Thanksgiving marks the unofficial beginning of the holiday season in the U.S. Friends and families gather together for a festive meal and quality time. Many have a four-day weekend and use the time to travel, start holiday shopping, and much more.
In this special edition, our Datonics Research Series dives into the Thanksgiving Day holiday and the various activities that consumers engage in this time of year.
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Who Celebrates Thanksgiving and How?
96% of American families gather for a Thanksgiving feast. 51% will cook or bake at home. The Thanksgiving feast is expected to cost 20% more than last year. The average cost of this year’s holiday meal for 10 is $64.05, up from the 2021 average of $53.31. As turkey plays a central role in the feast, it takes up the most significant part of meal’s expenditure. Two and a half million tons is the average turkey meat production in the United States between 1993 and 2018, and 88% approximately of all Americans eat turkey as part of their dinner.
Seven in 10 young Americans prefer “Friendsgiving” over a traditional Thanksgiving. A poll of 2,000 Americans – aged 18–38 – found that 68 percent say celebrating Friendsgiving is their preferred method of engaging in the autumnal celebration.
Who travels on Thanksgiving?
Thanksgiving is a bigger holiday travel period than Christmas and New Year’s. This year, 54.6 million people are expected to travel over the holiday period, a 1.5% increase from 2021. This Thanksgiving is expected to be the third busiest since AAA started tracking travel volume in 2000 with the highest volume year in 2005 and the second-highest right before the pandemic in 2019. Forty-five percent are planning to visit with family and friends. Young adults who live away from home will most likely travel for Thanksgiving via plane. Travel to a destination 50 miles or more away increases by 54% over Thanksgiving weekend.
Of those traveling, 37.14% choose to travel by car, while 25.71% by air. Google searches for “pet-friendly hotels” are up 42.93% from 2019. Google searches for “pet-friendly motels” are up 36.25% for 2020.
Charity – Donating During Thanksgiving
An estimated 43% of higher-income earners donate more during the holidays. Thanksgiving is the ultimate holiday to throw a charity event and community gathering. Nonprofits and other community organizations can raise 50% of their annual funds around Thanksgiving.