What to Expect from the 2015 Holiday Travel Season

It's almost that time of year again – the holiday travel season. As you probably already know, the holiday season is the busiest time of year for traveling. This year, 71% of Americans are planning to take at least one trip between Thanksgiving and New Year's, according to the Orbitz 2015 holiday survey. This is a 6% increase from last year's survey.

In their holiday survey, Orbitz breaks down what we can expect from the 2015 holiday travel season, including the top travel destinations, average prices, and best times to book.  According to the report, airfares are down 9% and hotel prices remain relatively flat, but as planes fill up over the next few weeks, air supply will start to decline and prices may increase. If you are planning on traveling over the holidays, here some important factors from the report to consider:

Thanksgiving:  The Wednesday before Thanksgiving tends to be the busiest travel date of the year. According to Orbitz, November 25 is the busiest day to travel for Thanksgiving this year, and November 30 is the least busy day.  The average cost for airfare to the top 10 destinations fell 9% from 2014 to $369. Hotel prices are an average of $181, up 5% from last year. The top 10 travel destinations for Thanksgiving are: Chicago, Orlando, Los Angeles, New York, Cancun, Las Vegas, Denver, San Francisco, Dallas and Washington D.C.

Christmas: December 23 is the busiest travel day for Christmas, and December 27 is the least busy. The average cost for airfare to the top destinations is $493, down 4% from 2014. The average hotel price is $201, a 2% increase from last year.The top 10 destinations for Christmas are: Los Angeles, Orlando, Cancun, Denver, Fort Lauderdale, San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Miami and Phoenix.

New Year's: Like Christmas and Thanksgiving, the busiest travel day for New Year's is the day before, December 30. The least busy day to travel is New Year's Day. The average price of airfare fell 12% to $416, with hotel prices costing an average of $229 (a 17% increase) to the top 10 travel destinations. The top destinations for New Year's are: Orlando, Cancun, New York, Los Angeles, Fort Lauderdale, Chicago, Miami, Las Vegas, San Francisco, and Denver.

If you will be traveling over the holidays, it's best to book your flight and hotel sooner rather than later. Last year, about 50% of travelers booked their Thanksgiving trips by October 20 and Christmas trips by November 13, according to Orbitz.com Senior Editor Jeanenne Tornatore. Along with booking your flights and hotels, you should also reserve a rental car and parking spot at an off-site airport parking service if need be, as they will fill up as the holiday season draws near.

For those traveling from the Bradley International Airport, choose Z Airport Parking for parking at the Hartford Airport. When you book with our parking service at the Bradley Airport, you are making a guaranteed parking reservation and receiving the most affordable rates and highest quality service. Visit us online to make your reservation. Happy travels!