Poll: Americans reconsidering travel

MCLEAN, Va., May 23 (UPI) -- As gas prices skyrocket, at least one-third of people in the United States are considering altering travel plans to cut vacation costs, a poll indicates.

Of the people changing plans, 37 percent said they are canceling vacations altogether and 25 percent are cutting trips short, the USA Today/Gallup Poll said.

"We're pretty close to the toughest summer ever, at least for consumers," Rick Seaney, head of Farecompare.com, a Web site used to search for flight rates, told USA Today.

Many businesses that count on tourists in summer months are also feeling the impact of increased gas prices, USA Today reported.

"It's looking very bad. People just aren't coming," said Jackie Gentry, manager of the Seashore Inn in Seaside, Ore.

As the average cost of a gallon of gas continues to rise, analysts predict travel plans will continue impacting families and businesses across the country through the summer, USA Today said.