Be prepared for record-breaking holiday travel, AAA says

AUSTIN, Texas – Millions of Americans are hitting the roads and the skies ahead of the holiday week. 

AAA says 2024 marks a record-breaking travel year nationally.

“From the 21st of December to the 1st of January 2025, we’re looking at 9.1 million Texans that will be traveling over the year-end holidays. It’s a 2% increase over last year,” said AAA spokesperson Daniel Armbruster.

Armbruster says 8.5 million Texans will be traveling by car, and 413,000 will be catching flights.

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“When we look at the Texas forecast, it is the second-highest travel volume for the year and holidays that AAA has projected,” said Armbruster.

2019 broke the record for Texas in travel volume, but nationally it will be the busiest year for holiday travel on record. Armbruster says about 119 million Americans are expected to travel over the holidays.

“The 22nd is expected to be the busiest day on the roadways throughout the entire travel period. Today is expected to be busy on major arteries like interstate 35. Major metro areas throughout the state will have extra congestion. Holiday travelers hitting the road trying to get to their destination,” said Armbruster.

It’s no different here in Austin as holiday travel is in full swing at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

AUS says it’s expecting around 30,000 travelers each day and it’s estimated that around 150,000 travelers will come through the airport for the total travel period.

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Some passengers planned around the anticipated volume.

“I’ve had some difficult experiences, and I usually like to get up pretty decently early,” said one traveler.

“Come early. Super early. Very early. And just come. When you get here, you’re going to see chaos. But calm down. Like, breathe it in. Be patient,” said another AUS traveler.

“I remember last Christmas waiting in the line to get through TSA. It was two hours, and it was at four in the morning. So, I decided that I would come very early,” said another traveler.

Officials stress giving yourself plenty of time to get to your destination. AAA recommends getting to the airport 2.5 hours early for domestic travel and three hours early for international travel.