AAA projects 42.3 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home this Memorial Day weekend, a 7% increase from 2022. This year, 2.7 million more people will travel for the unofficial start of summer compared to last year. This is expected to be the third-busiest Memorial Day weekend since 2000, when AAA started tracking holiday travel.
“The world has reopened and there is a lot of pent-up demand for travel,” said Bevi Powell, senior vice president, AAA East Central. “From unique destinations like Egypt to the always popular beach trips and cruises, more Americans are planning those special vacations this summer with family and friends.”
Nearly 3.4 million travelers are expected to fly to their destinations this Memorial Day, an increase of 11% from last year. Air travel over the holiday weekend is projected to exceed pre-pandemic levels, with 170,000 more passengers — or 5.4% more — than in 2019. Despite high ticket prices, demand for flights is skyrocketing. This Memorial Day weekend could be the busiest at airports since 2005.
Memorial Day road trips are up 6% from last year. More than 37 million Americans will drive to their destinations, an increase of more than 2 million. Gas prices are lower this holiday compared to last year, when the national average was more than $4 a gallon. Despite the lower prices at the pump, car travel this holiday will be shy of pre-pandemic numbers by about 500,000 travelers.
More people this holiday are taking other modes of transportation, such as buses and trains. These travelers are expected to total 1.85 million, an increase of 20.6% from 2022.
