Those looking forward to traveling over the holidays need to start preparing now if they haven’t started already.
That’s advice from the AAA Auto Club which is predicting a strong rebound in holiday travel.
AAA Spokesman Nick Faustman explains that in the Midwest, nearly 1 in 5 people are expected to travel during the holiday season, despite an increase in gas prices and hard-to-find rental vehicles.
"It really relates back to some of that pent-up energy from pandemic era lockdowns really," said Faustman. "Along with that, I think people just may probably haven't seen their families much during the pandemic, and there's that really heavy desire to get out there and be with them.”
Additionally, Faustman says greater vaccine access, reopened borders and new health directives in the travel and hospitality industries will all contribute to increased travel. To offset the surge, Faustman says preparedness is key.
"Booking flights, booking car rentals, those types of things, booking your hotel room, anything you can do well before that time that you'll need it, absolutely a good idea right now," said Faustman. "We know that airports are going to be crazy busy.”
Nationally, AAA expects more than 53 million Americans to travel over for the Thanksgiving holiday, a 13 percent increase compared to last year.