With Dollar's declining value, London loses luster for U.S. leisure travelers
Back to the 2007 Press Releases
August 21, 2007 – With the dollar’s value dipping further, London and other international destinations are losing some of their luster with American leisure travelers, according to new data released today by Cheapflights.com. Gaining in popularity are domestic destinations, such as Los Angeles, Seattle and Ft. Lauderdale.
In July 2006, London ranked as the 7th most popular destination in searches on Cheapflights.com. A year later, London has dropped sharply to 15th. The dollar's significant decline against the British pound is an issue for leisure travelers, according to Carl Schwartz, Director of Marketing for Cheapflights.com in the U.S. According to the U.S. Federal Reserve's monthly average exchange rate for July 2006 the dollar stood at 1.8433 against the pound; in July 2007, the average exchange rate was 2.0355.
Taking London’s #7 spot on the list of most popular destinations searched on Cheapflights.com is Seattle, which advanced from #9. Los Angeles moved up the list as well, from #6 to #5. New this year to the top-10 list is Ft. Lauderdale, which moved from #XX to #8.
TOP 10DESTINATIONS SEARCHED ON CHEAPFLIGHTS.COM 2006-2007
| Rank | Destination July 2006 | Rank | Destination July 2007 |
|---|
| 1 | Las Vegas | 1 | Las Vegas |
| 2 | Orlando | 2 | Orlando |
| 3 | New York | 3 | New York |
| 4 | Chicago | 4 | Chicago |
| 5 | Atlanta | 5 | Los Angeles |
| 6 | Los Angeles | 6 | Atlanta |
| 7 | London | 7 | Seattle |
| 8 | Denver | 8 | Ft. Lauderdale |
| 9 | Seattle | 9 | Denver |
| 10 | Dallas | 10 | Dallas |
"When travelers search for cheap flight deals, tourist destinations are a major component,” Schwartz explained. “London is a perennial favorite destination for Americans, however the unfavorable exchange rate has made the UK an expensive choice."
