Labor Day weekend travel to increase compared to last year
It appears more Americans are ready to hit the road and the air heading into the three-day holiday weekend.
AAA spokesman Jim Garrity anticipates roads will be busier this Labor Day weekend than last year’s, citing air travel reports he has seen.
Domestic flight bookings are up 4% and international bookings are up 44%, according to AAA. Ground travel projections are not available, Garrity said, as AAA doesn’t conduct those surveys for Labor Day weekend.
“We can look to the air travel stats and see it also will include more people traveling on the roads,” Garrity said of the weekend, which is often considered the unofficial end of summer.
Since those numbers are up by more than 40%, Garrity said, it is evident that other travel will increase, too. He said the majority of people traveling this Labor Day weekend would likely be hitting the road.
“What we are expecting is more people compared to last year. That's part of the growing trend we have seen all year,” Garrity said.
The top five domestic destinations, according to AAA, include Seattle, Orlando, Anchorage, New York and Las Vegas. Seattle tourism has been boosted by the strong demand for Alaska cruises, AAA said.
Florida destinations are popular not only for their beaches and theme parks, but also for their cruise ports in Central Florida, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa and Miami. AAA data shows domestic cruise bookings over Labor Day weekend are up 19% compared to 2022.
Labor Day travel did start as early as Wednesday, Garrity said, with the busiest travel times on roads to be between noon and 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
“Sunday would be a slow day as people are settled into their locations, and then (it will) pick up on Monday and Tuesday,” Garrity said.
As of Aug. 31 the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in Pennsylvania stood at $3.87 — and $3.83 in Butler County.
The national average price for regular gasoline went almost unchanged compared to this time last year. As of Thursday, it stood at $3.82 while last year it was at $3.84.
“We are looking at prices about what they were this time last year nationwide,” Garrity said. “Even when gas prices were at record high last year for the Fourth of July, we still had people projecting to hit the road in high numbers. Gas prices don't seem to be deterring people for leisure travel.”
One of those people who are not being deterred by gas prices is Ren Hilliard, of Butler, who will be traveling this weekend to go camping in Franklin, Venango County.
“It is what it is,” Hilliard said. “I can't do anything about it. I'd rather it be cheaper, but I still need the gas.”
Holly Jones, of Butler, said she is not leaving the area this weekend, but did say gas prices do affect her decision making on a regular basis.
“My husband works from home, so we don't have to spend a lot in gas,” Jones said. “We do think twice about whether we want to go all the way to Cranberry (Township) for an activities.”
The weather outlook for Butler County and the region looks to be right where it needs to be for the unofficial end of summer, according to John Darnley, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh.
“It's looking pretty good actually,” Darnley said. “Through the weekend, there is no precipitation. We have high confidence we are going to have some good temperatures.
“Friday and Saturday should have nice temperatures then it starts to creep up on Sunday.”
Temperatures on Saturday and Sunday were expected to reach the mid 80s. Labor Day could reach the low 90s.
Those traveling north to the Erie region could experience some showers coming off the lake, Darnley said.
“I don't see many showers coming in,” Darnley said. “Mostly out of the northwest, off lake Erie. Other than that, it's looking beautiful.”
