Vacationers pay as much in Rhode Island per day as they would in New York, according to AAA’s latest Annual Vacation Costs survey.
The annual report, which monitors the cost of lodging and meals throughout the country, ranked Rhode Island fourth in the nation, tied with New York, for the average daily cost of a vacation for a two-parent, two-child family: $329.
Only Hawaii ($559), Washington, D.C. ($518), and Nevada ($348) ranked higher than Rhode Island, according to AAA.
Rhode Island’s ranking represents a slight dip in rankings from last year, when only Hawaii and Washington cost more. At $307 per day in 2005, Rhode Island still tied with New York.
The results of the survey come two weeks after a R.I. Hospitality and Tourism Association “economic outlook” event where an industry consultant said that Rhode Island has higher occupancy and average room rates than the national average.
In 2004, Rhode Island had an occupancy rate of 64.2 percent, the highest in New England, while the U.S. average was 63.1 percent. The average room in the state sold for $115.29 in 2005, about $5 less than Massachusetts, but still nearly $25 more than the national average.
The ranking in the AAA report came as no surprise to tourism leaders in Rhode Island, but they said it’s not a negative, because the state has desirable traits vacationers will pay for.
“We’ve got what people are looking for,” said Dale Venturini, president and CEO of the hospitality association, in an e-mail. Rhode Island has “so many options,” she added, “so you do get a bigger bang for your buck – history, culture, the ocean, mansions, [a] world-class destination. It’s about value versus price.”
David DePetrillo, the state’s tourism director, said that along with the quality of attractions, Rhode Island also benefits from its location in a prosperous market area. (In a recent speech, O’Neill Properties Group owner Brian O’Neill said about 80 million people with combined incomes of about $1.6 trillion live within 500 miles of Aquidneck Island, for example.)
“Rhode Island is fortunate that at this point it has those strengths working for it,” DePetrillo said. “If [less expensive] states don’t have what you and your family want to do and see, it doesn’t have that value for you.”
The AAA survey projects a 5.4-percent increase nationwide in the overall cost of taking a vacation this year. The survey lists energy costs and the increased salaries of workers among the causes for the increases.
“Rate increases for lodgings are mostly a result of supply and demand, especially in major markets,” said Michael Petrone, director of AAA Tourism Information Development, in a press release. “For both lodgings and restaurants, rising energy costs, as well as salary and benefit costs, are certainly having an impact.”
The results of the survey, released this week, show that a family of two adults and two children can expect to spend an average of $261 per day on food and lodgings while vacationing in the United States this year.
The average daily room rate jumped 9 percent from 2005 to $141. Meals would cost the same family $120 per day, a figure representing a 2-percent increase.
The least expensive states to travel to are North Dakota and Nebraska, which are tied at an average daily cost of $191. Kansas, Iowa and Oklahoma all ranked toward the bottom of the list.
To help keep the costs of traveling down, AAA recommends:
— Booking accommodations in advance to assure availability, selection and best rate.
— Considering getting a room with a kitchen to cut down on meal costs.
— Having vehicles inspected prior to driving trips to avoid costly repairs.
— Using the “Search for Savings” feature on the AAA Web site, www.aaa.com/save.
The association bases its meal and lodging costs on prices from more than 55,000 AAA-approved and Diamond-rated lodgings and restaurants listed in its TourBook guides.
AAA has tracked vacation costs since 1950, when the average daily cost of meals and lodgings for a family of four was $13.
