Alaska Airlines unveils top Fall travel trends: Hawaiʻi and hidden gem destinations dominate
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Summary
This season includes the busiest travel day of the year and emerging trends driven by popular cultural events.
Book your flight and get ready to embrace the beauty and excitement of the season on alaskaair.com.
Check out these travel tips before you go!
Alaska Airlines is revealing unique trends that are shaping our bookings across its network this fall, including a rise in bookings to smaller, off-the-beaten path markets driven by guests seeking exclusive experiences.
We’re excited & prepared to welcome guests this season, which includes the busiest travel period of the year, with increased staffing, expanded flight options and enhanced service for an elevated and seamless travel experience.
Thanksgiving: The Peak Travel Period
Thanksgiving remains the busiest travel period of the fall with flights projected to be nearly full. We estimate nearly a half million guests will fly between Friday and Sunday with Dec. 1 expected to be the single busiest day of the entire year.
Across our major West Coast hubs, we expect to fly more passengers than last year. In San Francisco, passenger numbers are anticipated to increase by 15%. In Seattle, we expect to serve 230,000 guests, a 6% increase from last year. Portland is expected to see the largest surge in passenger volume with a 35% increase — or 85,000 passengers during the holiday weekend.
Hawaiʻi Leads Fall Travel Surge
This fall, we’re seeing strong year-over-year bookings to Hawaiʻi with guests eager to support the local economy amid continued recovery efforts from last year’s wildfires.
Through the combined network of Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines, we offer 66 daily flights to the Islands from the continental United States.
Travel at Major Hubs on the Rise
A rebound in business travel is driving an increase in bookings across California. In response to the demand, we’ve added capacity to our hubs this fall, including San Francisco and San Diego.
Latin America is also becoming a popular fall and winter getaway as guests look for an escape from the cold. In response to this trend, we’re thrilled to offer several routes to exciting Latin America destinations for the first time during the fall season, including Guatemala, Nassau, expanded service to Mexico destinations from Las Vegas and our new route to La Paz from Los Angeles.
Rising Popularity of Smaller Destinations
More and more guests are seeking unique and authentic experiences that stand apart from well-known tourist destinations. This fall, we’re seeing strong bookings to small destinations, such as Bellingham, Missoula and Santa Rosa. To respond to the rising trend to these hidden gems, we’ve increased capacity between Bellingham and Seattle by 40%, adding one additional flight each way compared to last year.
We’re also now flying mainline aircraft to increase our capacity by up to 40% between Seattle and Missoula. Starting Oct. 1, we launched our seventh nonstop from Santa Rosa, now connecting to Las Vegas, making it easier for guests to reach California’s wine country.
Special Events Driving Travel Demand
November continues to be a popular time for travel with Veterans Day weekend driving bookings for guests seeking a long-weekend getaway.
Special events like Austin City Limits and the F1 Grand Prix are also contributing to increased demand in Austin, Texas throughout October. Meanwhile, the fall foliage is drawing guests to Boston, making it a popular destination for leaf peeping.
Emerging Travel Trends: Swifties on the Move
A unique travel trend this fall is the influence of Taylor Swift’s concert tour, which is drawing travelers to destinations like New Orleans, Toronto, Indianapolis and Vancouver. These markets are seeing strong demand from Swifties following the pop star’s performances.
An Elevated Travel Experience
As guests travel this fall and winter, we’re committed to providing an elevated travel experience. Guests across our expanding network can take advantage of our award-winning service on their next Alaska flight, including:
The most legroom in First Class* and Premium Class
No change fees
Multiple fare offerings
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan—the most generous loyalty program with the fastest path to elite status
30 Global Partners
West Coast food and beverage on board
We’re also making it easier for our guests to buy tickets with our domestic and Global Partners directly at alaskaair.com.
* Out of any U.S. airline excluding lie-flat seats
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