NEW YORK, NY - Vacation rental search engine HomeToGo has revealed the results of its annual Beach Price Index. The ranking, which includes HomeToGo’s 50 most-popular U.S. beach destinations for 2019 based on search volume, exposes the vast gulf that separates the nation’s most affordable and most expensive beaches. With nine of the top ten cheapest locations situated on the East Coast, compared to seven of the top ten most expensive being situated on the West Coast, budget-savvy beach goers are likely to throw shade on the Pacific this spring break.
In order to rank the beaches based on price, seven factors were researched:
- Parking
- Sunscreen
- A bottle of water
- A portion of fish tacos
- A beer
- A cocktail
- Accommodation for one night
Visitor bureaus and online tools provided parking prices for spring 2019, and local retailers were consulted for the price of a bottle of water. Online menus were used to determine the price of fish tacos, beers, and cocktails in a restaurant close to the beach. HomeToGo used its own metasearch data to forecast the average cost of accommodation (per person per night) for spring 2019. Jacksonville Beach sails to the top of this year’s ranking, while Newport Beach takes a dive and sinks to the bottom of the list.
The three cheapest beaches for spring 2019 are forecast to be*:
Beach | Parking | Sunscreen | Water | Tacos | Beer | Cocktail | Accom | Total | |
1 | Jackson-ville Beach | $5.00 | $7.43 | $1.17 | $15.00 | $4.00 | $6.00 | $24.32 | $62.92 |
2 | Nye Beach, Newport | Free | $6.97 | $1.57 | $10.95 | $3.00 | $7.00 | $34.87 | $64.36 |
3 | Coligny Beach Park | Free | $7.47 | $1.43 | $15.00 | $3.00 | $7.00 | $35.73 | $69.63 |
The three most expensive beaches for spring 2019 are forecast to be*:
Beach | Parking | Sunscreen | Water | Tacos | Beer | Cocktail | Accom | Total | |
48 | Man- hattan Beach | $10.00 | $7.56 | $1.62 | $18.95 | $5.00 | $12.00 | $53.58 | $108.71 |
49 | Carmel Beach | Free | $7.56 | $1.53 | $15.00 | $4.00 | $11.00 | $80.24 | $119.33 |
50 | Corona del Mar | $22.00 | $7.56 | $1.50 | $12.00 | $5.00 | $12.00 | $60.50 | $120.56 |
“Beaches have an irresistible pull on travelers all around the globe, and the U.S. is no exception” said Head of Inbound Marketing, Joanna Booth. “We are excited to take a dip into the beach vacation market by producing this guide to our most popular destinations for spring break 2019, helping people discover which beach suits their geography and budget.”
Additional takeaways from this year’s Beach Price Index:
- A day at the most expensive beach in this year’s ranking (Corona del Mar, Newport Beach, CA) is 92% more expensive than the same day at Jacksonville Beach, FL, the cheapest beach in this year’s ranking.
- The Gulf of Mexico dominates this year’s ranking: 19 of the top 50 most popular beaches on the shortlist are situated there.
- 18 of the beaches in this year’s ranking are located on the East Coast; 13 of the beaches are located on the West Coast.
- None of HomeToGo’s top 50 most searched beaches are located on The Great Lakes.
- Florida is the best-represented state in this year’s ranking (20), followed by California (12), and The Carolinas (both with 4).
*All prices in USD. Please note that this is a forecast and that prices may change between now and June 2019. Local sales tax is not included in these prices, except in the sunscreen category.