Millions plan to take to the roads and the skies this Labor Day weekend, which may make the fifth busiest travel weekend a bit of a headache for some. But there are steps travelers can take to make getting to their destination as painless as possible.
Nearly 13 million people are expected to fly to their destinations for the Labor Day holiday, the fifth busiest travel weekend in the U.S. of the year.
More than 12.7 million people plan to fly from U.S. airports between Thursday and Monday, according to travel-booking app Hopper, which also indicated about 1.8 million people are flying abroad.
About 2.6 million people are expected to leave from U.S. airports each day of Labor Day weekend. Peak air travel is expected to occur Friday, and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia, Denver International Airport in Colorado and Los Angeles International Airport in California will be the busiest over the holiday weekend, according to Hopper.
Those taking to the air should plan to pack some patience, as lines are sure to be long and flight delay and cancellation rates are higher than in years past.
Fliers may also want to consider utilizing a new feature on the Department of Transportation’s website that rates airlines for how they treat passengers when flights are delayed or canceled and answer questions such as who offers meal vouchers or hotel rooms to stranded passengers, and who doesn’t.
Though gas prices are about $1 less a gallon than they were earlier this summer—currently averaging nationally at about $3.82 per gallon, according to AAA—tens of millions are expected to hit the road for the long weekend as well.
Experts say travelers planning on driving to their destinations should aim to leave early and plan their route ahead of time.
Drivers should also make sure their car is in good condition in the event they experience excessively hot weather in the traffic in which they undoubtedly experience.
