SAN FRANCISCO, July 16, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Now more than ever, consumers crave quick, bite-sized experiences to keep up with their fast-paced lifestyles, and travel is no exception. Nearly all Americans (90%) prefer short getaways of three nights or less vs. a longer vacation, with Millennials in particular fueling the dramatic rise of the quick getaway trend, according to a new survey by online travel site Hotwire®*.
Even more notably, Hotwire found it's not just short trip durations that are trending amongst younger travelers. Survey results revealed that Millennials have no problem waiting until the last minute to book their travels, embracing both short booking windows and short trips with spontaneous, 2-3 night "quickies." In the past year, an overwhelming 84% of survey respondents between the ages of 23 to 38 have booked a trip one week or less out from their departure day, and 40% say they have booked the same day. However, not everyone is as spontaneous as this generation -- the survey reveals nearly 1 in 4 Americans have yet to take a spontaneous trip. As experts in last-minute travel, Hotwire wants to make it easy for everyone to "make it a quickie," and has ranked the country's best cities for a 72 hour or less getaway.
To create the "America's Best Cities for a Quickie Index," Hotwire analyzed more than 10,000 internal and external data points across 250 cities based on three factors: Best Bang for Your Buck (value-20%), Ease of Arrival (convenience-20%) and Things to Do (leisure-60%) to identify the top major, mid-size, small town, and itty-bitty cities that make it easy to get in and out while still finding great last-minute deals.
America's Best Cities for a Quickie Index - Top 40
Major Metropolises
Population: 600,000+
1. Las Vegas, NV 2. Los Angeles, CA 2. San Diego, CA 4. Houston, TX 5. Dallas, TX 6. Philadelphia, PA 7. New York, NY 8. San Francisco, CA 9. Washington, D.C. 10. Austin, TX
Mid-Size Must-Sees
Population: 599,999 - 300,000
1. Atlanta, GA 2. Miami, FL 3. Tampa, FL 4. St. Louis, MO 5. New Orleans, LA 6. Minneapolis, MN 7. Cincinnati, OH 8. Milwaukee, WI 9. Pittsburgh, PA 10. Albuquerque, NM
Small Town Favorites
Population: 299,999 - 150,000
1. Orlando, FL 2. Richmond, VA 3. Boise, ID 3. Salt Lake City, UT 5. Reno, NV 5. Chattanooga, TN 7. Madison, WI 8. Birmingham, AL 9. Springfield, MO 10. Spokane, WA
Itty Bitty Cities
Population: <150,000
1. Newport Beach, CA 2. Branson, MO 3. Charleston, SC 4. Sarasota, FL 5. Savannah, GA 6. Asheville, NC 7. Palm Springs, CA 8. Santa Fe, NM 9. Wilmington, DE 10. Monterey, CA
What Makes A Great Quickie City? When it came to ranking the best cities for a "quickie," these top 40 cities scored big in the following categories **:
Best Bang for Your Buck - Value (20%):
High hotel demand
Lowest average hotel daily rate
Lowest average airfare ticket price
Ease of Arrival - Convenience (20%):
Short flight time (number of flights from top 50 U.S. airports that are 3 hours or less)
Short drive time (number of top 50 U.S. metro areas within 250 miles)
Shortest distance from airport to city center / downtown
Things to Do - Leisure (60%):
Most number of bars and restaurants
Most things to do (sites and attractions)
Least number of rainy days
"We love that people are becoming more flexible when it comes to booking travel, and that travelers are getting more comfortable with the idea that you don't have to plan in advance to save money, since the opposite it true!" said Neha Parikh, president, Hotwire. "The typical Hotwire customer is super savvy and spontaneous because they know there are incredible last-minute deals to be found. In fact, more than 70% of Hotwire in-app bookings are within one day of departure! That's why the goal of our Make it a Quickie campaign is to share with more people how simple it is to get away on an unexpected, amazing trip, for much less than they thought."
Hotwire is known for inspiring last-minute travel and has collaborated with 21 of its top destinations on the "America's Best" Index to create custom "quickie" itineraries to help guide travelers to the must-see's and must do's in each city, including locally recommended restaurants, bars, attractions, transportation and a few hidden gems to make the most of their one, two, or three day getaway.
Ready for a "quickie" trip? Hotwire's everyday Hot Rate® deals offer one-of-a-kind savings by revealing the hotel name after you book, getting you 4-star hotels at 2-star prices. Hot Rate deals are also available for car rentals.
For more information on how to "Make it a Quickie," or to view the complete city index and custom itineraries, visit quickie.hotwire.com.
About Hotwire Hotwire is a leading discount travel site. Launched in 2000, Hotwire, Inc. was one of the first online travel sites to work with suppliers directly to book unsold inventory. By simply hiding the brand name, Hotwire can offer customers deep savings on hotel rooms, rental cars, and flights.
Hotwire is an operating company within Expedia Group. For more information, visit http://www.hotwire.com.
*Survey Methodology The Hotwire Quickie Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research (www.wakefieldresearch.com) among 1,000 nationally representative US adults ages 18+ between May 28th and May 31st, 2019, using an email invitation and an online survey. Quotas have been set to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the US adult population ages 18+. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. For the interviews conducted in this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.
**Index Methodology Hotwire examined more than 10,000 internal and external data points across 250 cities in the U.S. based on factors important to making a successful "quickie," including value, convenience, and leisure. Each factor consists of three subcategories that were ranked on a scale of 1-5, allowing each category to receive a maximum of 15 total points. Leveraging the different rankings across all three categories, we created a weighted index to determine which cities had the highest ranking across all variables. The total score was weighted by the following: value (20%), convenience (20%), and leisure (60%). The total score was calculated by multiplying the weighted composite number by 10,000. Value score takes into account Hotwire's booking demand, average daily rates for lodging, and average ticket prices for flights. Convenience score is based on the number of flights from top 50 U.S. airports that are 3 hours or less to the destination city, number of top 50 U.S. cities within 250 miles, and number of miles from the airport to the city center. Leisure score is derived from the number of bars and restaurants, number of things to do, based on TripAdvisor listings, and the least number of rainy days a city has in a year. Based on these factors, this index identified the best large (Major Metropolises), medium (Mid-Size Must-Sees), small (Small Town Favorites) and micro (Itty Bitty Cities) cities in the nation for travelers to make it a quickie.
Jina Michael-Smith Citizen Relations for Hotwire [email protected] (310) 698-9009
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