Memorial Day weekend: Avoid traffic jams, crowded places by noting these holiday travel details, predictions

In less than a week from now, people in the United States will look forward to setting a new travel record this summer. With the first long weekend of the season around the corner, thanks to Memorial Day, a large number of Americans are expected to hit the roads to go on trips.

The holiday starts from Thursday, May 22, and will go on till Memorial Day on Monday, May 26.

Memorial Day weekend travel: Key predictions

The American Automobile Association (AAA) recently predicted that over 45 million people -- 45.1 million to be specific -- can go on to travel at least 50 miles, starting from their home. This will happen between May 22 and May 26.


If this happens, it will break the previous record of 44 million people holidaying, which was set two decades ago in 2005.

Also, this year's domestic travel forecast sees a jump of 1.4 million travelers as compared to 2024.

AAA Travel Vice President Stacey Barber highlighted that one of the major aspects behind this is that such getaways are not required to be "extravagant and costly”.

While some look forward to being on their dream vacations, Barber said many families utilise this occasion to simply pack up their vehicles and visit a beach or meet their friends and family.

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Traveling by road? Note these details

As per the AAA projections, most of the people (39.4 million) are expected to travel via car during the Memorial Day weekend.

To avoid long traffic jams, the best time is to drive before 11 AM ET, analytics company INRIX suggests. This is for those travelers who are moving out for travel on Friday (May 23).

On the last day (May 26), make sure that you are headed home well before 2 PM ET, otherwise, there are possibilities of getting stuck on the road.

On May 26, the worst time to travel is between 4 PM and 7 PM ET.

Travel tips for air travelers

In 2025, air travel is predicted to see a 2 per cent jump in travelers during the Memorial Day weekend as compared to last year. In 2024, a total of 3.55 million travelers took to the skies.

Data by AAA suggests that 3.61 million people are anticipated to travel by plane to reach their desired destinations. Further, the domestic flights in the country remain 2 per cent more expensive in 2025 compared to last year. On average, people are spending $850 for a round-trip ticket.

FAQs

What are the top holiday destinations in the US for Memorial Day 2025?
AAA said that top travel destinations within the US territory are Orlando, Seattle, New York, Miami, Las Vegas, and San Francisco.

Where to find affordable hotels during Memorial Day 2025?
Some of the affordable hotel deals can be found in Florida's Kissimmee and Jacksonville, Houston, and Forth Worth.