HAWAII - High inflation in the United States is likely to weigh on tourism demand and consumer spending during the summer holiday peak season.

A recent poll conducted by Redfield and Wilton Strategies on behalf of Newsweek shows that the higher cost of living has made 49 percent of Americans abandon any travel plans for the next three months, while 60 percent of those who are going for summer vacations said affordability played a huge role in their planning.

In Hawaii, one of the most popular domestic holiday destinations in the U.S., the number of visitors has increased since March last year, but is still below the pre-pandemic level in 2019, according to a report from the University of Hawaii's Economic Research Organization.

In terms of total spending, data shows that due to inflation, visitor expenditures in March this year were 7 percent higher than in 2019.

"I've been here, this is my third visit here. [I spend about] 500 dollars more than the last time we came here, about 2018. I can tell by some of the prices on things that inflation is taking its toll on some things, food and fuel and your necessities, things, daily needs,” said Dan Atherton, a regular visitor from Illinois, USA.

U.S. annual inflation slowed to 3 percent last month, the smallest annual rate since March 2021, according to the latest CPI released Wednesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Despite the latest encouraging reading, getting inflation back down to the targeted 2 percent has a long way to go, according to the U.S. Federal Reserve.