Holiday travel expected to bounce back

VW independent staff

If you’re planning on traveling for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, you certainly won’t be alone.

Roads and airports may seem jam-packed this year as travel industry giant AAA predicts 53.4 million people, including 2.2 million Ohioans, will travel for the Thanksgiving holiday between Wednesday, November 24 and Sunday, November 28.

It’s an increase of 13 percent from 2020 and it brings travel volumes within five percent of pre-pandemic levels in 2019, with air travel almost completely recovering from its dramatic fall during the pandemic, up 80 percent over last year.

As restrictions continue to lift and consumer confidence builds, AAA urges travelers to be proactive when making their travel plans this holiday season.

“This Thanksgiving, travel will look a lot different than last year,” said Paula Twidale, senior vice president, AAA Travel. “Now that the borders are open and new health and safety guidelines are in place, travel is once again high on the list for Americans who are ready to reunite with their loved ones for the holiday.”

With 6.4 million more people traveling this Thanksgiving coupled with the recent opening of the U.S. borders to fully vaccinated international travelers—people should prepare for roads and airports to be noticeably more crowded.

This year’s forecast marks the highest single-year increase in Thanksgiving travelers since 2005. Despite gas costing over a dollar more per gallon than this time last year, 90 percent of people plan to travel by car as their preferred mode of travel.

For those planning to travel for Thanksgiving, AAA offers these tips:

• Hit the road when there’s less traffic and allow for extra time when traveling to your destination.
• Arrive at the airport early so you’ll have plenty of time to get through longer TSA lines and other travel checkpoints.
• For domestic travel, it’s suggested to arrive at the airport at least two hours ahead of departure time and at least three hours for international travel.
• Consider booking a flight during non-peak travel periods to cut down on wait times.

AAA is reminding travelers that masks are still required for everyone on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling into, within, or out of the United States and in U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations.