Would New Yorkers Rather Drive or Fly? The Answer Is an Interesting One!
One of the wonderful things about living in Upstate New York is that there’s an airport close by no matter where you live and if you’re lucky, you might live close enough to an airport that has an airline that flies directly and quickly to vacation destinations.
My husband, son, and I all have birthdays within a week of each other and instead of giving presents, we take a short adventure trip each year. This year, out birthdays weekend getaway will take us south. Thanks to the unbeatably low prices on airline tickets at our local airport, we’re able to venture further than our typical four-hour radius and will save a lot of money on travel expenses.
A survey by Family Destinations Guide asked New Yorkers this question, “‘How far would you be prepared to drive to your chosen destination, rather than fly for one hour?’
The overwhelming response was that New Yorkers would prefer to drive, on average, 5 hours and 21 minutes rather than hop on a one hour flight. It comes as no surprise that this decision was made in large part based on all of the uncertainties surrounding airlines these days.
Carew shortages, weather problems, computer glitches – all of these factored into the average New Yorkers decision to get behind the wheel instead of taking to the sky. As a matter of fact, 48 percent of travelers say they’ve put their plans to fly on hold until all of the current airline disruptions get ironed out.
However, if given the chance to fly with no delays or issues, New Yorkers say they’d be all in and would even pay a premium for their tickets. The average New Yorker said they’d be willing to spend 32 percent more if they could be guaranteed no delays or other problems.
The current flight disruptions will likely continue through the rest of the year, so it might be wise to consider planning your trip by car instead of air. While flying might be faster in theory, the freedom and flexibility of hitting the open road in a car can allow for a more personal and memorable travel experience. - Rose Ackermann, Editor-in-Chief, Family Destinations Guide
If you’re considering flying over the summer but afraid that everyone else will have the same idea and things will be even more of a jumbled mess, you might not need to worry. 74 percent of New Yorkers say that when the time comes to travel for summer vacations, they’re probably going to drive instead of fly.