More Americans Making Plans to Travel Overseas

One-quarter of Americans plan to take an international vacation over the next 18 months, according to a recent AAA Travel survey.

AAA’s advance travel booking data suggests that many travelers will head to popular European destinations like Rome, London, Dublin and Paris, and warm-weather locales in Mexico and the Caribbean, including Cancun, Montego Bay and Punta Cana, with most travelers in search of unique experiences.

AAA’s survey revealed that 80 percent of Americans have taken at least one vacation outside the United States, and two in five of those, or nearly 77 million adults, have rented or used a personal vehicle while doing so.

Aligning with this finding, AAA reports a 33 percent increase in International Driving Permits (IDPs) sold in the last five years (through 2018).

An international driving vacation comes with additional planning considerations and paperwork for which travelers need to be prepared.

More than 150 countries accept IDPs; many countries do not recognize U.S. driver’s licenses without an accompanying IDP, and it is illegal to drive without a valid license and insurance in most places.

An IDP is a legal document that translates U.S. driver’s license information into 10 foreign languages and AAA is one of only two entities authorized by the U.S. Department of State to issue IDPs.

These are the top-10 international travel destinations, based on AAA Travel bookings, for American trips over the next 18 months:

Rome, Italy

Cancun, Mexico

London, England

Dublin, Ireland

Paris, France

Montego Bay, Jamaica

Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Munich, Germany

Barcelona, Spain