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AAA is estimating that 119.3 million people will travel 50 miles or more from home over the year-end holidays from December 21st to January 1st. This equals three million more travelers than 2023 and 64,000 more than the record set in 2019 before the pandemic.
Almost 90% of holiday travelers will be hitting the roads and driving to their destinations. 107 million people are expected to travel by car, which is 2.5 million more than last year and a just a little shy of 2019’s 108 million travelers. This holiday season, gas prices are lower than last year. AAA’s car rental partner Hertz says that Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Oahu, Orlando, Phoenix, and Tampa are the cities with the highest rental demand. The busiest car pick-up days are December 20th and December 21st. The busiest day for rental returns is December 30th.
AAA expects air travel to set a new record this holiday season with 7.85 million passengers taking to the skies. That number beats the 7.5 million air travelers that achieved a record last year. Flights are 4% more expensive this holiday season compared to last year with the average domestic airfare at $830. International flights are 13 % more expensive, which makes the average around $1,630 a ticket.
Stacey Barber, Vice President of AAA Travel, said:
This is the time of year when lifelong memories are made with loved ones, and travel plays a big role in that. This year, with Christmas Day falling on a Wednesday, we’re anticipating record-breaking travel numbers the weekend before and the weekend after the holiday.”
Anthony’s Take: I’m still waiting for travel demand to decrease and it looks like I might keep waiting. Planes are full and people have still not scratched the travel itch.
(Image Credits: Markus Winkler and AAA.)
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
