Increased Travel Anticipated for the Holidays
Falling gas prices are projected to drive a record 122.4 million Americans to travel during the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, according to estimates from the American Automobile Association (AAA).
This figure marks a 2.2% increase from last year’s previous high of 119.7 million travelers who journeyed at least 50 miles between December 20 and January 1. AAA has been monitoring winter holiday travel trends since 2000.
The AAA report highlights that gas prices have significantly decreased from an average of $3.04 per gallon last year, encouraging more Americans to take road trips at a higher rate than in recent years.
“For the first time in four years, the national average dropped below $3 a gallon this month, and prices may continue to decline as we approach the end of 2025,” stated Ragina Ali, a spokeswoman for AAA Mid-Atlantic.
The forecast indicates that approximately 109.5 million Americans will opt for driving as their mode of transportation during this holiday season, reflecting a 2% rise from last year’s 107.4 million and accounting for 89% of all travelers. This is an increase compared to an annual average growth rate of just 1.4% observed between 2019 and 2025.
An estimated additional 8.03 million individuals are expected to fly this season, which is up by 2.3% from last year’s figure of 7.85 million and marks the first instance where air travel surpasses eight million during this period; however, it remains lower than the estimated annual increase of air travelers by about 12% between 2019 and now.
According to AAA data based on booking costs, round-trip domestic flights are averaging nearly $900 per ticket this year—about a 7% increase compared to last year.
A total of around 4.9 million people are anticipated to travel via bus, train, or cruise ship, representing a notable increase of about 9% from last year’s count of approximately 4.49 million.
The projections follow AAA’s earlier estimates indicating that low gas prices and challenges in air travel contributed to record-high numbers during the Thanksgiving weekend with around 81.8 million travelers.
The recent federal government shutdown led to significant disruptions in flight schedules as some baggage handlers and air traffic controllers were unable to report for duty.
Experts believe these flight volume restrictions may have deterred many potential travelers from booking airline tickets for the holidays.
AAA advises those with flexible schedules to consider traveling during off-peak times to avoid heavy congestion.
According to INRIX, a transportation industry researcher partnered with AAA, the busiest days for road travel this winter are expected on December 19-21—the weekend before Christmas—and December 26th. Conversely, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day are predicted to experience lighter traffic conditions.
