MINNEAPOLIS, April 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- As United States taxpayers ready for "tax day," Travel Leaders' latest survey reveals that over 57% of those polled who are receiving a tax refund will use at least part of  that money for leisure travel this year.  Also, 83% of individuals polled in Travel Leaders' nationwide consumer travel survey indicated that they will spend the same or more on leisure trips in 2011 as compared to last year.  This is the third consecutive year in which Travel Leaders has conducted an online consumer survey – which  complements its long history of providing detailed travel trends based on bookings and data gathered from hundreds of its travel experts from across the country.  This year's survey was conducted March 10 – April 10, 2011, and includes responses from 953 consumers throughout the U.S.

"It is clear that when Americans dream about travel, they dream big.  Australia continues to be the 'ultimate dream' international destination.  Perhaps the majority who indicated they will use tax refund money for travel could make that dream a reality this year," stated Roger E. Block, CTC, president of Travel Leaders Franchise Group, which includes locations from coast to coast.  "What is most encouraging from our latest survey is that an overwhelming majority (89%) indicated that they have already traveled or will be traveling for leisure this year, and it seems they are prepared to open their wallets a little more, if they need to – as 83% said they would be spending the same or more this year on travel.  At Travel Leaders, not only do we have the expertise and specializations to make grand trips – such as Australia – a reality, but we also have tools at our disposal, that consumers don't have access to, which can make any trip affordable and a great value."

Key Statistics and Findings:

Tax Refund - Money for Travel: A majority, 57.4%, of U.S. consumers responded "Yes" to the question "If you receive a tax refund this year, will you be using any part of that money for vacation travel?"

Leisure Travel Spending: 83% of those polled said they will spend the same or more on leisure travel in 2011 than they did last year.  Only 17% indicated they would be spending less on leisure travel this year.

Australia is the "Dream": When asked "What is your ultimate dream international destination?" the top destination selected was Australia – followed by Italy, Ireland, New Zealand and Mediterranean cruising, respectively.  When the same question was posed in 2009, the top five responses were: Australia (1), Italy (2), Greece (3), Tahiti (3), and Germany (5).

Leisure Travel – A Priority:

• A vast majority (89%) of consumers polled indicated that they have or will take at least one leisure trip in 2011.
• Nearly 62% indicated they have already taken at least one trip; 22% have already taken multiple vacation trips this year.
• When asked "Is the total number of leisure trips you anticipate taking in 2011 more, the same or less than last year?" nearly 87% indicated that they will take the same or more trips this year. (35.6% said "more trips," 51.1% said "the same number," and only 13.3% said "fewer trips")

Top States Visited: When asked, "Which U.S. state(s) have you traveled to or will you travel to in 2011?" the top response was Florida followed by California and New York. (In 2010, the top three were: Florida, California and Wisconsin.)

Traveling Away from Home:  We asked "For your leisure trip(s) did you or will you ..."

(Participants could choose all that apply.)

Travel Leaders is part of Travel Leaders Group – which is a North American travel company that generates gross travel sales in excess of $14 billion. Travel Leaders Group is a leader in both the retail travel agency space and corporate travel, and it consistently ranks as one of the top travel companies nationwide. Most recently, Travel Leaders Group was again named among the Top 10 on the Travel Weekly Power List, #1 on the Business Travel News Business 2010 Travel Survey and #1 on Entrepreneur's latest Franchise 500 list of full-service travel agency franchise businesses.

When your journey includes us, you travel better. To find the Travel Leaders location nearest you, go to www.Travelleaders.com or call 888-206-TRIP (8747).

Travel Leaders is transforming travel with a name that boldly embodies our commitment to our vacation and business travel clients via a progressive approach toward each unique travel experience. As one of America's top ten-ranked travel companies, Travel Leaders has assisted millions of travelers through our strong roots – the former Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates, TraveLeaders and Tzell Travel Group joined together in 2008 to form one of the industry's fastest-growing and robust networks of travel agents. Travel Leaders Franchise Group can trace its beginnings to 1984 as the franchise system "Ask Mr. Foster Travel," which itself was North America's first travel agency chain established in 1888.

SOURCE Travel Leaders