Get ready for crowded roads, airports and cruise ship terminals for the Christmas-Hannukah-Kwanzaa-New Year’s holidays – as many as 3 million more than last year’s holiday season.
AAA projects a record 119.3 million people will travel 50 miles or more from home between Saturday, December 21 and Wednesday, January 1.
This year’s domestic travel projection is a bit more than the previous record set in 2019 by 64,000 travelers.
How We Are Traveling at Year-End
By Car:
Nearly 90% of holiday travelers will be driving to their destinations, making it the most popular way to travel. 107 million people are expected to travel by car, and while that number is 2.5 million higher than last year, it’s shy of 2019’s record of 108 million.
Many travelers, particularly families with young children, prefer the flexibility and lower cost that road trips provide.
This holiday season, gas prices are lower than last year, when the national average was around $3.12 in the last two weeks of 2023.
Gas demand in December goes down as the weather gets colder, more people work remotely, and holiday shoppers purchase their gifts online versus in person.
By Rental Car:
AAA car rental partner Hertz says Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Oahu, Orlando, Phoenix, and Tampa are the cities displaying the highest rental demand for the holidays.
The busiest car pick-up days are expected to be Friday, December 20 and Saturday, December 21. The busiest time for rental returns is expected to be the weekend and Monday after Christmas. The average length of rental is one week.
By Air:
AAA expects air travel to set a new record this holiday season with 7.85 million passengers.
That surpasses the previous record of 7.5 million air travelers last year. AAA booking data shows flights are 4% more expensive this holiday season compared to last year.
The average domestic ticket is $830. International flights are 13 % more expensive, averaging $1,630 a ticket.
By Other Modes:
The number of Americans traveling by bus, train, and cruise this holiday season is up nearly 10% compared to last year. AAA expects 4.47 million people will travel by other modes, including cruise ships.
That number is the highest it’s been in 20 years. Domestic cruise bookings are up 37% compared to last holiday season. Cruising is popular this time of year as many families enjoy celebrating the holidays aboard a ship full of activities and food.
Road Trip Safety Tips
With an additional 2.5 million travelers expected on the roads during this year-end holiday travel period, AAA urges drivers to prioritize safety with the following tips:
See Also – How to Avoid Road Rage
Follow Posted Speed Limits:
While it’s tempting to speed to save time, the facts don’t support it. Even minor increases in speed can make crashes deadly.
- Driving 80 mph instead of 75 mph over 100 miles saves only 5 minutes, hardly worth the risk.
- Speeding may feel faster but often leads to tragedy.
Drive Only When Alert and Refreshed:
Driving on 4-5 hours of sleep is as dangerous as driving with a 0.08 BAC (legal intoxication). Less than 4 hours of sleep? The risk doubles.
- Travel during hours you’re normally awake and avoid overnight drives.
- Steer clear of heavy meals, drowsy medications, and alcohol.
- For long trips, take breaks every 2 hours or 100 miles. Use these breaks to switch drivers if possible, or park at a safe location and nap for 20-30 minutes to recharge.
Slow Down, Move Over:
A roadside worker is killed every other week in the U.S. To help prevent these tragedies, AAA asks drives to Slow Down, Move Over.
- When you see an emergency responder on the side of the road assisting a stranded driver, reduce your speed.
- If possible, change lanes to give those crews room to do their jobs safely.
- All 50 states and the District of Columbia have Move Over laws in place.
Best/Worst Times to Drive
INRIX, a provider of transportation data and insights, expects drivers will experience the worst traffic delays the weekends before Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, with Sunday, Dec. 22 the absolute worst day to travel.
The holidays themselves are expected to have minimal congestion. Drivers in Boston, New York City, Seattle, and Washington, DC could see double the typical delays. Nationwide, travel times could be up to 30% longer.
AAA’s Top Holiday Destinations
The top holiday destinations listed below are based on AAA booking data from December 21, 2024 to January 1, 2025, and follows closely the same destinations as Thanksgiving 2024.
The economic variables used to forecast travel for the current holiday are leveraged from SPGMI’s proprietary databases. These data include macroeconomic drivers such as employment, output, household net worth, asset prices, including stock indices, interest rates, housing market indicators, and variables related to travel and tourism, including gasoline prices, airline travel, and hotel stays. AAA and SPGMI have quantified holiday travel volumes going back to 2000.
Because AAA forecasts focus on domestic leisure travel only, comparisons to TSA passenger screening numbers should not be made. TSA data includes all passengers traveling on both domestic and international routes. Additionally, TSA screens passengers each time they enter secured areas of the airport, therefore each one-way trip is counted as a passenger tally. AAA focuses on person-trips, which include the full round-trip travel itinerary. As a result, direct comparisons of AAA forecast volumes and daily TSA screenings represent different factors.
ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter is a journalist with 25+ years of experience as a newspaper and magazine writer, radio & TV news producer & reporter, and author of guidebooks and smartphone apps – all focusing on travel, automotive, the environment and your rights as a consumer.
ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter currently serves as President of the International Motor Press Assn. (IMPA).
ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter also is a member of the North American Travel Journalists Assn. (NATJA) and the North American Snowsports Journalists Assn. (NASJA).
Contact me at evelyn@ecoxplorer.com.
Copyright (C) Evelyn Kanter
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