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Labor Day Travel Costs Rise Amid AI Fears and Economic Concerns
Confirmed
In Short: Labor Day travelers are facing higher costs for flights and hotels, according to AAA and travel expert Pauline Frommer.
In a statement commemorating Labor Day, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) highlighted concerns about labor, including stagnant wages, job security, and the impact of artificial intelligence on employment. Archbishop Fabre expressed widespread concern that AI could lead to higher unemployment and fewer jobs that can support a family, particularly affecting young people.
The Church has brought the sacredness of the human person to the questions of work and labor for these last 135 years," Fabre said. "On AI, Fabre said, "there is widespread concern [it] will lead to higher unemployment and to fewer jobs that can support a family." He said young people are "the most impacted so far and also experience the most anxiety" about AI.
For those looking to save on travel costs, Frommer advised traveling during off-peak periods. "The best way to save money is always to travel when nobody else is," she said. Current market trends suggest drivers could pay more for gas this Labor Day weekend than they did a year ago, according to AAA.
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- It also cites data from a 2025 poll that showed that 70% of Americans believed it was unaffordable to have children, 13 points higher than the previous year.
- The Labor Day message echoed Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas on artificial intelligence.
- Labor Day travelers are facing higher costs for flights and hotels as they head out for the final holiday weekend of summer, according to AAA and travel expert Pauline Frommer.
- AAA booking data shows domestic airfare is up 2% compared with last year, averaging $750 for a round-trip ticket.
- Hotel prices are also rising, with domestic bookings up 9% and international hotel bookings up 12% compared with last Labor Day weekend, according to AAA.
- "We are seeing prices ticking up for airfares most definitely, but also for hotels, for rental cars, for cruise ships," Pauline Frommer, publisher of Frommer's Travel Guides, told FOX Business.
- Frommer said higher fuel prices tied to the war in Iran are one factor.
- Frommer also said airlines, hotels and other travel companies are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) to better predict how much customers are willing to pay.