Stats: New York, Cancun Top Thanksgiving Destinations for Third Year

For the third year in a row, New York City and Cancun are this year’s most popular domestic and international destinations for Thanksgiving amongst American travelers, according to Allianz Global Assistance’s Top 10 Thanksgiving Destination Report.

Allianz Global Assistance reviewed more than 4.5 million plans made by Americans for travel during the Thanksgiving travel period (between November 18, 2017 and November 28, 2017). The top 10 domestic destinations ranked by popularity are: New York City, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Orlando, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Washington, D.C., and Seattle. Cities falling off the list from last year include: Las Vegas, Fort Lauderdale and Newark. Destinations added to the rankings are Dallas, Washington, D.C. and Seattle.

Internationally, Cancun is followed in popularity by London, Paris, Puerto Vallarta, Tokyo, San Jose Del Cabo, Montego Bay, Rome, Nassau and Aruba. San Juan, Hong Kong and Sydney did not make this year’s list. Montego Bay, Rome and Nassau are new additions for 2017.

Rank Domestic International
  2017 2016 2015 2017 2016 2015
1 New York New York New York Cancun Cancun Cancun
2 Atlanta Los Angeles Los Angeles London London London
3 Los Angeles Orlando Orlando Paris San Juan San Juan
4 Orlando San Francisco Chicago Puerto Vallarta Tokyo Paris
5 Boston Boston San Francisco Tokyo Paris San Jose del Cabo
6 Chicago Atlanta Atlanta San Jose del Cabo Puerto Vallarta Puerto Vallarta
7 San Francisco Chicago Boston Montego Bay San Jose del Cabo Tokyo
8 Dallas Newark Fort Lauderdale Rome Hong Kong Aruba
9 Washington DC Las Vegas Newark Nassau Aruba Bangkok
10 Seattle Fort Lauderdale Las Vegas Aruba Sydney Hong Kong

The report also showed the busiest travel days for Thanksgiving: most Americans are planning to depart internationally on November 18, domestically on November 21 and their return is nearly evenly spread between November 25 and 26.

“Thanksgiving can be one of the most stressful times of the year to travel given the high volume of travelers and the potential for delays. It’s important to consider travel insurance anytime you travel, but especially during Thanksgiving,” said Daniel Durazo, director of communications for Allianz Global Assistance USA, in a written release. “Given the number of travelers headed out of the country for Thanksgiving, it’s important to remember that travel insurance may provide coverage for medical emergencies and emergency medical transportation.”

Source: Allianz Global Assistance

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