Storms bringing rain, snow could impact your holiday travel across US

Christmas and Hanukkah are almost here, and while millions of Americans plan to hit the roads or take flight, the weather could rear its head in many places.

Between Dec. 21 and New Year’s Day, almost 120 million Americans are expected to travel this holiday season, according to AAA. Due to Christmas Day and the first night of Hanukkah falling on Wednesday, the weekend before and after are “in play for travelers,” Mark Schieldrop, senior spokesperson for AAA Northeast said in a statement.

“We continue to see demand for travel soar at this time of year as Americans visit family and friends and take in new destinations,” Schieldrop added.

New England should see cold and dry conditions for most of the day Monday until the afternoon on Tuesday, where snow showers are expected to fall across the region, according to the National Weather Service. Gone are Sunday and Monday’s frigid temperatures, as forecasters anticipate temperatures bumping up slightly into the low 30s in southern New England, with highs in the upper 20s and low 30s.

For anyone flying out of Logan International Airport in Boston on Monday or Tuesday, conditions should be dry with some clouds on Monday, according to AccuWeather. On Tuesday, the morning should see clouds with a 75% chance of snow, accumulating just over 1 tenth of an inch, the weather forecasting company also reported. By the afternoon, the skies should open up with sunshine to follow.

Late Monday and into early Tuesday, a weak clipper system should drop snow across southern New England, with the most accumulated snow (between 1 and 2 inches) expected to fall in the northern Worcester Hills and the Berkshires, the National Weather Service wrote in a post on X.

More broadly, the Northeast could see an overall wintry mix that’s “more spotty in nature,” AccuWeather reported. While major cities like Boston, New York City and Philadelphia have a chance of seeing a white Christmas Tuesday and Wednesday, the emphasis on snow lies further north. Each of these cities, along with the rest of southern New England and as south as Washington D.C. could see rain or snow.

“By Tuesday morning, places such as Baltimore and Philadelphia can see a period of sleet mixed with snow,” AccuWeather reported in a Monday update. “Commuters across the region should stay weather-aware and be careful for slick conditions, particularly on elevated surfaces like bridges and overpasses.”

The Northeast’s unsettled weather is expected to be the product of a storm pushing across the northern Plains, which could also deliver some snow and rain to the Great Lakes region, according to AccuWeather. Despite this, the western northcentral Midwestern states should see mostly dry conditions.

At the same time, further south through Texas, it is expected to be mild with some rain showers and thunderstorms extending from northeastern Texas through Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, southern Illinois and Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee, forecasters said. Travel conditions could be poor due to these storms.

Thunderstorms could cause delays for nighttime arrivals on Christmas Eve in St. Louis, Oklahoma City and/or Kansas City, the Boston Globe wrote.

The rest of the Southeast should be dry, with a chance for rain and showers along the eastern coasts of Florida, South and North Carolina, AccuWeather forecasters noted.

Conditions are expected to be dry and mild across Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico, stretching north to Wyoming and Montana, AccuWeather reported.

But a storm along California’s coast could bring heavy rainfall from Sunday through Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. Speaking with the Los Angeles Times, National Weather Service meteorologist Dial Hoang said the North Bay valleys could see as much as 3 inches of rain.

A lesser, fast-moving storm fueled by the storm in the North Bay is expected to last three hours on Christmas Eve in Los Angeles County, according to the National Weather Service. Most areas could expect to see a quarter of an inch of rain.

Travel conditions could be rough in the Northwest as snow and rain are expected to fall, AccuWeather wrote. Across Oregon and Washington, including in Portland and Seattle, rain is expected to fall with pockets of heavier rain, the Globe wrote. Snow is largely expected to fall towards the mountains in the interior.