Pauline Frommer, publisher of Frommer’s Travel Guides, examines the factors contributing to increased Labor Day travel costs and offers strategies for budget-conscious travelers.
Travelers heading out for Labor Day weekend, the final major holiday of summer, are encountering elevated prices for flights and accommodations, according to AAA and travel expert Pauline Frommer.
Booking data from AAA indicates that domestic airfare has risen 2% compared to the previous year, with round-trip tickets averaging $750. Fares to the holiday weekend’s most sought-after domestic destinations have climbed nearly 20%, reaching an average of $790.
Hotel rates are also trending upward, with domestic bookings increasing 9% and international hotel bookings rising 12% compared to last Labor Day weekend, according to AAA.
“We are seeing prices ticking up for airfares most definitely, but also for hotels, for rental cars, for cruise ships,” Pauline Frommer, publisher of Frommer’s Travel Guides, told FOX Business.
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AAA booking data shows domestic airfare is up 2% compared with last year, averaging $750 for a round-trip ticket. (Elijah Nouvelage/AFP via Getty Images)
Frommer identified higher fuel prices linked to the conflict in Iran as one contributing factor.
Current market trends indicate that drivers may face higher gasoline costs this Labor Day weekend compared to the previous year, according to AAA.
Frommer also noted that airlines, hotels, and other travel companies are increasingly leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to more accurately predict what customers are willing to pay.
“Everyone is using this new technology to better understand or to better test what they think the customer will pay,” she said.
Seattle, Orlando, Boston, Denver, and New York rank as AAA’s top domestic destinations for Labor Day weekend, while Rome, Vancouver, London, Dublin, and Paris lead the international destination list.
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Fares to the holiday weekend’s most popular domestic destinations are nearly 20% higher, averaging $790. (iStock)
However, not all travel categories have seen price increases.
AAA reported that international airfare has declined 4% year over year. Cruises departing from U.S. ports are 4% less expensive, averaging $2,700 per booking, according to AAA.
For travelers with scheduling flexibility beyond the holiday weekend, Frommer emphasized that traveling during off-peak periods remains the most reliable strategy for reducing expenses.
“The best way to save money is always to travel when nobody else is,” she said. “The first two weeks in December is one of the cheapest times of the year to travel almost anywhere.”
She also suggested that some travelers may secure lower fares by clearing their browser cookies and using a virtual private network (VPN) to mask their browsing history during the booking process.
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Seattle is among AAA’s top domestic destinations for Labor Day weekend. (Juan Mabromata/AFP via Getty Images)
Frommer added that travelers can achieve additional savings by selecting destinations with a lower overall cost of living.
“Usually, if the cost of living is lower in the destination you’re thinking of visiting, the cost of travel will be lower, too,” she said.
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