Many people choose their travel destinations through a complicated equation featuring two key variables – where they would like to go and where they can afford to go. Travel search engine Cheapflights.ca is suggesting another approach – choosing destinations based on how much they need your money.
In a publication titled ‘Travelnomics Economic Stimulus Guide: A Report on the Destinations That Need Your Money the Most,’ Cheapflights used data compiled by Forbes and CNN to identify places that have been hard hit by the recession and face ongoing economic challenges. There are two separate lists, one for global tourism hotspots and another specifically for U.S. destinations.
With places like Ireland and Singapore on the list, it’s clearly not about the poorest places on earth, rather ones that have had a tough time in recession. The global list features four places you could pretty easily knock off in one trip – Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and the Ukraine. Jamaica is on there too, despite the fact that its tourism industry has weathered the recession quite well. It’s not clear why Canada didn’t make the grade, despite the fact that American visitors are scarcer than hockey players’ teeth these days.
While the positioning is that these destinations will benefit most from your tourism dollars, the corollary is that travel to many of these places has become much less expensive due to their economic and currency struggles. A case in point is Iceland, where a pre-recession pint of beer cost a startling 7 Euros, and now averages just 2 Euros. The U.S. list features Las Vegas, though it’s hard for many to feel pity when the house finally loses for a change. Oregon, Arizona, Rhode Island and California are among other U.S. destinations in need of a little cash stimulus.
