Travel Industry Association of America (TIA)

www.tia.org
Study Reveals Singles Take 27 Percent Of All U.S. Trips
|

Washington, DC � January 2003 � Single households generated 152 million trips in the U.S. in 2001, according to a new study by the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) entitled Travel Through the Life Stages. By definition, Single households are comprised of persons who are single that may live alone or with a roommate. They do not necessarily take trips alone. Single traveling households account for 32 percent of all U.S. households and they generate 27 percent of all domestic trips. TIA�s study also compares the travel characteristics of Singles to two other life stage groups: Couples and Parents.

TIA�s study further segments the Singles category as follows: Young Singles (ages 18-34), Middle Singles (ages 35-54), Older Working Singles (age 55+ and employed) and Older Retired Singles (age 55+ and retired).

Facts About Young Singles

With an average age of 29, this group generated 47.1 million trips in 2001. Most (84%) of these trips are taken by Gen Xers between the ages of 25 and 34.
Many (39%) Young Single trips are short getaways lasting one to two nights.
26 percent of their trips are by air, while 61 percent are by car.
Young Single travelers are the most likely of all Singles to include nightlife activities on their trips (23%).
This group is quite technologically-savvy, 76 percent of their trips are taken by households that own a personal computer�the highest share among the Singles groups.

Facts About Middle Singles

With an average age of 45, this group represents Baby Boomer singles. This group generated 47 million trips in 2001.
They spend the most of all singles age groups, with an average of $462 per trip, not including cost of transportation. This is not surprising, since these Baby Boomer Singles have the highest household incomes of the Singles groups.
Trips by Middle Singles are more likely than those by other Singles to be taken for business travel (32%). Thus, their trips are more likely to be by air (28%) and/or include a hotel/motel/B&B stay (55%).

Facts About Older Working Singles

With an average age of 64, this group generated more than 26 million trips in 2001. The majority (63%) of these trips are taken by Older Working Singles between the ages of 55 and 64.
Along with Retired Singles, Older Working Singles are more likely than younger Singles to visit historical places/museums (14%) or attend cultural events/festivals (13%) on their trips.
The majority (64%) of their trips last six nights or less.

Facts About Older Retired Singles

The average age of this group is 72 and they generated nearly 32 million trips in 2001.
RV ownership is most prevalent in this group (12%).
Trips by this group are the least likely of the Singles groups to be by air (17%), but are most likely to be by bus (10%).
Being retired, with plenty of free time, it is not surprising that this group has the longest trip length, an average of 5.2 nights. Across Singles groups, their trips are the most likely to be day trips (26%) or last seven nights or more (19%).

Travel Industry Association of America
TIA (www.tia.org) is the national, non-profit organization representing all components of the $537 billion travel industry. TIA's mission is to represent the whole of the U.S. travel industry to promote and facilitate increased travel to and within the United States.

Contact:
Cathy Keefe (Manager, Media Relations)
202-408-8422
ckeefe@tia.org , www.tia.org

�Service of Hospitality 1ST and Subscribing Members�
Placement Dates: 01/31/03 � 03/31/03
|

Press-News Index||||||||Home||||||||Employment Index
Small Business Hospitality Association (SBHA)