Spring break: International bookings up 30% with many setting sights on Europe

More travelers are eyeing international destinations for spring break even as airfares rise faster than winter temperatures.  

According to a recent survey from the American Automobile Association (AAA), international travel bookings over spring break are up 30% over last year.

“We’ve seen a spike in international Spring Break bookings,” AAA Senior Vice President of Travel Paula Twidale said. “Families are making up for lost time.”

More specifically, the data underscored how “Americans are taking advantage of the strong U.S. dollar and the exchange rate in Europe,” Twidale added. 

Since last summer, the U.S. dollar has been nearly equal in value to the euro. The euro is now worth about $1.06. 

The top European destinations so far, according to AAA are:

• Paris, France;
• London, England;
• Amsterdam, Netherlands;
• Rome, Italy and
• Barcelona, Spain.

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Meanwhile, “travelers looking for warm weather are flocking to the Caribbean and Mexico or sailing to tropical destinations while enjoying the amenities of a cruise vacation.” 

This comes as ticket prices remain elevated compared to last year and pre-pandemic times, according to data from travel app Hopper. 

Hayley Berg, lead economist at travel app Hopper, told FOX Business that demand has already driven airfares on average 10% to 30% higher compared to pre-pandemic times.

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Prices to the most popular spring break destinations, such as Europe, the Caribbean Islands, Mexico and Central America, compared to 2022 and to pre-pandemic times are up “significantly,” Berg said. 

For instance, Europe is up about 15% compared to 2022, though that’s far below areas such as the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America, which are up about 60% versus last year and about 30% versus 2019.

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Prices are going to continue to climb as we get closer to the busy travel season. This isn’t good news for the 14% of U.S. adults that say they haven’t decided yet if they will travel for Spring Break, according to AAA’s survey.  

In fact, the “demand in Spring Break vacations signals a busy summer travel season,” AAA said, adding that travelers should already start looking into booking summer travel plans.