Millennials Cashing In On Cheap Flights Mid-Outbreak

NBC News spoke with one college student named Ashley Henkel who has booked three flights to Vancouver, New York City and Portland: “I feel like if the coronavirus would get even more serious and like wipe out a large amount of people, I might as well be somewhere having fun.”

March 11, 2020 at 1:13 pm
CORONAVIRUS, LIFESTYLE, NEWS

Contributed by Diamond Bullock

The coronavirus outbreak has led to unbeatable one-way and round-trip flight deals for both domestic and international travel. Flights that would usually be skyrocketed in price due to location and/or date are almost dirt cheap. Millennials are taking advantage of these cost-efficient travel options because, according to CNBC, the Center of Disease Control “is recommending people with underlying conditions or who are over 60 to stock up on medications, household items and groceries to stay at home.” This has been loosely interpreted as millennials being at lower risk and able to travel to see family, see new sights, or just have fun.

NBC News spoke with one college student named Ashley Henkel who has booked three flights to Vancouver, New York City and Portland: “I feel like if the coronavirus would get even more serious and like wipe out a large amount of people, I might as well be somewhere having fun.” Her care-free attitude is shared by many millennials on social media who have been making jokes about traveling during the outbreak:


The Chicago Tribune spoke with several key figures in the travel industry, including Hayley Berg, an economist at Hopper, who confirmed that flight deals are definitely unbeatable: “We’re seeing fantastic deals (from Chicago) to Miami, San Diego, Orlando, New Orleans, Phoenix — 40 to 70% off what we’d typically see.” Although millennials are taking advantage of these deals, the majority is not, and the travel industry is suffering. Many of these discounted flights still have numerous empty seats, as seen in this video by ABC News: