Food, Home and Style

8 Vacation Spots: What’s Hot and Not in Recession

“Staycation” may be the buzzword of the recession thus far, but that doesn’t mean everyone is spending their holidays at home. With cheap Caribbean deals around and a surge in house-swapping, it’s seeming like the biggest post-recession change isn’t how much we’re traveling so much as where we’re traveling to.

Destinations like Hawaii, Mexico, and the Disney amusement parks all report that they’ve been hit hard by the downturn, even while the cruise industry and campgrounds report record numbers of tourists. We took a closer look some of summer’s most popular destinations to see what’s hot (and not)–so you can see where there might be bargains, or too many recession travelers.

Hawaii
Worldwide economic fears have diminished Hawaii’s tourism industry, with the state experiencing its lowest month for tourism in 18 years back in April and hotel occupancy rates dropping to 75 percent. To make matters worse, Hawaii is also suffering from a loss in big-spending Japanese tourists, who are reportedly staying away due to recession worries, travel costs, and swine flu fears. DOWN.

Disney Theme Parks
Overall attendance at Disney World has remained unchanged this year, and the number of guests visiting Disneyland in California has actually gone up. Unfortunately, budget-conscious families are spending less than ever once they get inside the parks, leading to a 19 percent drop in Disney’s theme-park profits and an 8 percent drop in Disney’s hotel occupancy rates. FLAT.

Cruises
The number of people taking cruises has actually grown during the recession, with 4 percent more people going on cruises in 2008 than the year before, according to a report by the Cruise Lines International Association. The overall rise has reportedly been buoyed by an increase in demand from European tourists, even though the industry’s “dominant market” remains cruises departing from ports in Florida. UP.

New York City
As if New York doesn’t already have enough to worry about, the City that Never Sleeps has seen far fewer tourists this year, with local officials projecting that the overall number of vacationers visiting the city will be down 6 percent—to 11.3 million—during the summer of 2009 compared to the same period in 2008. DOWN.

Campgrounds
As families look for cheaper places to stay during their travels, private campgrounds have gotten a big boost in visitors. Reservations made through the campground booking site ReserveAmerica.com have gone up 8 percent so far this year, thanks in part of the frugal nature of campground vacations, which cost an average of 21 to 67 percent less than the average “fly-drive-hotel vacation.” UP.

Mexico
It’s not just the recession that’s hurting Mexico’s tourism industry. Concerns over swine flu and drug cartels have scared off many travelers as well, which is one of the reasons why the local government in Mexico City has partnered with many of the country’s resorts to offer full health insurance to tourists who get sick or injured while on vacation in the country in hopes of bringing back anxious visitors. DOWN.

Destination Spas
Proving that there are some luxuries people are not willing to give up in a recession, the International Spa Association reports that trips to spas were up nearly 16 percent in 2008, due in part to the idea that spa vacations are seen as a form of “pampering” that people “deserve” rather than a luxury they can do without. It should be noted, however, that since statistics from the International Spa Association were gathered in 2008, they may not reflect the full impact of the recession in 2009. UP.

Europe
Even while popular European vacation destinations like Italy and France are seeing a drop in international visitors—down a total of 10 percent in the first four months 2009—Europe’s major cities are experiencing an increase in tourists from their own countries, many of whom are saving money by vacationing closer to home. FLAT.

Tags: spending, travel