NEARLY half of Americans (47%) would be happy to receive a travelrelated gift this holiday season, according to a poll by market research firm, Destination Analysts. Nearly 60% of survey respondents agree that getting a vacation scheduled in the next six months would make them feel there is something happy to look forward to.

ANOTHER survey of 12,000 readers by travel digital media brand Only-InYourState, of Americans expressing interest in traveling, found only 28% said they plan to board a plane, while 85% said they are planning a road trip in the next six months, most within two to five hours. More than 74% of respondents said they are seeking out travel opportunities to connect with nature. Forty-one percent of respondents said they are somewhat or very comfortable with staying overnight in a hotel.

BUT more than seven in 10 U.S. hoteliers believe they won’t survive another six months without further federal assistance, according to a survey by the American Hotel and Lodging Association. More than one-third of hoteliers said they will be facing bankruptcy or enforced sale of the business by the end of 2020. Data from STR showed U.S. hotel occupancy in urban markets was 34.6% for the week ending Nov. 7, down from 79.6% a year ago.

A survey by Invision of 270 eyecare store owners and managers confirmed many saw a drop of 24% in their earnings from a year ago, and most attributed that decline to lockdown-related orders, the public’s health fears over Covid and loss in consumer confidence as a result of the economic downturn. Sixtythree percent of eyecare managers and store owners reported tariffs of Chinese goods affected their cost of goods to some degree and expect price increases to remain.

ACCORDING to the Consumer Confidence Index conducted by The Conference Board by Nielsen, the percentage of consumers expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months decreased from 36% to 27.4%, while those expecting business conditions to worsen increased from 15.9% to 19.8%.