The Memorial Day weekend – the unofficial start of the summer travel season in the United States – is expected to be quite busy. At airports, it is likely to be busier than in 2019, the year before the pandemic. This is the forecast from the AAA organization, released this Monday (15).
The automotive and travel planning group expects 42.3 million Americans to travel 50 miles or more from home over the holiday weekend. This represents a 7% increase compared to 2022 or 2.7 million more people. For the group, this signals what travelers should expect this summer.
“More Americans are planning trips and booking them in advance, despite inflation,” said Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel, in a statement. “This summer travel season could go down in the record books, especially at airports.”
Air travel is expected to increase by 11% compared to last year, with 3.4 million people expected to fly over the holiday weekend. This number exceeds 2019 levels by 5.4% – or 170,000 more passengers.
AAA says that the Memorial Day weekend could be the busiest at airports since 2005.
Overall, the weekend is expected to be the third busiest Memorial Day holiday since 2000. The total number of travelers expected is just 1% below 2019 levels.
The majority of travelers will drive to their destinations over the holiday weekend. Road trips are expected to increase by 6% compared to last year, with more than 37 million Americans hitting the road.
The price of gasoline this year is lower than last year. On Friday (12), the national average price for regular gasoline was $3.542, down from $4.418 a year ago.
The worst time to be on the roads during the holiday weekend? Friday afternoon, from 3 PM to 6 PM, according to AAA. On the return trip, Monday between noon and 3 PM will be the worst time to be on the roads.
Source: CNN