While vacation destinations felt the impact of the recession sharply in 2009, the family vacation market on the whole has shown resilience in 2010 and 2011. For many families stressful economic times appear to have made the emotional benefits of getting away more compelling, making even brief family vacations more of a necessity. The long-term consumer impact of the downturn on family travel may be less about cutting back on expenditures than it is about spending smarter.

While vacation destinations felt the impact of the recession sharply in 2009, the family vacation market on the whole has shown resilience in 2010 and 2011. For many families stressful economic times appear to have made the emotional benefits of getting away more compelling, making even brief family vacations more of a necessity. The long-term consumer impact of the downturn on family travel may be less about cutting back on expenditures than it is about spending smarter.

This report features Mintel’s exclusive consumer research exploring a range of consumer attitudes and behaviors concerning family vacations. Among the questions addressed in this report are:

How frequently do families take vacations and which demographic groups are traveling most frequently?

How much do families spend on vacations?

Who in the family is in charge of the various aspects of family travel planning?

What influence do kids and teens have on the selection of destinations, restaurants and activities?

What online and offline resources are used to plan family vacations?

What features are most important in the selection of the family vacation destination?

What’s most important to families about family vacations?