But baseball is the big ticket for travelers. Sports Travel projects bookings of up to 3,000 travelers this coming season, not counting groups and contest programs. Annual growth has surpassed triple-digit percentages. When Big Apple teams are winning, baseball is very, very good to stadium tour businesses, operators say. Profession Sports Tours is the official road trip company of the Yankees and Mets.
Search engines turn up a number of options for the more financially frugal.
There is no night travel. This year, Buckley expects to book up to 950 fans, up 100 from last year. Arranging for both spring training and major league tours, his clients typically will want a nine-day trip. Next week, the Tourist clues you in on other ways to enjoy baseball - without shelling out major league prices. His column appears on Tuesdays.