AAA predicts nearly 1.3 million more people than last year will be traveling for Thanksgiving

Isabella Vesperini, Indiana Public Media

AAA projects that over 55 million people are expected to travel for Thanksgiving, an increase of 2.3 percent since last year.

According to AAA, most people are going to travel between Wednesday and Sunday, the official 2023 Thanksgiving holiday period. The number of those driving is expected to increase by 1.7 percent since last year, surpassing 49.1 million drivers.

“2023 car volume will be the third highest on record and just 800,000 below the 2019 all-time high,” a AAA representative said. “Gas prices for October averaged $3.63, $0.20 below a year ago but higher than any other year in over a decade.”

AAA said approximately 4.7 million people will be flying for Thanksgiving this year, about 290,000 more people than last year. The number of those traveling by plane will be at its highest since 2005. Nearly 2.4 million more people have flown since 2020.

“Strong employment is pushing wage gains higher, and with inflation cooling from last year’s highs, consumers are expected to spend nearly six percent more than last year,” the representative said.