Additional Information from AAA:

AAA is projecting nearly 218,000 Delawareans will travel over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, an increase of 1.7% over last year, setting a new record. Thanksgiving is the single busiest holiday for travel compared to others like Memorial Day and July 4.

 

As usual, the great majority of those travelers will be driving to their holiday destinations. AAA is projecting that more than 199,000 Delawareans (nearly 92% of local travelers) will be hitting the road, up 1.7% over last year.

 

AAA projects more than 13,000 Delawareans (more than 6% of local travelers) will travel to their Thanksgiving holiday destination by air, an increase of 0.5% over last year.

 

Other modes of travel – cruise ships, busses, and trains – will see a 5.5% increase over last year as more than 4,100 Delawareans utilize those modes of travel for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

 

“Thanksgiving is the busiest holiday for travel, as families and friends look forward to reconnecting over the holiday period,” said Jana Tidwell, Manager of Public and Government Affairs, AAA Mid-Atlantic. “Demand for travel continues to be strong. This coupled with remote work options and extended school holiday breaks means Thanksgiving travel volume is expected to set records again this year.”

 

The AAA Thanksgiving travel period is defined as the 7-day period from Tuesday, November 25 to Monday, December 1.

 

2025 Projected Thanksgiving Holiday Travelers – Delaware

 

NUMBER OF TRAVELERS	Total Population	2025 Travelers	Percent of population traveling			Percent change vs. 2024
Delaware TOTAL Auto, Air & Other	1,031,917*	217,734	21.1%			1.7%
Delaware Auto	91.5% of people travel by car	199,160	19.3%			1.7%
Delaware Air	6.2% of people travel by air	13,415	1.3%			0.5%
Delaware Other (train, bus, cruise, etc.)	1.9% of people travel by other modes	4,128	0.4%			5.5%
National TOTAL	342.3 million*	81.8 million		23.9%	2.0%
National Auto	89.6% of people travel by car	73.3 million		20.5%	1.8%
National Air	7.4% of people travel by air	6.0 million		2.6%	2.1%
National Other (train, bus, cruise, etc.)	3.0% of people travel by other modes	2.5 million		0.4%	8.6%

*U.S. Census Bureau (v2024)/MMGY Global

 

AAA’s National Travel Projections

AAA projects 81.8 million people will travel at least 50 miles from home over the Thanksgiving holiday period from Tuesday, November 25 to Monday, December 1. This year’s domestic travel forecast includes an additional 1.6 million travelers compared to last Thanksgiving, setting a new overall record.

 

AAA projects at least 73 million people will travel by car, that’s nearly 90 percent of Thanksgiving travelers. That figure could end up being higher if air travelers whose flights are cancelled, or people who want to avoid airports, decide to drive. This year, AAA projects an additional 1.3 million travelers on the road compared to last Thanksgiving but given recent flight reductions that number could be higher.

 

At the pump, drivers are paying about the same as last year, when the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.06 on Thanksgiving Day.

 

According to AAA, 6 million U.S. travelers are expected to take domestic flights over the Thanksgiving holiday period, a 2% increase compared to 2024. Given recent flight reductions, that number could end up being lower as flights get cancelled or travelers make other plans. The number of Thanksgiving air travelers over the past several years – with the exception of 2020 – has been between 5 and 6 million.

 

According to AAA data, which is based on what travelers paid when they booked their Thanksgiving trips, a roundtrip domestic flight is averaging $700 which is similar to last year. It’s cheaper to fly on Thanksgiving Day itself, but the flight home is what drives up the ticket price since Sunday and Monday are the busiest return days. Some travelers shorten or extend their Thanksgiving trips to avoid flying on peak days.

 

Travel by other modes is expected to increase by 8.5% to nearly 2.5 million people. Those travelers are taking trips by bus, train, and cruise. Buses and trains could see an uptick in last-minute bookings this year.

 

Be Patient

The roads and airports will be busy so plan ahead.

• Stay informed. Download airline and airport apps and set up notifications so you get up-to-the-minute flight information.
• Arrive at the airport early so you’ll have plenty of time to get through longer TSA lines and other travel checkpoints. For domestic travel, AAA suggests 2.5 hours ahead of departure time and 3 hours for international.
• Consider booking a flight during non-peak travel periods to cut down on wait times; traveling on Thanksgiving Day is usually the least busy and most cost effective day to travel.
• Hit the road when there’s less traffic and allow for extra time when traveling to your destination; in metropolitan areas traffic could be more than double what it typically is on a normal day.
• Have a plan B. Travel disruptions can occur for many reasons. Having a plan B can save time and frustration.

 

Best/Worst Times to Drive and Peak Congestion by Metro

INRIX, a provider of transportation data and insights, expects Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon to be the most congested periods before Thanksgiving Day. Travelers returning home on Sunday should expect heavy traffic most of the day. Drivers should hit the road in the morning to avoid the worst backups, but keep in mind construction, crashes, or severe weather could impact travel times. Slow Down, Move Over for emergency responders and other stopped vehicles on the side of the road to ensure everyone’s safety. 

 

Holiday Travel Forecast Methodology

 

In cooperation with AAA, S&P Global Market Intelligence (SPGMI) developed a unique methodology to forecast actual domestic travel volumes. The economic variables used to forecast travel for the current holiday are leveraged from SPGMI’s proprietary databases. These data include macroeconomic drivers such as employment, output, household net worth, asset prices including stock indices, interest rates, housing market indicators, and variables related to travel and tourism, including gasoline prices, airline travel, and hotel stays. AAA and SPGMI have quantified holiday travel volumes going back to 2000.

 

Historical travel volume estimates come from MMGY’s TRAVEL PERFORMANCE/MonitorSM. The PERFORMANCE/MonitorSM is a comprehensive study measuring the travel behavior of U.S. residents. MMGY contacts over 50,000 U.S. households each month to obtain detailed travel data, resulting in the unique ability to estimate visitor volume and spending, identify trends, and forecast U.S. travel behavior, all after the trips have been taken.

 

The travel forecast is reported in person-trips. In particular, AAA and SPGMI forecast the total U.S. holiday travel volume and expected mode of transportation. The travel forecast presented in this report was finalized the week of October 20, 2025. 

 

Because AAA holiday forecasts focus on domestic leisure travel only, comparisons to TSA passenger screening numbers should not be made. TSA data includes all passengers traveling on both domestic and international routes, whether traveling for work or leisure. Additionally, TSA screens passengers each time they enter secured areas of the airport, therefore each one-way trip is counted as a passenger tally. AAA focuses on person-trips, which include the full round-trip travel itinerary. As a result, direct comparisons of AAA forecast volumes and daily TSA screenings represent different factors. 

 

INRIX Methodology 

 

INRIX blends statistically grounded models with real-world road behavior to forecast travel conditions on the most heavily traveled routes across the U.S. during peak holiday periods. INRIX’s holiday traffic forecast combines pre-selected high-impact travel routes, rich multi-source traffic data, and a statistically robust linear regression model to generate detailed, time-specific travel delay predictions. INRIX’s data sources include a wide array of vehicle-based and infrastructure-based inputs. These include connected vehicle GPS data, mobile apps and navigation services, roadside sensors and cameras, and commercial fleet telematics. With expansive coverage, high temporal resolution, and historical context, this forecasting process provides essential insights for travelers, media, and agencies alike.

 

Thanksgiving Holiday Travel Period

 

The Thanksgiving holiday travel period is defined as the seven-day period from Tuesday, November 25 to Monday, December 1, 2025. This Thanksgiving travel window was instituted starting in 2024. Historical results were calculated dating back to 2019 using the same seven-day period.