AAA: Holiday travel expected to break records

AAA NORTHEAST SAID 103.1 million travelers are expected to travel at least 50 miles from home during the year-end holiday season. / COURTESY AAA NORTHEAST
AAA NORTHEAST SAID 103.1 million travelers are expected to travel at least 50 miles from home during the year-end holiday season. / COURTESY AAA NORTHEAST

PROVIDENCE – Holiday travel is expected to break records this season, AAA Northeast said Thursday.
More than 103 million Americans, including more than 4.4 million in New England, are expected to travel for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. That represents a 1.5 percent increase overall compared with last year, AAA said.
New England is expected to have an even larger increase at 2.5 percent, AAA said.
The holiday period is defined as Dec. 23 to Jan. 2.
“This year more Americans than ever will travel to celebrate the holidays and enjoy time with friends and family,” Lloyd P. Albert, AAA Northeast senior vice president of public and government affairs, said in a statement. “Rising incomes, relatively low gas prices and a generally favorable economic outlook should make for a successful holiday travel season.”
Most travelers – 93.6 million people – will take a holiday road trip 50 miles or more from home, a 1.5 percent increase compared with last year. Air travel is expected to rise 2.5 percent, with more than 6 million Americans flying to their holiday destinations.
AAA estimates that U.S. drivers have saved more than $27 billion at the gas pumps so far this year.
“The current Rhode Island average price of $2.23 for gasoline is the same as it was in mid-July, so motorists are unlikely to make price a factor when deciding how far to drive,” Albert said. “Hoteliers, restaurateurs, gas station owners and others dependent on the traveling public will likely be direct beneficiaries of this projected record-setting travel season.”
The most popular destinations this holiday season, based on AAA.com bookings, are:

  • Las Vegas
  • Orlando, Fla.
  • New York City
  • San Diego
  • Anaheim, Calif.

More than 980,000 motorists are expected to be rescued over the 11-day holiday travel period, with the primary reasons being dead batteries, flat tires and lockouts, AAA said.

AAA’s projections are based on economic forecasting and research by London-based IHS Markit, which has worked with AAA since 2009 to analyze travel trends during major holidays.

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