Nearly half of American adults did not take a single leisure trip during the summer of 2026, according to new survey data from YouGov, even though a majority had entered the season either planning or weighing a getaway.
The findings illustrate how cost concerns and shifting intentions caused many travel plans to collapse between spring and September.
Plans did not match outcomes
At the start of summer 2026, 30% of U.S. adults started summer 2026 with firm plans to take a leisure trip, and an additional 24% were considering one.
Combined, 54% of U.S. adults entered summer either planning or considering leisure travel, although intentions varied in how firmly they were set.
By the time summer ended, the outcome looked different. 51% ultimately took some form of leisure trip, including 12% who opted for a local trip or staycation.
Meanwhile, 47% did not take a leisure trip during summer 2026, while 2% were unsure.
Cost was the deciding factor
Money pressures ran through nearly every stage of the decision. 53% say overall cost or budget influenced their summer travel decisions , and the financial strain did not stop once people hit the road.
For one in five U.S. adults, summer travel costs exceeded their initial expectations, with 22% saying they spent more than expected, including 15% who spent somewhat more and 7% who spent much more.
At the same time, a sizable share of the public opted out of spending on travel altogether this summer.
More than a third (38%) say they did not spend anything on leisure travel, reflecting the sizeable share of U.S. adults who did not travel this summer.
Cost, family and practical limits
YouGov’s analysis points to a mix of financial and logistical reasons behind the gap between what people planned and what they ultimately did.
The analysis also draws on YouGov Voices, which uses AI to conduct and analyze large-scale qualitative conversations, to provide additional context on why some people changed, scaled back or abandoned their summer travel plans.
The pattern fits into a broader retreat from discretionary spending that other recent research has tracked among US households.
That includes cutting spending on extras more generally and trimming essentials to cover costs elsewhere in the budget.
Both strands of research point to households making tradeoffs across categories, not just travel, as they manage tighter budgets heading into the back half of the year.
A narrower travel season emerges
The results suggest that while a slim majority of Americans still traveled for leisure in some capacity this summer, the share who followed through on firm plans without adjustment was far smaller once cost pressures entered the picture.
The gap between the 54 percent who started the season open to a trip and the 51 percent who eventually took one masks considerable churn underneath.
Some who were only considering a trip backed out, while others who had not planned one squeezed in a late getaway or staycation instead.
YouGov’s survey was fielded as part of its Serviced research product, which provides quick survey results from nationally representative or targeted audiences, with this study conducted online on August 21, 2026, among a nationally representative sample of 709 U.S. adults.
The full results also track how spending expectations and budget concerns shifted travelers’ choices between planning and departure.
That dynamic echoes how travel-reward shoppers have struggled to capture full value from loyalty programs, as seen in survey data on expiring travel points.
