Predicted record-breaking July 4 holiday travel numbers a sign of economic strength, AAA says

Here come the out-of-office emails.

Travel industry experts are predicting record numbers of Americans will be traveling over the long July 4 holiday this year. AAA officials said more than 70.9 million are expected to venture 50 miles or more away from home, up 5% from last year.

“For our money, this is our single highest Fourth of July travel period,” J. Skyler McKinley, the regional director of public affairs for AAA, told The Denver Gazette in a phone interview Thursday.

With projections that outpace the pre-COVID numbers of 2019 by 8%, AAA said it’s a sure sign the U.S. travel economy has finally bounced back.

“This is the year we’re returning to normal. In fact, we’ve surpassed normal,” McKinley said.

McKinley noted that the Independence Day holiday is a bit unique this year in that it really stretches across two weekends because July 4 falls on a Thursday.

Most of those travelers will be hitting the road, AAA said, with a projected 60.6 million people expected to travel by car.

Denverites who plan to drive over the July 4 holiday should be met with favorable gas prices when compared with last year. At $3.30 per gallon on average, the prices are about 40 cents per gallon cheaper than last year, McKinley said, noting that Denver has not seen the large gas price increases many predicted with the EPA-mandated switch to reformulated gas this summer.

“It’s still a road trip holiday,” McKinley said. “But we are still seeing increases across all modes of travel: Planes, trains, cruise ships, buses — it’s a really robust travel year.”

Denver International Airport said it expects to see record numbers of air travelers pass through its TSA checkpoints. Officials projected 878,000 travelers will pass through between June 28 and July 9, with the busiest days expected to be June 28 and 30, and July 7 and 8. The projected numbers are up 4.7% from last year, airport officials said.

“Passengers are encouraged to arrive inside the airport at least two hours in advance of their boarding time to ensure they have plenty of time to check baggage, travel through security and arrive at their gate,” airport officials said in a news release.

Airport officials said to keep in mind there could be longer security waits during key peak times: 3 to 4:30 a.m., 7 to 9 a.m. and 3 to 5 p.m.

Real-time security wait-time information can be found at flydenver.com.

The influx of summer air travelers makes sense when you consider AAA said Denver ranked as the ninth most popular destination in the U.S. this holiday weekend.

McKinley said even though there’s been a lot of “doom and gloom” talk about a sluggish U.S. economy, the consumer travel numbers are not bearing that out. Americans have decided they’re going to travel, he said.

“Maybe (the economy) is not as bad as people are saying,” McKinley said.