului, Maui. Photo courtesy of Hawaii Tourism Authority / Ron Garnett .
By Sonia Isotov
Yesterday, Travel Leaders Group revealed the results from its yearly Fall Travel Trends Survey and Maui is making waves as the second most popular domestic destination for the remainder of the year, behind Las Vegas – bumping ever-popular Orlando to number three.
According to 2012 data for travel between September 1 and the end of the year, Maui jumped three spots this year to rank second behind Las Vegas.
In addition, survey data pinpoints the average amount clients are spending on an airline ticket (per person). When asked “What is the average cost per airline ticket, per person you are booking for clients to Hawaii?” 56.3%of those polled indicated $700-999, while 21.2% indicated less than $700.
When travel agents were asked to compare overall 2012 travel bookings so far to 2011 at this time last year, a majority (52.1%) indicate that their bookings are higher and 28.8% indicate that they are the same as compared to a year ago. That’s a total 80.9% of Travel Leaders Group travel agents indicating year-to-date bookings are the same or better than at this time in 2011.
This survey was conducted by Travel Leaders Group from July 30 – August 23, 2012, and includes responses from 871 US-based travel agency owners, managers and frontline travel agents from the Travel Leaders brand, along with those affiliated with Travel Leaders Group’s Luxury Travel Network, Nexion, Results! Travel, Tzell Travel Group and Vacation.com units.
“What is most encouraging from an industry perspective is that 8 out of every 10 agents polled indicate their business is on par or better than last year at this time,” stated Travel Leaders Group CEO Barry Liben.
Kamaole Beach in Kihei. File Photo by Sonia Isotov.
“That says that our clients have the peace-of-mind to go explore – both close to home and internationally – despite the uncertainty in economic markets domestically and in Europe.”
Travel Leaders Group travel agents from across the US were asked to name the five top domestic and international destinations they’re booking for the remainder of the year. The following information and trends are based on actual booking data.
| Rank | Domestic Destinations | Percentage | 2011 Rank | |
| 1 | Las Vegas, NV | 44.7% | 1 | |
| 2 | Maui, HI | 37.8% | 5 | |
| 3 | Orlando, FL | 35.2% | 2 | |
| 4 | New York City, NY | 29.0% | 4 | |
| 5 | Honolulu, HI | 26.6% | 3 | |
| 6 | San Francisco, CA | 15.4% | 9 | |
| 7 | Washington, DC | 12.9% | 6 | |
| 8 | Chicago, IL | 12.6% | 7 | |
| 9 | Los Angeles, CA | 11.9% | 8 | |
| 10 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 11.0% | 16 | |
| Rank | International Destinations | Percentage | 2011 Rank | |
| 1 | CRUISE – Caribbean | 44.8% | 1 | |
| 2 | Cancun, Mexico | 32.6% | 2 | |
| 3 | CRUISE – Europe (Mediterranean) | 26.4% | 5 | |
| 4 | Playa del Carmen/Riviera Maya, Mexico* | 24.1% | 6/9 | |
| 5 | Rome, Italy | 21.1% | 4 | |
| 6 | London, England | 20.7% | 3 | |
| 7 | Punta Cana, Dominican Republic | 17.5% | 10 | |
| 8 | Montego Bay, Jamaica | 15.3% | 8 | |
| 9 | Paris, France | 14.8% | 7 | |
| 10 | CRUISE – Europe (River) | 11.3% | 12 | |
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