2012 BMO Holiday Travel Outlook: Majority of Canadians Heading Out of Town This Holiday Season
December 13 2012 - 6:00AM
Marketwired
A strong Canadian dollar and a relatively stable economy has
fuelled Canadians' desire to get away this coming holiday season.
According to the 2012 BMO Holiday Travel Outlook released today,
six out of 10 Canadians (60 per cent) say they expect to travel
over the winter holidays.
Furthermore, the report found:
-- Canadians plan to spend an average of $563 on travel during the holiday
season this year
-- While more than one-third (39 per cent) will travel within their home
province, one-in-five (19 per cent) plan to leave the country over the
holidays
-- The most popular destination outside of Canada will be the United
States, with 13 per cent of Canadians heading south of the border
-- Those in Atlantic Canada are the most likely to travel over the holidays
(80 per cent), with those in Quebec the least likely to travel (41 per
cent)
-- Travelers will be younger, with almost three-quarters (74 per cent) of
Canadians under 30 planning to travel compared to 42 per cent of those
65 and over
The report also revealed the top travel destinations among
Canadians this holiday season, which include:
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Within home province 39%
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Within Canada 12%
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U.S.A. 13%
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Mexico 3%
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Other overseas destinations 8%
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"The holiday season can be expensive for many Canadians,
especially for those who plan to travel during that time," said
Nick Mastromarco, Director, BMO Bank of Montreal. "Affordability
remains an important factor when deciding on an appropriate
vacation destination, and reward programs provide a practical and
convenient way for more Canadians to take advantage of a broad
array of redemption options, and upgrade their vacation experience
without breaking the budget."
To help fund their travel plans, the report revealed that
Canadians' use of reward points is on the rise. Two out of 10
Canadians (21 per cent) plan to travel on reward points this year,
up seven per cent over last year.
To make travel more affordable this holiday season, BMO offers
Canadians the following tips that will stretch their vacation
travel dollars so they can get away sooner:
- Redeem points to offset vacation costs: A flexible loyalty
program, such as the BMO Rewards or the AIR MILES Reward Program,
lets you redeem reward currency for flights, cruises and other
package holidays, train travel, hotel stays, passes to local
attractions and redeem for instant savings off your fuel purchases.
With BMO Rewards, if you don't have enough points to redeem for
your trip, you can use what you have and then "top-up" with cash -
for any amount.
- Use the credit card's travel insurance: Premium cards
typically offer insurance, among other benefits. Bank of Montreal's
BMO Rewards World Elite credit card provides trip interruption
and/or cancellation insurance, travel medical insurance, rental car
collision damage waiver coverage and other benefits such as airport
VIP lounge passes and concierge service. These benefits can
substantially reduce travel costs. Know and use the card features
and benefits. When in doubt, call the bank's contact centre or
check online for confirmation.
- Shop around for the best rewards program: Look at the value
and flexibility of the program and whether it offers other perks
such as travel, merchandise, cash back, financial products or
charitable donation options. For example, with BMO AIR MILES World
credit card customers earn 1 AIR MILES reward mile for every $15
they spend using the card and get an exclusive 25 per cent discount
on the number of reward miles required to book AIR MILES
flights.
- Stick to one loyalty program: Consolidate all purchases on a
single card to accumulate rewards faster and reach your travel
destination goal sooner. Doing this also makes it easier to track
and monitor your spending.
The survey results cited above are from an online survey
conducted by Pollara with a random sample of 1,000 Canadians 18
years of age and over between October 11 and October 16, 2012. A
probability sample of this size would yield results accurate to +/-
3.1 per cent, 19 times out of 20.
About BMO Financial Group
Established in 1817 as Bank of Montreal, BMO Financial Group is
a highly diversified North American financial services
organization. With total assets of $525 billion as at October 31,
2012, and more than 46,000 employees, BMO Financial Group provides
a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment
banking products and solutions.
Contacts: Media Contacts: Matt Duffin, Toronto (416)
867-3996matthew.duffin@bmo.com Valerie Doucet, Montreal (514)
877-8224valerie.doucet@bmo.com Laurie Grant, Vancouver (604)
665-7596laurie.grant@bmo.com Internet: www.bmo.com Twitter:
@BMOmedia
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