AAA expecting a record number of road trips this summer

The first unofficial weekend of summer, also known as Memorial Day weekend, is right around the corner, and Americans are gearing up to see new sights, according to AAA.

ReginaRose Lott is getting ready to travel to Walt Disney World for her daughter’s 13th birthday celebration Memorial Day weekend.

“I feel like when school’s out, we should take advantage of it. I want to see everything. I want my daughter to see everything,” Lott said.

Lott is no stranger to traveling on trains, planes and in the car, and this is the first of several trips she’s planning for this summer.

“I think that’s the biggest thing about going on vacation now. You’re not going to wing it so much. I think people are planning. They’re looking at what their options are and trying to keep it so that it doesn’t break a budget,” Lott said.

People are factoring in cost of traveling amid inflation.

AAA is expecting to see road trips reach a record high this year.

“We’re seeing the price of gas about 5 cents higher than last year in New York, maybe about 8 cents higher on the national level, which is not necessarily good news for drivers’ wallets. But I think a lot of folks still have the memory of 2022, when prices got as high as $5 a gallon, so that marginal difference of 5 to 8 cents isn’t really deterring people from hitting the road,” said Alec Slatky, managing director of public and government affairs for AAA Northeast.

Slatky said AAA is predicting air travel to exceed pre-pandemic levels by 9%.

“We’re seeing flights in some cases go higher. In some cases, go lower. I think, you know, for particular routes, some folks are getting a little bit of sticker shock. But I think a lot of folks really just want to get out there and travel and are willing to spend a little bit more if it’s for that destination that they really want to go to,” Slatky said.

Lott said traveling on a budget comes down to staying organized. This is something she reminds herself and other tourists, as she plans trips for visitors to go to the Hudson Valley.

“There’s really, really good deals, especially to Europe and everything, but you just have to search them and be willing to go by the schedules or what’s offered,” Lott said. “I think now that we use all these search engines, you have a lot more information that’s available to you.”

For the upcoming Memorial Day weekend alone, AAA is expecting 38.4 million people to travel by car and 3.51 million to fly.