Fri, Aug 4th, 2023 - 4:40am
May 22, 2022 - 6:00pm | By Kyle Cornell
(Fargo, ND) -- Memorial Day weekend is expected to be the busiest in three years, building on a travel resurgence that began earlier this spring. This year’s forecast marks the second highest single-year increase in travelers since 2010 (2021 was the highest), bringing volumes almost in line with pre-pandemic levels.
“By the looks of this Memorial Day travel forecast, the summer travel season is off to a sizzlin’ start,” said Debbie Haas, Vice President of Travel for AAA. “People are more comfortable traveling now than any other time in the past two years, and travel bookings are a reflection of that. Reservations for flights, hotels and cruises for Memorial Day weekend are twice as strong as last year’s holiday and that momentum will likely carry into the summer.”
AAA predicts more than 39.2 million Americans will travel for the holiday weekend. The 8.3% increase from 2021 puts travel volumes in line with 2017 figures.
Other figures to take note of include:
- Total expected travelers up 3 million from 2021 (39.2 million in 2022, from 36.2 million)
- Car travel is king, with 89% (34.9 million) of people hitting the road for travel on Memorial Day
- Over 3 million people will take to the skies
- Over three times the amount of people will take buses, trains and cruises in 2022 compared to 2021 (1.33 million to 440,000)
For purposes of this forecast, the Memorial Day holiday travel period is defined as the five days from Thursday, May 26th to Monday, May 30th.
