Brace yourself for an expensive summer travel season - The Points Guy

LTC Eugene Chu
..."March consumer price index data showed hotel rates jumped 8% from a year ago — still an increase, but well below the nearly 26% annual jumps seen earlier in the pandemic recovery. Hotel data provider STR anticipates U.S. hotel rates will increase by 2% this year, meaning rates will remain high.

Many hotel CEOs have already warned travelers that they shouldn’t hold out for deals, either.

Inflation has also pushed jet fuel prices to historical highs, which is one reason your summer flights might be so expensive. Demand continues to soar, labor costs are higher and there’s still limited capacity, at least compared to 2019, according to the Airlines Reporting Corporation.

In fact, ARC shows that flying to the top 10 summer travel destinations could cost you 54% more than it did in 2019 — and even 37% more than last year.

People are also booking further out, meaning that if you haven’t booked yet, what’s likely left are more expensive fares since the cheapest fare classes have already been snapped up.

The bottom line is that this year, regardless of where you’re going, you want to book your flights and hotels now before prices go even higher."...

Already feeling it. I have two overseas trips and three long US trips. Have booked some of the trips. Expensive!