Rhode Islanders, like residents in other states, may be less willing than in the past to take off for faraway vacations this summer due to rising gasoline prices. Carl Richardson, the director of auto travel for AAA Southern New England, spoke with Providence Business News recently about where – and how far – some of his chapter’s 2.3 million members are headed on their summer getaways.
PBN: Gas prices are up this year, are you seeing less people traveling?
RICHARDSON: Yes. There are fewer requests coming in for all forms of travel – my focus, of course, is auto travel. There are hundreds of thousands of requests that we receive a year, for maps, tour books and reservations. We’re seeing a decrease, on average, of about 10 percent overall this year to date. That’s year-over-year for this period.
Beyond Cash Donations: How New Forms of Giving Are Transforming Not-for-Profit Accounting
Evolving Funding Landscape for Not-for-Profits Not-for-profit organizations are being asked to do more with less,…
Learn More
PBN: Does that go along with trends that you’ve seen the last few years?
RICHARDSON: Every year it’s been different. The situation last year was that we had a spike early in the spring and just about when our members were thinking about taking a driving vacation the prices started to drop. That was right after Memorial Day. So that led into a pretty strong season and we didn’t have quite the spike and the steady climb that we’ve had this year, where not only has it made the vacation travel questionable, but it’s really had an impact on everybody’s day-to-day operating expenses at home. So this year has been quite different.
But we’ve seen changes over the course of the years – and I’ve seen quite a few years. When I first started, we had lines at gas stations in the 1980s. One of the first things that I did when I came here was answer the phone and tell our members where they could buy gas. Since then the real difference has been that we haven’t had shortages, just price hikes. That’s quite the differentiator; when you have a shortage, that’s when people really pull back. We haven’t had that in a while, but we have had spotty situations … so it’s really been about price.
We’ve found to a certain point that some of the members are insulated to that [price increase] but I think this year it’s digging deeper.
PBN: Where are southern New Englanders traveling this year?
RICHARDSON: We have focused mostly on within 500 miles of the Providence area, traveling up to Canada’s Atlantic provinces. If you take a swath of 500 miles out, that’s primarily where members travel to – it seems to be that they’re comfortable with a day’s drive.
I’ve been looking at the numbers even more closely than I ever have this year – because if we’re down by 10 percent, I want to know where the other 90 percent is going.
Our number one destination at this point continues to hover between Washington, D.C., and Canada. And what we measure that by is how many members ask for a TripTik for a specific driving route, with our councilors planning Step A to Step B where they’re going to drive and where they’re making an overnight reservation. When we look at those two metrics, we see those two destinations continue to be very, very strong. This is specifically over July 4 [weekend].
It doesn’t vary a lot over the summer, so I can give you a Top 10 for that weekend.
The members are going to Niagara Falls first, then Washington, D.C. Hersheypark in Pennsylvania is very, very big. And one of the trends that we’re seeing stay strong this season – which some wouldn’t have guessed – is that Canada is still a very strong vacation for Rhode Islanders and southern New Englanders. So Montreal and Quebec City are popular. And then there’s New York City, which is coming up a little stronger over July 4, because of the fireworks there. … Myrtle Beach continues to be strong in the spring and in the summer, too. And then, surprisingly there’s the White Mountains in New Hampshire. I would have thought that would have been a little farther up on the list. They’re usually a very strong location. [Rounding out the Top 10 are Pennsylvania Dutch Country and a three-way tie between Toronto, Prince Edward Island and Sesame Place in Langhorne, Pa.]
There are some themes that come out of that – Canada is very popular. That’s a bit surprising because the price of gas in Canada is about $1 higher when you adjust for the liter measurement in Canada. And our exchange rate is on par … meaning there’s no savings.
PBN: How is AAA tailoring its offerings to account for those trends?
RICHARDSON: This year, anticipating the gas prices and also keeping track of requests that we receive, we did expand our local package of offerings. We brought it home a little more in the last year with Mystic, Conn., Providence, and certainly the New England states with a package in Vermont and a couple of packages in Lincoln, N.H. Then we have [a package in] Boston and one in the Berkshires.
This year we might have a trend, but we still have to take care of the basics – Washington, D.C., and Williamsburg, Va., and Niagara Falls. But there are a number of other options – when we go into a community and see what’s available for AAA members – and I know not everyone is a member – we’re looking at hotels that offer AAA-member rates and attractions that offer added value. When we bring them all together in one package, without renegotiating anything, it becomes a very powerful offering.
These [packages] have been bucking the trend right now – while overall travel is down 10 percent, these are up 6 to 10 percent for the month. •
interview
Carl Richardson
POSITION: Director of Auto Travel, AAA Southern New England
BACKGROUND: Richardson has worked for AAA Southern New England for 30 years, including in the Motorcoach Tour division and as a branch manager.
EDUCATION: Studied toward a B.A. in nutrition, University of Rhode Island; Garber Travel School; certified travel counselor, 1996, Travel Institute, Wellesley, Mass.
RESIDENCE: Portsmouth
AGE: 49
