AAA Texas forecasts that a record 5.8 million Texans will travel at least 50 miles from home during the Thanksgiving travel period.
If accurate, the figure represents a 1.1% jump from last year, and the highest ever recorded for the Lone Star State.
AAA predicts that nearly 62,000 more Texans will travel for the holiday compared to 2024, representing a 3.6% increase over the 5.6 million travelers recorded in 2019, before the pandemic.
The automotive membership association also forecasts that a record 81.8 million Americans will travel for Thanksgiving, 1.6 million more than in 2024.
“Thanksgiving travel is a true Texas tradition,” said Galen Grillo, Vice President and General Manager of AAA Texas. “From road trips along I-35 and I-10 to flights out of DFW and Houston, Texans go the distance to spend time with family and friends. It’s one of the busiest—and most meaningful—times to travel each year.”
Nearly nine out of 10 travelers will drive, says AAA. That works out to over 73 million people nationwide, including 5.3 million in Texas. Air travel will be the chosen mode for approximately six million Americans, including 328,000 Texans, a 2% increase from last year, while other modes of transportation, such as trains, will be taken by nearly 2.5 million holiday travelers coast-to-coast.
In terms of costs, Texans can expect to pay around $2.61 per gallon, on average, roughly the same as last year. As for destinations, many residents will be heading to the state’s major cities, such as Dallas, Austin, and Houston. However, some folks will be traveling much further.
Here are the top out-of-state destinations according to AAA booking data:
Domestic
- Orlando, FL
- Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Miami, FL
- Anaheim/Los Angeles, CA
- Tampa, FL
- New York, NY
- San Francisco, CA
- Honolulu, HI
- Las Vegas, NV
- Atlanta, GA
International
- Paris, France
- Amsterdam, Netherlands,
- Vienna, Austria
- Cancun, Mexico
- Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
- Basel, Switzerland
- Sydney, Australia
- Barcelona, Spain
- Budapest, Hungary
- Oranjestad, Aruba