Fourth of July Travel Survey 2021 — How Many People Will Travel, Spending, Activity Choices, COVID-19 Concern & More

Update – See our 2022 Fourth of July Travel survey to see how last year’s numbers compare to this year’s.

Memorial Day has just passed. And, the uptick in travel as summer approaches is evident. Our Summer Travel Survey indicated that 68% of people will partake in a vacation this year. Fourth of July is traditionally one of the biggest travel periods of the summer. This year will be no different, especially as COVID-19 cedes within the United States. People will head to the beach, visit lake houses, attend cookouts and much more.

We decided to run this Fourth of July survey in order to gauge consumer travel intentions for the Fourth of July weekend. Some questions we sought out to discover include how many people intend to travel this year for the holiday? Additionally, how do these people intend to get to their destination? How will travel for this year’s Fourth of July compare to previous holidays? How much will consumers spend to travel this year? What activities will people partake in for Fourth of July? Below you can find the answers to these questions and interesting data comparisons.

Do you intend to travel for Fourth of July this year? If so, how?

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• Yes, primarily by plane. — 11.26%
• Yes, primarily by car. — 36.59%
• Yes, primarily by public transportation such as bus or train. — 3.56%
• No, I am not traveling for Fourth of July. — 48.59%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — More men than women intend to travel for Fourth of July. 58.3% of adult men aged 18 or older will be traveling while only 44.62% of women will be. Interestingly, the biggest discrepancy for the mode of travel is with airplanes. Men are nearly twice as likely to be traveling by plane than women. 14.76% of adult men will be traveling by plane while only 7.69% of adult women will.

Key Takeaway — Over 51% of American adults intend to travel for Fourth of July this year. Based on the 2020 census, this figure represents more than 132 million adults aged 18 or older. Over half of all American adults plan to travel for Fourth of July! In fact, 11.26% or nearly 29 million American adults will fly on a plane for Fourth of July travel. The 29 million figure is substantially larger than the 9.5 million passengers TSA screened for Thanksgiving. This is further vindication that the United States is on the verge of putting the COVID-19 pandemic in the past.

Did you travel for any of the following holidays? (Check All that Apply Except If You Are Checking the Last Choice.)

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• Memorial Day 2021. — 27.17%
• Easter 2021. — 15.09%
• Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa 2020. — 23.40%
• Thanksgiving 2020. — 22.26%
• Fourth of July 2020. — 14.72%
• None of these. (If checking this choice, check nothing else.) — 46.23%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — The New England region was the region most likely to have not traveled for any of these holidays. This region encompasses the states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. 55.56% of people in the New England region said they did not travel for any of these holidays. On the other hand, the East South Central region is the most likely to have traveled for at least one of these holidays. This region encompasses the states of Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi.

Key Takeaway — The amount of people that will travel for Fourth of July this year is nearly double the amount that traveled for Memorial Day. In fact, more people will travel for Fourth of July this year than Memorial Day and Easter combined. Additionally, the expected number of people traveling this year will be 3.5 times more than for Fourth of July last year. The warm weather and dropping COVID-19 cases is shaping this summer up to be especially busy for vacations.

How much will you spend to travel for Fourth of July this year? (flights, hotels, tickets, etc.)

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• $0. — 48.59%
• $500 or Less. — 19.31%
• $501 to $1,000. — 14.98%
• $1,001 to $1,500. — 8.17%
• $1,501 to $2,000. — 4.67%
• $2,000 or More. — 4.28%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — The younger generations are more likely to spend over $1,000 for their Fourth of July travel. For example, 20.15% of American adults aged 18-29 will spend more than $1,000. And, 20.51% of American adults aged 30-44 will spend more than $1,000. However, only 13.96% of American adults aged 45-60 will spend over this amount. And, only 14.28% of American adults over 60 will. The younger generations will be going on more extravagant Fourth of July trips this year.

Key Takeaway — 32.1% of American adults or nearly 83 million people will spend more than $500 for Fourth of July. One in three American adults spending over $500 is a substantial figure for the Fourth of July holiday. Additionally, more than 17% of American adults or over 44 million people will spend more than $1,000. This evidence suggests the 25% of people from our Summer survey that said they planned to “revenge travel” are doing it.

What activities will you take part in for Fourth of July this year? (Check All that Apply.)

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• Parade. — 16.27%
• BBQ or Cookout. — 73.41%
• Fireworks. — 61.31%
• Beach. — 28.57%
• Lake. — 22.22%
• Sporting Event. — 5.95%
• Movie Theater. — 8.73%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — Men were much more likely than women to say they will attend a sporting event or movie theater for Fourth of July. 8.27% of men said they would be at a sporting event and 10.63% said they would be at a movie theater. On the other hand, only 3.63% of women said they would attend a sporting event. And, only 6.85% of women will attend a movie theater. Women were more likely than men to say they will attend fireworks this year. 65.73% of women said they will attend fireworks. However, only 56.69% of men will.

Key Takeaway — Almost 3 out of every 4 American adults or nearly 190 million people will attend a BBQ or cookout for Fourth of July. This is a large percentage of the population. Only one year ago the majority of the United States was still under lockdown. Additionally, more than a quarter of people will visit the beach. Over 60% of American adults will also view fireworks this year. Fireworks were mostly canceled in 2020, so it will be nice to see this tradition continue.

How much of a concern is COVID-19 for you when considering your Fourth of July plans this year?

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• No Concern at All. — 35.40%
• Slightly a Concern. — 49.13%
• A Big Concern. — 15.47%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — American adults over 60 were most likely to say COVID-19 is “No Concern at All” for Fourth of July. 43.02% of those over 60 said this about their Fourth of July plans. In fact, the percentage of people saying “No Concern at All.” increased with age. Only 27.94% of those aged 18-29 said this. However, 35.04% of those 30-44 said “No Concern at All” and 36.93% of those 45-60 did. These figures are still less than the 43.02% in the over 60 age group.

Key Takeaway — Almost 2 out of every 3 American adults still rate COVID-19 as “Slightly a Concern” or “A Big Concern” when planning for Fourth of July. Despite more than 50% of Americans having at least one vaccine shot, it’s obvious many people are still very cautious about the ongoing pandemic. While people may begin to travel more, their caution and new pandemic behaviors will likely continue for some time.

Survey Methodology

This Fourth of July Travel Survey was conducted by SurveyMonkey on behalf of The Vacationer. In total, 531 Americans over the age of 18 were polled between June 1 and June 2. Of those surveyed, 51.04% were male and 48.96% were female. The age breakdown of participants included in this survey was 26.74% in the range 18-29, 22.79% in the range 30-44, 33.71% in the range 45-60, and 16.76% over 60. This survey has a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of ±4.34%. You can learn more about SurveyMonkey’s sampling method by clicking here.

The questions were chosen and the results were analyzed by the post author, Eric Jones, who is a Mathematics and Statistics Professor at Rowan College South Jersey.

Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.