D3sign | Moment | Getty ImagesSome aspects of travel are pricier than ever amid pent-up demand.”The big cities and the popular [international] destinations — Paris, Rome, Madrid, Lisbon, Milan — those are off the charts,” Sofia Markovich, a travel advisor and founder of Sofia’s Travel, said of trip cost. “I look at this every day and I’m just shaking my head like, wow.”But fear not: There are ways for price-conscious travelers to satiate their wanderlust without breaking the bank.”People should be prepared not just for a busy travel season, but an expensive travel season,” said Sally French, a travel expert at NerdWallet. “The good news is: There’s hope.”Often, scoring the best deal may mean staying flexible and planning well ahead of time, experts said. Here’s what you need to know about the current market, and how to save.More from Personal Finance:This is the ‘best defense’ against inflation, says financial advisorEgg prices crashed 11% in March — and more relief may followHere’s the inflation breakdown for March 2023 — in one chartInternational travel costs have hit record highsThe Eiffel Tower and Seine River at sunrise in Paris.Alexander Spatari | Moment | Getty ImagesConsumers are traveling again after a few years of shelving plans during the pandemic. That pent-up demand has been reinforced by an easing of pandemic-era travel restrictions around the world.On average, American travelers expect to take 3.5 leisure trips in the next 12 months, up from 2.9 a year ago, according to a recent poll by Destination Analysts, a tourism market research firm.The so-called “revenge travel” dynamic has helped to push up prices, perhaps most acutely for travel abroad.For example, a round-trip airline ticket to Europe is now about $1,000 — 20% more expensive relative to this time in 2019 and 32% more costly than last year, said Hayley Berg, lead economist at Hopper, a travel app. A round-trip flight to Asia costs $1,600 — about 60% pricier than a 2019 ticket, she said.These are record high prices, Berg said. It’s an especially notable shift considering that prices had generally been falling for international travel before the pandemic.People should be prepared not just for a busy travel season, but an expensive travel season.Sally Frenchtravel expert at NerdWalletThis summer is expected to be the busiest on record for international …
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