In a recent news release, TIA and YPartnership published findings on ‘Home-Based’ vacations (aka “staycations”). They found 14% of American leisure travelers took a staycation in the past 6 months and 9% expect to in the next 6 months. I’d guess the slight drop is due to the fact summer is over and kids are heading back to school. But there were some other insights into what is driving staycations and what they are doing…

In a surprising revelation, among those adults planning to take a home-based vacation during the next six months fully one out of five (22 percent, or 5.1 million adults) expects to stay in a local hotel, motel or resort at least one night on their “staycation.” This suggests that many Americans still plan to “get away” even if their destination is local. Lodging establishments and other tourism-related businesses will clearly benefit from these unexpected and previously-unreported expenditures.

“People taking ‘staycations’ are not necessarily entertaining themselves at home,” said Roger Dow, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Travel Industry Association. “On the contrary, many are participating in travel-related activities that generate significant revenues for restaurants, attractions, theme parks, as well as hotels and resorts.”

TIA and YPartnership article

I have nothing against local motels and hotels, and they are perfect for many types of travel; however, if you’re going to take off for a week (or even a 3 day weekend), it’s worth checking out a vacation rental. Enjoy the benefits of having private space, a kitchen, a dinning room and more. Not to mention, a vacation rental is typically less expensive per head than any hotel.