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Health & Fitness

Turkey Trot: Thanksgiving Travel Down From '12

Thanksgiving travel down slightly from 2012; Lowest holiday gas prices since 2010

AAA projects 1.89 million people from Connecticut and the five other New England states—12.9 percent of the region’s population— will journey at least 50 miles from home for Thanksgiving, a decline of 2.5 percent compared to the same period last year. The decrease ends four years of regional travel growth since the recession-driven decline in 2008, when Thanksgiving travel dropped by more than 27 percent.
 
While the economy continues to improve, the sluggish pace of the recovery is creating uncertainty in the minds of some consumers and therefore AAA is projecting a slight decline in the number of Thanksgiving travelers. We are seeing a lot of last-minute requests for travel information. Popular destinations among Connecticut residents include New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Highlights from AAA’s Thanksgiving 2013 Travel Forecast:

  • More than 1.6 million New Englanders plan to travel by automobile, a decline of 2.7 percent compared to last year.
  • Regional holiday air travel is expected to dip 3 percent to 195,000.
  • The largest share of travelers (37 percent) will depart on Wednesday, November 27. Thirty-three percent plan to return on Sunday, December 1.
  • The average New England traveler is expected to log a round-trip distance of 607 miles, compared to 473 miles in 2012.
  • Median spending among travelers from the region is projected to be $563 compared to $425 in 2012.

Gasoline Prices
AAA estimates that Connecticut motorists will pay the cheapest gas prices for the Thanksgiving holiday since 2010. The decreased cost of gas will provide consumers with real savings that could be used for other purposes on the trip. Click here for AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report.

The National Picture
New England travel forecast numbers are comparable with projections for the nation as a whole.  AAA projects 43.4 million Americans will travel for Thanksgiving, a 1.5 percent decline from 2012.  Nationally, auto travel is expected to fall 1.6 percent, while air travel is expected to decline 3.7 percent.

AAA’s projections are based on economic forecasting and research by IHS Global Insight. The complete AAA / IHS Global Insight Thanksgiving 2013 Forecast can be found here. The holiday travel period is defined as Wednesday, November 27 through Sunday, December 1.


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