Florida travelers forecast to set new records for Memorial Day
MIAMI - Get ready for a busy Summer travel season.
Floridians are forecast to travel in record numbers for the Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial kick-off to summer travel.
According to AAA's 2023 Memorial Day Travel Forecast, nearly 2.4 million Floridians will journey 50 miles or more. That's 172,000 more than last year and 96,000 more than before the pandemic, in 2019. An estimated 2.1 million Floridians will drive, which is 137,000 more than last year. Meanwhile, 208,000 are forecast to fly, which is 25,000 more passengers than last year's holiday.
"Despite various inflationary pressures, consumer spending is strong, and Americans still want to travel. Because of that, we've seen demand come roaring back, beyond pre-pandemic levels in Florida," said Debbie Haas, Vice President of Travel for AAA - The Auto Club Group.
For the Memorial Day weekend, Friday, May 26 will be the busiest day on the roads, according to INRIX, a provider of transportation data and insights. The best times to travel by car, during the holiday weekend, will be in the morning or evening after 6 p.m. The lightest traffic days will be Saturday and Sunday.
While the state numbers are high, national travel numbers are still slightly below pre-pandemic levels. AAA projects a total of 42.3 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home this Memorial Day weekend. That's 2.7 million more travelers than last year, but fewer people than what was reported in 2019 (42.8 million) and 2005 (44 million).
Memorial Day road trips are up 6 % from last year. An estimated 37.1 million Americans will drive to their destinations. That's 2 million more than last year, but 500,000 fewer than 2019 numbers.
Despite higher ticket prices, demand for flights is soaring. AAA predicts the strongest air travel numbers since 2005. Nearly 3.4 million travelers are expected to fly for the holiday weekend. That's 33,700 (11%) more passengers than last year, and 170,000 (5.4%) more than in 2019.
