When is the best time to travel for Thanksgiving? AAA data shows busiest times in Boston area.

BOSTON – Thanksgiving week travel could be a bit interesting in New England and beyond with the possibility of a large storm in the region on top of traditional holiday travel headaches.

Record holiday travel expected

According to AAA Northeast, holiday travel in 2024 is expected to be much busier than last year. The travel organization anticipates a record-setting 71.7 million people will travel by car over Thanksgiving, which would be 1.3 million more than 2023.

Air travel is also expected to increase to record-setting levels this year.

Jillian Young, director of public relations for AAA Northeast, said that while gas prices are down about 40 cents in the Boston area compared to this time last year, that isn’t necessarily the reason behind the high number of travelers.  

“Holiday travel is interesting in that even when gas prices are up, people really aren’t giving up their holiday travel. Even if they have to pay a little more, they aren’t giving up that trip,” she said.

Overall, it has been a big year for holiday travel in 2024. Holidays like Memorial Day and Fourth of July also saw increased people on the roads compared to past years.

When should you travel for Thanksgiving?

According to Young, the least amount of cars on the road this week will be on Thanksgiving Day.

She said the worst times to travel before Thanksgiving are Monday and Wednesday from 1-5 p.m. and Tuesday from 1-7 p.m. The best times those days are Monday before 11 a.m. and before 10 a.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday.

After Thanksgiving, AAA says the worst times to travel are Friday from 7-10 a.m., Saturday from 4-8 p.m., Sunday from 12-6 p.m. and Monday from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. The best times on those days to hit the road are after 1 p.m. on Friday and before 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

The best time to drive Monday is before 8 a.m. or after 7 p.m.

Holiday week storm possible

There is also a potential wrinkle to this year’s holiday travel. It’s possible that a sizeable storm could impact the northeast at the end of Thanksgiving week.

Young said anyone driving for Thanksgiving should do some last-minute checks on their vehicles before hitting the road, just to be safe.

“One of the things that you can do now just in case you are going to be traveling in a storm, it’s also a really good thing to do this time of year, is go ahead and check things like your wiper blades. Before this week it’s been a long time since we had any amount of considerable rain in this region and a lot of people’s wipers haven’t gotten used for a long time. Now’s the time to go ahead and check those,” Young said.

Young also suggested drivers check their headlights before heading out.