It may still be the heart of winter, but travelers are already looking forward to a warm weather escape in time for spring break. And this year, Florida is topping travelers’ lists.
Fort Lauderdale was the top-searched destination for spring break, according to data from Spirit Airlines shared with Travel + Leisure. The area is renowned for its 24 miles of beaches and 300 miles of inland waterways, according to Visit Lauderdale, where travelers can go boating, kayaking, fishing, paddle-boarding, and more.
Visitors can also depend on warm weather in the spring with daily high temperatures in April typically hovering around 80 degrees Fahrenheit, according to WeatherSpark.
Overall, Florida cities were so popular, they accounted for four out of the top 10 most-searched for destinations, according to Spirit.
After Fort Lauderdale, the city of San Juan, Puerto Rico, was Spirit’s second-most searched spring break destination. Home to hundreds of beaches, the island is also a major cruise port, with lines like Disney Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, and Virgin Voyages all operating there.Â
San Juan is also a popular destination for sports fans with some of the MLB World Baseball Classic games set to take place there in March.
The cities of Miami, Fort Myers, and Cancun rounded out the top five on the list.Â
“Spring break is all about soaking up the sun, and after many of our Guests endured a very cold winter, we make it easy for them to get there with our unmatched value,” Rana Ghosh, the senior vice president and chief commercial officer at Spirit Airlines, said in a statement shared with T+L. “With our convenient service and affordable travel options to top leisure destinations, the hardest part of planning a spring getaway will be deciding where to go.”
To come up with its list of the most-searched for destinations, Spirit looked at searches between Jan. 5 and Feb. 5 for travel during the spring break period of March 6 to April 26, the airline told T+L.Â
To lock in the best possible prices on flights, travelers should try to book at least one to three months in advance for domestic trips.
This is the full list of the most-searched destinations for spring break, according to Spirit.
Fort Lauderdale, FloridaSan Juan, Puerto RicoMiami, FloridaFort Myers, FloridaCancun, MexicoMyrtle Beach, South CarolinaPunta Cana, Dominican RepublicSt. Thomas, U.S. Virgin IslandsArubaPensacola, Florida