Yet another holiday is set to break the record for most travelers after this past year's Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays outpaced historic highs.
According to AAA data, about 45.1 million people are expected to travel at least 50 miles from home during this Memorial Day holiday period, which is between May 22 and May 26. That number would surpass the previous record of 44 million people set in 2005 and is a year-over-year increase of 1.4 million travelers.
“Memorial Day weekend getaways don’t have to be extravagant and costly,” said Stacey Barber, vice president of AAA Travel. “While some travelers embark on dream vacations and fly hundreds of miles across the country, many families just pack up the car and drive to the beach or take a road trip to visit friends. Long holiday weekends are ideal for travel because many people have an extra day off work and students are off from school.”
The vast majority of people plan to travel by car this Memorial Day. About 39.4 million of travelers will travel by car, or about 87.4%. About 3.6 million people will travel by air and another 2.1 million people will travel by another accommodation.
People traveling by car will enjoy lower gas prices than last year, which could contribute to the record-setting projections. The national average for a gallon of regular was $3.59 last Memorial Day; as of May 21, a gallon of regular is $3.18.
Flight prices, on the other hand, are 2% more expensive this year compared to 2024. This isn't stopping an identical 2% growth in air travelers year over year, though. The projection of 3.6 million air passengers would be a 12% increase on pre-pandemic levels.
The most popular domestic destinations this Memorial Day weekend include: Orlando, Florida; Seattle; New York City; Las Vegas; and Miami. The most popular international destinations include Rome, Vancouver, Paris, London and Athens.