Vacation spending puts 74% of Americans in debt: Survey

Summer vacations are a popular way to relax, but they can also place serious stress on the average American’s budget, according to survey released this week by financial planning company LearnVest.

Nearly three-fourths (74%) of Americans have gone into debt to cover the costs of a vacation, according to a survey of 1,000 U.S. adults conducted by Wakefield Research. In total, Americans incur an average debt of more than $1,100 per vacation.

“Having a financial plan is key to avoiding debt when you go on vacation,” LearnVest founder Alexa von Tobel said in a statement.

Of those surveyed, 55% said they didn’t account for their vacation spending in their annual budget, while 66% said they spend more on a week-long vacation than they do on a month of rent. The problem is worse among Millennials, nearly half of whom (49%) said they were willing to take on debt for a vacation compared to just 18% of Boomers.

While most vacations wrap up in two weeks or less, the financial impact of vacation-related spending can last far longer. Americans spend an average of 10% of their annual income on trips, and their budgets require an average of six months to fully recover, according to the survey.