The average American would drop everything and travel the world if they had $287,731 in the bank.

That’s the verdict of a new survey of 2,000 people which pinpointed the financial amount the average person feels they’d need to quit their current job and pick up their suitcase.

Not surprisingly, the amount needed to drop everything and pursue their biggest travel dreams rises the older a person is: Gen Z named $211,000 as their quitting point, while boomers wouldn’t do it for anything less than $335,000.

The survey, conducted by Talker Research on behalf of Travelbinger, saw that people won’t drop everything cheaply.

A third (32%) of respondents said it’d take more than $500,000 to prioritize seeing the world. 

32% of respondents stated that they would need more than $500,000 in their bank account to go explore the world. Brocreative – stock.adobe.com

Although, one in six (18%) would set sail for less than $50,000 and a similar number (17%) said there’s no figure at all they could be paid that they’d take to go and travel the world.

The survey then asked respondents how they would spend a travel budget of $1 million if it landed in their laps today.

Generosity topped the list as Americans were most likely to say they’d start off planning their million-dollar spending by taking their friends and family on a dream vacation.

Exploring historical sites and world wonders like the Great Pyramids, the Colosseum and the Taj Mahal was the second-most common answer to how to prioritize a million-dollar travel budget.

Many travelers would prioritize taking a road trip across the U.S. if they had enough money to travel. Artem Varnitsin – stock.adobe.com

The second most popular thing would be to hit the open road– nearly a quarter said they’d indulge in road-tripping across the U.S. or another country.

Building a bucket list of travel goals and working through them for things like African safari, the Northern Lights or diving the Great Barrier Reef also featured prominently.

Naturally with a nice travel windfall, many would indulge in sampling luxury resorts and accommodations. 

The majority of respondents would like to take their friends and family on a vacation if they had a million-dollar travel budget. kuznetsov_konsta – stock.adobe.com

While 18% said they’d embrace the art of slow traveling–taking their time in each location to really experience each place.

And 4% said that if they received a million dollars for travel they would give it back as they aren’t interested in traveling.

TOP WAYS AMERICANS WOULD SPEND A MILLION-DOLLAR TRAVEL BUDGET

  1. Taking family or friends on a dream vacation (37%)
  2. Road-tripping across the U.S. or another country (24%)
  3. Visiting famous landmarks (21%)
  4. Exploring historical sites or world wonders (19%)
  5. Building a ‘travel bucket list’ and ticking off every item (18%)
  6. Frequent weekend getaways to new destinations (18%)
  7. Slow traveling—spending months in each location (18%)
  8. Luxury accommodations (17%)
  9. Extended stay in a dream destination (15%)
  10. Volunteering or giving back while traveling (12%)
  11. Immersive cultural experiences (11%)
  12. Traveling to every continent (11%)
  13. Booking luxury transportation (9%)
  14. Learning a new skill or language while living abroad (9%)
  15. Luxury worldwide cruises (13%)
  16. Private jet travel (8%)
  17. Around-the-world plane tickets (8%)
  18. Exploring off-the-beaten-path destinations (8%)
  19. Attending major global events (8%)

Survey methodology:

Talker Research surveyed 2,000 general population Americans with 1,000 men and 1,000 women; the survey was administered and conducted online by Talker Research between Friday, Jan. 31 and Monday, Feb. 3, 2025.



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