Expert: Spring Break Travel Will Be Busy — And Expensive

The upcoming spring break travel period may set new records for hotel occupancy — and prices. So if you’re looking for a place to stay in March and April, what should you do? I asked Tim Hentschel, CEO of HotelPlanner, how to get ahead of the trend and find an affordable hotel.

Here's our interview.

You've seen a dramatic rise in the number of spring break hotel bookings compared to last year. What does it look like?

The momentum is already there from last year. We saw a 64% year-over-year increase in spring break bookings from 2022 to 2023. So far this year, we’re already seeing a 7% increase for spring break 2024. Based on that, we’re projecting a 10% to 15% total increase in spring break bookings this year.

What does that mean for travelers?

It means that travel demand and traveler confidence remain quite high. Despite ongoing challenges with our nation’s air transportation system, most travelers are keeping their spring break plans.

We can assume that traditional spring break destinations like Daytona Beach, Fort Lauderdale and South Padre island, as well as some secondary cities and even overseas destinations, will see high hotel occupancy this season.

What are some of the areas that have the highest prices?

We're still seeing higher prices in the traditional spring break destinations, as well as in popular ski resorts in the Northeast and the Rockies.

Where are prices still relatively low for spring break?

The Deep South, Padre Island, the Ozarks, and Florida Panhandle beach cities such as Panama Beach, Destin and Pensacola have lower rates compared to Florida's East Coast cities like Fort Lauderdale or Miami.

How expensive is it to stay in a hotel now, versus last spring break?

The travel supply and demand curve is very much in effect. As spring break demand increases, we expect that hotel rates in popular destinations will increase commensurate with the demand, potentially up 20% to 30% in the period from March 1 to April 15.

What would it take to get them back to where they are more reasonable?

The free market sets hotel rates based on supply and demand. So if one hotel on Spring Break Row is charging a much higher rate than all other hotels on that strip, travelers will opt for the less expensive hotel, and the outlier hotel will eventually be forced to reduce its rates to maintain occupancy.

Also, how do I know if I'm paying a reasonable hotel rate?

Evaluate the all-in costs and all-in value of a hotel stay. If rates are about the same, then compare amenities and offerings such as room service, gym and spa, pet friendliness, proximity to the beach or nightlife, and free shuttle service. Also check out the customer reviews.

Do you have any tips for making spring break more affordable?

One popular hack for spring breakers is to do a short-term rental of a large beachfront house, and then everyone chips in to make it affordable. All that said, hotel rates nationwide are only projected to increase about 2% to 3% this year as the total demand curve begins to normalize.

You've said that spring break is becoming more diverse. What do you mean by that? Can you give me some examples of a more diverse spring break vacation?

What I mean by diverse is that spring break has evolved and expanded from traditional beach or ski vacations that we may have gone on as kids, to a wide range of activities across the spectrum. That includes overseas and off-the-beaten-path destinations, from hiking and camping adventures, to yoga and spa retreats, cruises, culinary- or art-themed trips, volunteer work, religious themed trips, and ecotourism, to name a few.

Many spring break vacations are to traditional resort destinations, where guests are likely to find mandatory resort fees. Do you think this is the year that resort fees disappear, as many are predicting? And in the meantime, how do travelers avoid these junk fees?

There are only two things that will force hotels to remove resort fees: a critical mass of travelers opting to stay elsewhere, which hurts the hotel’s bottom line so much that they remove the fees; or a new law or regulation from Congress, which is already in the works.

Congress is currently marking up a bill that would require hotels to disclose hidden or resort fees. So stay tuned on that. I believe in price transparency and have called for hotels to disclose or remove these fees.

How far in advance are people planning their spring break vacations? How is that affecting availability?

We’re already seeing the search and booking window expand significantly, meaning people are booking spring break vacations three to four months in advance. There are millions of other travelers who still book at the last minute.

Generally speaking, travelers have become more savvy and strategic since the pandemic and are planning ahead to ensure availability if it’s a popular destination, and to lock in a lower rate. Many travelers are reprioritizing their budgets to make sure that travel is part of their annual routine, be it for health and wellness, or to spend more quality time with family and friends.

You use a lot of artificial intelligence at HotelPlanner. Can you describe what you are using it for and what changes you see ahead for consumers, when it comes to AI?

Simply put, generative AI is going to revolutionize the entire travel and hospitality industry, and the traveler experience, from search and booking to itinerary generation.

For more than 20 years, HotelPlanner has embraced AI and machine learning to power our platform. In the past year, we’ve integrated ChatGPT into our search engine and have seen more than 1 million queries since last May. And in just one month of deployment, we’ve generated 160,000 customer itineraries in 26 languages using AI.

We are currently beta testing voice-, webchat- and text message-enabled reservations. We’re also using AI to streamline customer service ticket management and auto-responses to typical requests. And our fraud team is using AI tools to detect suspicious bookings.

So what's the best way for hotel guests to take advantage of AI in 2024, besides booking a room with HotelPlanner?

Start to experiment with various Generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Bard, and Gemini as part of your travel inspiration, travel search and booking, and itinerary planning.

Some tools will work better than others based on the plug-in, and the prompts or questions used. For example, ChatGPT is pretty good with questions like proximity to the nearest hospital, or whether the hotel is pet friendly or has a pool or gym. But it might not be as accurate with "What’s the most eco-friendly hotel in Thailand?" because eco-friendly is ill-defined with no universal definition.

So there's plenty of room for improvement?

Yes. Future versions are going to become much better at producing itineraries of actual events coming up in the city, like concerts and sporting events rather than just the local attractions that are always there.

AI will make travel better, though?

Absolutely. Bottom line, generative AI tools will augment travel planning and strengthen the traveler experience in the months and years ahead. Questions will be answered much faster, and travelers will be much more empowered with access to real-time data that perhaps only today’s booking agents have.

Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that empowers consumers to solve their problems and helps those who can't. He's the author of numerous books on consumer advocacy and writes three nationally syndicated columns. He also publishes the Elliott Report, a news site for consumers, and Elliott Confidential, a critically acclaimed newsletter about customer service. If you have a consumer problem you can't solve, contact him directly through his advocacy website. You can also follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, or sign up for his daily newsletter. He is based in Santiago, Chile.