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May 15 (UPI) -- Americans are gearing up for what is expected to be the third-busiest Memorial Day long weekend for travel since 2000, according to data released Monday by AAA. The association expects 42.3 million Americans to travel farther than 50 miles from home this coming weekend, an increase of 2.7 million people, or 7%, over last year.
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More Americans are also traveling farther distances this year.
Just under 3.4 million travelers are expected to fly to a destination for the long weekend, which amounts to an increase of 11% over last year.
That figure matches numbers from pre-pandemic levels. More than 170,000 more travelers are booking flights for vacations compared to 2019, before the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, a 5.4% increase.
"This is expected to be the third busiest Memorial Day weekend since 2000, when AAA started tracking holiday travel," AAA Travel Senior Vice President Paula Twidale said in a statement.
"More Americans are planning trips and booking them earlier, despite inflation. This summer travel season could be one for the record books, especially at airports," she said.
On the roads, Memorial Day trips using vehicles are up 6% overall, with 37.1 million people planning road trips.
Gas prices are much lower now than in the recent past, which is likely contributing to the increase.
The national average for a gallon of regular fuel stood at $3.535 Monday, according to AAA. That compares to $4.470 one year ago.
