HPU poll: Most North Carolinians plan to travel this summer

Many say inflation and gas prices will affect travel plans.

HIGH POINT, NC, May 24, 2023 – The latest High Point University poll found that nearly three-quarters (72%) of North Carolina residents said they will travel in North Carolina this summer. More than half (51%) said they will travel within the U.S. but outside of North Carolina this summer, and 15% plan to travel internationally.

One in five respondents are more likely to travel this summer than last summer (22%), and two in five are less likely to travel (41%). Another third (31%) said their summer trip will be the same this year as it was last year.

Of those asked, nearly three-quarters say inflation (73%) or gas prices (71%) will affect their likelihood of traveling a lot or some this winter.

“This HPU poll provides insight into how North Carolinians feel about their summer travel plans compared to last year,” said HPU Poll Associate Director Brian McDonald. “Polls tell us that they plan to travel mostly in the United States.”

Memorial Day plans

Nearly two-thirds (65%) of North Carolinians plan to stay home on Memorial Day, according to an HPU poll. More than a third (38%) of respondents said they would participate in a picnic or barbecue, and a quarter (26%) said they would work.

Few North Carolinians report going to places or events related to remembering fallen service members, such as a Memorial Day memorial event (19%), a veteran’s cemetery or cemetery (19%), or a Memorial Day parade (16%). .

Other activities that less than a quarter of North Carolina people do on the holiday include vacationing (19%), shopping to take advantage of Memorial Day sales (19%) and going to the beach (18%). %)

Veterans Service Views

The HPU poll asked how well North Carolinians are doing US government He has provided many services to veterans. More than half said the U.S. government is promoting holidays that are good or somewhat good, such as Memorial Day (62%), monuments and memorials for their service (60%), honoring their service (57%), and mentioning the service of veterans in speeches. (56%), and documenting their services by organizing archives and museums (55%). Less than half say the U.S. government is providing health care (39%) and hiring veterans for government jobs (43%).

He asked how good the choice was North Carolina state government It provided similar services to veterans. A majority of respondents said that government here in North Carolina does a very good or somewhat good job of promoting holidays like Memorial Day (60%), honoring their service (58%), citing veterans’ service in speeches (53%), and building monuments and memorials. their services (50%), and their services are well or moderately organized by archives and museums (51%). North Carolina government providing health care (40%) or hiring veterans for government jobs (42%) is less likely.

NC Residents – Summer Trip (May 2023)

Thinking back to last year, would you say you are more or less likely to travel this summer?

More likely – 22%

Less likely – 41%

Similar – 31%

Not sure – 7%

NC Residents – Inflation and Travel (May 2023)

How will higher prices due to inflation affect the likelihood of traveling this summer? Can’t say many, few, or many?

Many – 37%

some – 36%

Not much – 20%

Not sure – 6%

NC Residents – Gas and Travel (May 2023)

How will the price of gas specifically affect your chances of traveling this winter? Can’t say many, few, or many?

Many – 38%

some – 33%

Not much – 23%

Not sure – 6%

NC Residents – Travel Destinations (May 2023)

NC Residents – Memorial Day (May 2023)

NC Residents – US Government and Veterans (May 2023)

NC Residents – North Carolina Government and Veterans (May 2023)

HPU Poll 96 was conducted by the High Point University Survey Center from May 12 to May 20, 2023, with respondents recruited and expected to participate in an online survey conducted by Dinata. Dinata sent an invitation to a panel of NC respondents and SRC collected 1,302 responses on the Qualtrics platform. SRC performed all data analysis. The online sample comes from a panel of respondents, and their participation does not obey the usual assumptions associated with random sampling. Therefore, it is inappropriate to assign a classical margin of sampling error to the results. In this case, the SRC gives a traditional 95% confidence interval for the estimates (plus or minus 2.7 percent) and a confidence interval of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points for a design score of 1.05 (based on the weights). The data is weighted by age, sex, race/ethnicity, and education population estimates based on North Carolina’s U.S. Census numbers. Factors such as wording and other survey research methods can introduce additional errors into the survey findings.

Additional results and methodological details from the latest survey and previous surveys are available on the Survey Research Center website. The online materials include past press releases and summaries of the findings (including approval ratings) for each poll since 2010.

The HPU Poll reports methodological details according to standards set by the AAPOR Transparency Initiative, and the HPU Polling Center is a charter member of the initiative.

You can track the HPU Poll by turning it on. Twitter. Dr. Martin Kiefer, chair and associate professor of political science, serves as director of the HPU Poll, and Brian McDonald is associate director of the HPU Poll.