The AAA has estimated 54.6 million people will travel 50 miles or more from home this Thanksgiving – a 1.5 per cent increase over 2021 and 98 per cent of pre-pandemic volumes.

And the organisation predicts this year will be the third busiest for Thanksgiving travel since it started tracking in 2000.

Nearly 49 million people are expected to travel by car. Thanksgiving road trips have slightly risen – up 0.4 per cent from 2021 – but car travel remains 2.5 per cent below 2019 levels.

However air travel is up nearly eight per cent from 2021, with 4.5 million Americans expected  to fly to their Thanksgiving destinations this year – an increase of more than 330,000 travelers and nearly 99 per cent of the 2019 volume.

“Families and friends are eager to spend time together this Thanksgiving, one of the busiest for travel in the past two decades,” said Paula Twidale, AAA’s Senior Vice President of Travel. “Plan ahead and pack your patience, whether you’re driving or flying.”

Americans are also traveling by other modes of transportation. More than 1.4 million travelers are expected to go out of town for Thanksgiving by bus, train, or cruise ship – an increase of 23 per cent from 2021 and 96 per cent of the 2019 volume.